From pumpkin shows to book festivals, discover some delightful fall events across the Garden State.
Here are some of Jersey's best bets for fun during October and November.
• Be thrilled by day and frightened at night during Fright Fest at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson. The high jinks happen every Friday, Saturday and Sunday through Nov. 1, plus Oct. 12 (Columbus Day). Family-friendly fun, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., includes the Spooktacular Street Party dance party and the Trick-or-Treat Trail. As darkness descends, zombies fill the midways while visitors navigate terror trails and scare zones. Admission and Fright Fest ticket prices vary. Visit sixflags.com/greatadventure.
• Best-selling authors George Anastasia and Matthew Quick, pictured, will be among writers taking part in the 13th annual Collingswood Book Festival on Oct. 3. The event, held along six blocks of Haddon Avenue from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., will include author presentations, poetry readings and workshops. Visit collingswoodbookfestival.com.
• A wide range of cuisine will be available at the 12th annual Gloucester County Italian Heritage Festival on Oct. 4 at the RiverWinds Community Center in West Deptford. There also will be music, dancing and a street fair. Visit facebook.com/GCItalian.
• The 12th annual South Jersey Pumpkin Show will be held Oct. 9 to 11 at the Salem County Fairgrounds, 735 Harding Highway, Woodstown. Cash prizes will be awarded for the biggest pumpkin and there also will be a pumpkin dessert contest. Visit sjpumpkinshow.com.
• Ocean City's Indian Summer Weekend features a fall block party Oct. 10 along Asbury Avenue, from 5th to 14th streets. There will be boardwalk and downtown table sales, starting at 6th Street, and seafood vendors on the boardwalk at the Music Pier Oct. 10 to 12. Call (800) BEACH-NJ.
• Find more than 400 exotic orchids Oct. 11 at the annual Orchid Auction, sponsored by the Deep Cut Orchid Society. The auction begins at noon, with previews at 11 a.m., at Monmouth Reform Temple, 332 Hance Ave., Tinton Falls. Admission and parking are free. Food and drinks will be available. Call (732) 787-4460 or visit deepcutorchids.com/events.
• Take the Lighthouse Challenge of New Jersey. On Oct. 17 and 18, tour several local lighthouses, select museums and two life-saving stations from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. to help raise funds to preserve these beacons of light; some lighthouses also will have night climbs. Participants can purchase a tri-fold souvenir pamphlet ($1) that can be stamped at each lighthouse as proof of visit. Entrance fees and hours of operation for lighthouses can be found at lighthousechallengenj.org.
• "Strangers in the Night: Poets on Music, Musicians on Poetry" brings poets and musicians together Oct. 18 for an afternoon of song and verse at the Hoboken Historical Museum. The free event, from 3 to 5 p.m., is being hosted by Danny Shot, the museum's poet in residence, and coincides with its Sinatra Centennial exhibit. The museum is located at 1301 Hudson St. Call (201) 656-2240 or visit hobokenmuseum.org.
• Attend Madame Parmentier's Psychic Tea in Cape May on Oct. 24 and you may encounter fortune tellers, palm readers or a phrenologist. Participants could discover what the future holds for them (all in good fun, of course) at the 2:30 p.m. event, being held at the Carriage House Cafe & Tearoom, 1048 Washington St. Cost is $25 per person and reservations are required. Call (800) 275-4278 or visit capemaymac.org.
• Oh, the horror! "Something Wicked This Way Comes: Dracula" is being staged by the Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey. The chilling story of Count Dracula's quest for blood comes to life in a staged reading Oct. 26 at 7:30 p.m. in the F.M. Kirby Shakespeare Theatre, 36 Madison Ave. at Lancaster Road, Madison (on the campus of Drew University). Tickets are $38. Call (973) 408-5600 or visit ShakespeareNJ.org.
• Hungry for some fine art photography? Visit Off the Plate -- an exhibition of "painterly" photographs of food and flowers by photographer Jim Smith -- at the Hat Tavern, in the Grand Summit Hotel, through Nov. 8. The exhibit is sponsored by Reeves-Reed Arboretum (to which Smith will donate 30 percent of art sales) and the hotel, located at 570 Springfield Ave., Summit. Visit reeves-reedarboretum.org.
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