Labor Day may be in the rearview mirror and the kids are back in school, but that doesn’t mean the fun has to end. On the South Shore, September and October bring a different kind of energy ‒ cooler air, colorful foliage and plenty of ways to get outside before winter sets in.
From strolling through conservation land on a guided nature walk to spotting humpbacks and finbacks feeding off Stellwagen Bank, fall is one of the best times to enjoy the region. Add in outdoor beer gardens, live music under the lights and festivals that keep the party going well past summer, and you’ll find that the South Shore is just hitting its stride.
Haven’t been to an outdoor concert yet this year? Levitate Backyard Concert Series isn’t over yet. (Most shows are even free)
When and where: Various dates in September and October, Levitate Backyard, 1871 Ocean St., Marshfield
The Levitate Surf Shop is best known for launching the massive Levitate Music & Arts Festival, which each July transforms the Marshfield Fairgrounds into one of New England’s biggest music and arts gatherings.
The Backyard Concert Series is its more intimate offshoot: a relaxed, open-air venue tucked behind the surf shop that keeps the music going throughout the fall.
Alongside live performances, visitors can grab food from local vendors, enjoy craft drinks and soak up the crisp early-fall evenings under the lights.
This year’s lineup includes:
- Sept 11: Mini Yellow Witches / ’90s Nostalgia Night
- Sept 12: Blue Light Bandits
- Sept 13: Mike Pinto
- Sept 17: Sam Chase
- Sept 18: Lindsey Buck with Thirsty Boots Duo
- Sept 19: Gracie Grace & All the Good Boys
- Sept 20: Double Tiger
- Oct 3: Steve Rondo
- Oct 4: Greg Loftus
- Oct 5: Total Strangers
- Oct 6: Dudemanbro
- Oct 7: Deer Tick with Gymshorts
- Oct 10: Maya Manuela
- Oct 11: Miss Julia Violet
- Oct 12: The Crowded Table
Admission is free for most shows. For more information, visit levitatebackyard.com/events-calendar
When and where: Saturday, Sept. 13, noon to 10 p.m. Widowmaker Brewing, 220 Wood Road, Braintree
Widowmaker Brewing celebrates eight years with an all-day outdoor party featuring guest taps, giveaways and live music, including an Ozzy Osbourne tribute set by Blizzard of Ozzy at 6 p.m.
Widowmaker opened its Braintree taproom in 2017 and expanded with a second location in Brighton in 2023.
Admission is free, with food and beer available for purchase. For more information, visit widowmakerbrewing.com.
Beer gardens, Oktoberfest keep local breweries and taprooms busy straight into fall
Breweries keep the season lively with outdoor seating, food trucks and music ‒ Split Rock in Cohasset and its new North Scituate location, Stellwagen in Marshfield, Untold in Scituate and Plymouth, Barrel House Z in Weymouth, Second Wind in Plymouth and Vitamin Sea in Weymouth and Plymouth all pour pints under the autumn sky, while the Mayflower Brewing Co. Beer Garden at The Pinehills in Plymouth runs through mid-October. Several layer in Oktoberfest events, giving beer lovers even more reason to raise a stein.
Flavors of fall fuel farm fun: Pumpkins smashed from cranes, a corn maze, hayrides
Fall farm traditions add another layer of fun. In Scituate, R & C Farms draws families for its Pumpkin Drop Festival on Columbus Day weekend, complete with candy-filled pumpkins smashed from cranes, a corn maze, hayrides and a farm market.
Nearby, Sauchuk’s Corn Maze and Pumpkin Patch in Plympton opens Sept. 13 with acres of winding paths and pick-your-own pumpkins, while October brings cranberry bog tours out of Carver, where visitors can watch the iconic wet harvest.
Not quite ready for fall? How about a sunflower maze instead? Ward’s Berry Farm in Sharon, for the second year, has a maze on a one-acre parcel. It might be the happiest maze on earth. The maze is open daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tickets are $10 per person, but children 3 and under are free. This maze is not for picking, though there is a separate field for that. To check out all the other things going on at Ward’s, go to wardsberryfarm.com.
King Richard’s Faire
When and where: Weekends through Sunday, Oct. 19, including Columbus Day (Oct. 13), 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. 5 Pine St., Carver.
Carver’s Renaissance village spans 80 wooded acres and features jousting tournaments, stage shows, fire eaters, magicians, musicians and more than 100 artisan shops. Food stands serve classics like turkey legs and craft beverages, and visitors are welcome to attend in costume.
Admission is $46 for adults, $26 for children ages 4–11, and free for kids under 4. Parking is free. For more information, visit kingrichardsfaire.net
Paddle your way to inner peace
Fall is an ideal season for paddling: the air is crisp, the waterways calmer and foliage reflections all the more vivid. The North and South Rivers Watershed Association offers flexible guided experiences ‒ from single-day or multi-day Kayak Adventures with certified guides, to ecology-rich programs that mix paddling with water testing and wildlife spotting
For self-guided paddlers, check out, the association’s Canoe and Kayak Guide at NSRWA.org.
Don’t count out an ocean swim: Trade a cold dip on a warm day for a warm-as-it-gets dip on a cool day
The beaches themselves remain a fall draw.
Nantasket in Hull, Duxbury Beach, Scituate’s town beaches, Marshfield’s stretch from Rexhame to Brant Rock and Plymouth’s Long Beach are all open year-round.
The lifeguards and snack bars shut down after Labor Day, but so do the parking fees, making September and October prime months for long shoreline walks.
At Nantasket, some comfort stations remain open, and the Paragon Carousel spins weekends into early October with reduced hours. And if you’re tempted by a late swim, September usually brings the warmest ocean water of the year to the Northeast, averaging 65–69 degrees Fahrenheit.
Farmers markets and festivals art home in autumn
Farmers markets don’t all close up when summer ends, as many South Shore towns keep theirs running well into October, and some even later.
Hingham’s market stretches all the way to the Saturday before Thanksgiving, while Hanover runs monthly through November and Braintree caps its season with a special Thanksgiving indoor market.
Closer to the coast, Cohasset, Scituate and Plymouth all continue into late October, with vendors bringing in Kingston’s first-Sunday market also carries through October, and Quincy’s downtown market runs on Fridays into the fall as well.
Together, they give South Shore residents plenty of chances to stock up on local produce, baked goods and crafts even after the beach crowds have gone home.
Labor Day isn’t the end of the whale watching season
Whale watching off the South Shore is one of the season’s biggest natural spectacles.
In the summer months, humpbacks, finbacks and minkes flock to Stellwagen Bank and Cape Cod Bay to feed on sand lance, making June through August the peak time for sightings.
In the fall, whales begin their migration south, so numbers taper, but early to mid-October can still bring memorable encounters as humpbacks breach against a backdrop of autumn skies.
Captain John Boats departs from 10 Town Wharf in Plymouth through October, with trips running Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Tours last about 3½ to 4 hours and are led by naturalists, offering close-up looks at whales before they head south for the winter.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.patriotledger.com ’
