Graveyard Tours, Horror Films & Plenty Of Pumpkins: This Weekend In CT

CONNECTICUT — You pretty much know what to expect in the way of entertainment in Connecticut come mid-October: Town carnivals? Check. Graveyard tours? Check. Pumpkin festivals? Check. A horror film festival at a brewery?

Wait, what…?

Wethersfield, Connecticut's "Most Auncient Towne," will be holding its 15th Annual Cove Side Carnival this weekend. There'll be rides for all ages, along with all the food, vendors, music, games, and fun you've come to expect from these CT towns' big blow outs, but with extra points allotted for the waterside venue at Cove Park. Friday, Oct. 18, 5-10 p.m.; Saturday, Oct. 19, noon-10 p.m.; and Sunday, Oct. 20, noon-6 p.m.

In Farmington, they'll be strumming and humming along at the 9th Annual Farmington Valley Acoustic Festival Saturday, Oct. 19 from 11 a.m to 6 p.m. at Winding Trails, on Dunning Lake. Two stages, 380 acres of forest, and a beer garden at the beach featuring free samples from local breweries, and food trucks await you. Tickets are available online here.

That time of year: Putnam's Great Pumpkin Festival is Saturday, Oct. 19, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. in Downtown Putnam. Expect craft and art vendors, live music, activities for the kids, special pumpkin themed menus, a scarecrow contest and, of course, "The Official Great Pumpkin" contest. Not gourdy enough for you? Journey over to New Britain for Pumpkin Palooza, Friday and Saturday from 6:30 to 9 p.m., for cider, donuts, crafts, games and a full infestation of jack-o'-lanterns along the trails of the Hungerford Nature Center. And New London has built an entire Halloween Town at the newly-spookified New London Waterfront Park. The ghouls will gather Friday, Oct. 18, from 6 to 8:30 p.m.

There's a lot going on at Two Roads Brewing in Stratford this weekend, all part of the brewery's "Roadsmary's Baby Pumpkin Fest Weekend." Start with the horror film screening competition and party on Friday from 5 to 10 p.m., then segue into the 7th annual Roadsmary's Baby Pumpkin Fest on Saturday from 4 to 10 p.m. Finish everything off with more suds and hi-jinks on Sunday, noon to 5 p.m. at the Roadsmary's Baby Family Fall Fest. The full event roster and details are online here.

Not to be outdone, the Bad Sons Beer Company in Derby will be holding their own Beer Fest on Saturday from 1 to 4:30 p.m. The festival will feature a Home Brew Competition, beer (obviously), seltzer and liquors from 30 local, regional and national breweries/distilleries. Tickets are available online here.

It's mid-October in Connecticut, and cemetery tours are big. We don't get it, but we got you covered: On Saturday, two tours of the Warner Cemetery in East Haddam will step off from the Palmer-Warner House, at 2 p.m. and 3 p.m. Participants will have the opportunity "to closely examine epitaphs and iconography up close, as well as engage in a thoughtful discussion about the rich diversity of New England’s remembrance practices." Register online here.

Looking for something a little more spooky and a tad less cerebral? Hold the romp at night, and give everyone a lantern, to start with. That's the winning formula at the Glebe House Museum in Woodbury. It also helps that the museum itself is legitimately haunted. Tours will leave the museum grounds for the cemetery every ten minutes beginning at 5:30 p.m. on Saturday, with a final tour at 8:30 p.m. Space is limited, so advance ticket purchase is recommended.