Fireworks, festivals, tours & Whitey Bulger: 12 top things to do on Cape Cod Oct. 7-13
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The fall festivals continue this weekend, with events including a revamped Harvest Bazaar in Brewster, days of activities and music in Osterville and Mashpee, and a three-day seaside celebration in Yarmouth that ends with a bang.
Culinary events bring visitors a taste of what Dennis restaurants and Nauset Regional High School students can create. A Falmouth house tour includes decorations for fall and a Mashpee fundraising tour takes you out to nature.
Other highlights include a new museum exhibit, a week of talking about death, a movie about Sandwich, and a lecture by a juror who helped convict notorious criminal Whitey Bulger. Take a look:
'Unfreedom' exhibit on view at Vineyard museum
The Martha’s Vineyard Museum has opened an exhibit called “Unfreedom,” exploring three kinds of unfreedom in the history of the Island: enslavement, indentured servitude and incarceration. The exhibit focuses on the stories of 12 individuals who were caught up in the three institutions, based on museum archive information. The display, according to an announcement, examines “the interwoven stories of those who suffered unfreedom and those who benefitted from it, as well as its lasting impact on families and communities. Though centered on the Island’s past, it invites visitors to consider the nuanced ways in which unfreedom continues to affect and define our present.”
When: On exhibit through Feb. 12; open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Sunday (until 5 p.m. through Oct. 10)
Where: Martha’s Vineyard Museum, 151 Lagoon Pond Road, Vineyard Haven
Admission: $18, $15 for seniors, $5 for children 7 to 17, free for children 6 and under and members. Islander rates are available.
Information: https://mvmuseum.org/
Dozens of family activities at Yarmouth fest
The Yarmouth Seaside Festival will offer three days of family-oriented events, Saturday through Monday, with dozens of activities capped by fireworks off Seagull Beach in West Yarmouth on Sunday night, and featuring the new “Chalk Full of Fun” Family Chalkfest on Monday morning. Events, according to the festival website, will include an arts and crafts fair, rides and games, live music, kids’ entertainment and a variety of food vendors. Shows inside two kids’ tents will include Bonaparte the Magician, the Seaside Clowns, the Toe Jam Puppet Band and Cool Banana Wigs. Bands will include the Mojo Kings, the Grab Brothers, the Placeholders, Cape Jazz Band, the Judge & the Sinner, Rock Harbor III and North Country.
When and where: Saturday and Sunday at Joshua Sears Memorial Field (28 Wood Road, South Yarmouth), with some specific events including pumpkin decorating (10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday), Birds of Prey shows (1, 2:30 and 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday), a pie-eating contest (1 p.m. Saturday), and a Kooks & Spooks Parade (3 p.m. Saturday).
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There will be a Beach Bonfire at Bass River Beach in South Yarmouth (also known as Smugglers Beach, from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday); and a road race along Bass River (registration at 8 a.m. behind Bridgewater State University, 1175 Route 28, race at 9 a.m.). The fireworks will be set off at 8 p.m. Sunday at Seagull Beach in West Yarmouth.
Monday’s activities move to Bass River Beach and include a Family Sand Sculpture Contest from 9 a.m. to noon; the new Family Chalk Fest from 9 a.m. to noon; and a canoe/kayak race, with registration at 9 a.m. An after-race party and awards will take place at noon at Sea Dog Brew Pub (23 White’s Path, South Yarmouth).
Admission: Free
Information on all: https://yarmouthseasidefestival.com/event-schedule/. Organizers say updates will be posted on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yarmouthseasidefestival.
Falmouth house tour a visit to the past
Several historic houses on the Falmouth Town Green will be open for touring Saturday and the sharing of stories of colorful characters who founded the town. The event, sponsored by the Falmouth Garden Club in cooperation with the Museums on the Green, will feature seven decorated for the season. Among them will be three homes in the seaside neighborhood of Belvidere Plains; and two in The Moors, one of the earliest community associations dating back to 1925.
When: Timed tickets at 10 a.m., 11 a.m. and noon, ending at 3 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8
Where: Starting with tour itinerary pick-up at the welcome center of Museums on the Green, 55 Palmer Ave., Falmouth
Tickets: $30 in advance, $35 on the day of the tour
Information: www.falmouthgardenclub.org
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Osterville celebrates the fall
The annual Osterville Village Fall Festival Day will include events throughout the village, including music, children’s activities, shopping deals and more. A dog parade will begin at 10 a.m. at Osterville Village Library and its in-house big band will play from 2 to 3 p.m.
When: 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 9
Where: Osterville Village Library, 43 Wianno Ave., and throughout the village
Information: https://experienceosterville.ning.com/
Fall is also the focus at Mashpee Commons
The Mashpee Commons shopping plaza will host its annual Fall Fest on Saturday with fall-inspired and family-friendly activities in various parts of the “neighborhood.” There will be live music (Catie Flynn, noon to 2 p.m.; Brian Sances, 2 to 4 p.m.), face-painting, balloon twisting, pumpkin painting, fall coloring pages, fall treats, a variety of vendors and an Instagram photo contest and balloon wall.
When: 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8
Where: Mashpee Commons, between routes 28 and 151 at the Mashpee Rotary
Admission: Free
More information: https://mashpeecommons.com/events/fallfest2022/
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Farm & Sea-To-Table event spotlights local food
Nauset Regional High School Culinary Arts students will offer treats made with locally produced foods donated by area farms, fishermen and seafood markets at the eighth annual Farm & Sea-To-Table Dinner & Auctions on Saturday. Representatives of the Orleans Farmers Market, Food Forest Initiative of Cape Cod and local farms will be on hand with information, ideas and to answer questions, and chefs will give demonstrations and share tips. Dinner will include an oyster bar courtesy of Brewster Aquaculture & other oyster farmers with house-made hot sauce using Scotch Bonnet peppers, sushi platters from Mac’s Seafood, Caribbean pumpkin coconut soup, West African stew, harvest salad, garden harvest bread, cheese biscuits from Spoon & Seed, breads from PB Boulangerie Bistro, cranberry-beach plum preserves and cranberry butter, and ice cream sandwiches and cookies. The evening also includes live music, an online silent auction and a live wine auction. Proceeds benefit Eat Local/Eat Clean Food Initiatives and Culinary Travel Scholarships.
When: 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8
Where: Courtyard at Nauset Regional High School, 100 Cable Road, Eastham
Tickets: $10 (students)/$25, or two for $40 (adults) / $175 (table of eight)
Reservations: www.eventbrite.com
Information: www.nausetschools.org
‘Love Letter to Cape Cod’ on screen in Sandwich
The Sandwich Historical Commission will present the documentary “Love Letter to Cape Cod” Saturday at Sandwich Town Hall with the chance to meet the film’s producer, John Yacobian, and the founder of Protect Our Past (POP), Ellen Briggs. The mission of POP is to educate Cape residents, part-time residents, and visitors about the importance of saving parts of the area's history.
When: 6 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 8
Where: Sandwich Town Hall, 130 Main St.
Tickets: Free
Information: sandwichhistory.org
To watch the trailer: www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaKC59z6Mtw
Find food and fun at Harvest Bazaar
After a two-year hiatus, Brewster Historical Society will bring back its fall Harvest Market with a new name: Harvest Bazaar. In addition to vendors offering fresh produce, grass-fed pork and beef, seafood, artisan’s products and more, there will be free pumpkin painting and a scavenger hunt for children. Every child in costume will receive a prize. Old Higgins Farm Windmill and Harris-Black House will be open for tours, and there will be blacksmith demonstrations in the Hopkins Blacksmith Shop.
When: 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 9
Where: Bayside Park on Route 6A, adjacent to Windmill Village at 51 Drummer Boy Road, Brewster
Admission: Free
Information: https://www.brewsterhistoricalsociety.org/
Refuge group walks for the wild
The Friends of Mashpee National Wildlife Refuge will host its annual Walk for the Wild 5K Challenge, which supporters can join for a particular event or on their own to celebrate National Wildlife Refuge Week. Participants may walk, jog, hike, stroll or move in any other way for the 3.1 miles through nature, either at the event or anytime Oct. 8-15.
When: 10 a.m. to noon Monday, Oct. 10 (or on your own Oct. 8-15)
Where: Jehu Pond Conservation Area, beginning and ending at either the Great Oak Road or Red Brook Road trailheads. (The route will be mapped and refuge volunteers will be available as guides.)
Admission: Free, but donations appreciated (a portion of all donations will be matched by national supporters)
Registration and information: https://support.americaswildliferefuges.org/team/441111
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Learn and talk about death at week of events
The Lily House, described as a community home for living and dying in Wellfleet, will hold six days of events in Provincetown titled “Nothing To Be Afraid Of … Let’s Talk About Death.” The activities will include free death education programs, art activities and conversation, with topics including home funerals, building and leaving a legacy, navigating pet loss, the use of psychedelics at the end of life and medical aid in dying. Lily House, according to an announcement of the week, “is committed to providing education and resources to help us make mindful end-of-life choices and accept death and dying as a natural and transformative human experience.”
When: Monday, Oct. 10 through Saturday, Oct. 15
Where: Provincetown Commons, 46 Bradford St.
Admission: Free
Registration and information: https://www.thelilyhouse.org/
Author who was juror at Whitey Bulger trial talks in Chatham
Janet Uhlar, an author and screenwriter, will share her perspective on infamous Boston criminal Whitey Bulger and “the circumstances of his criminality, creation, and even his ultimate murder” as part of the Chatham Historical Society’s Tuesday Talks. Uhlar served on the jury that convicted Bulger and subsequently began a correspondence with him during his imprisonment. The program on her experience is called “Whitey Bulger: Probing the Narrative.”
When: 5 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 11
Where: Atwood Museum, 347 Stage Harbor Road, Chatham
Tickets: $10 for non-members, members are free
Information and reservations: www.chathamhistoricalsociety.org
Get multiple tastes of Dennis restaurants in one place
The Dennis Chamber of Commerce will present its 16th annual Taste of Dennis, featuring culinary creations and signature dishes by chefs from the town’s restaurants, eateries and markets. The all-you-can-eat event will include a silent auction with items donated by local businesses and organizations, and 50/50 raffle, with proceeds helping chamber activities and scholarships.
When: 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Oct. 13
Where: The Pelham House Resort, 14 Sea St., Dennis Port
Tickets: $50
Registration and information: https://dennischamber.com/ or 508-398-3568
For your event to be considered for a Best Bet, please submit information at least two weeks in advance to bestbets@capecodonline.com.
This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Cape Cod things to do: Fireworks, festivals, Bulger, walk for wild
