1. Donauschwaben Oktoberfest
While not the largest Oktoberfest in the area, Donauschwaben Oktoberfest is the most authentic. The family-friendly festival features a Kinderplatz area with games, activities and a playground for kids, live music, dancing, log sawing contests, a car show and plenty of hearty food and drinks. There are over 30 imported and domestic beers on draft – including favorites such as Hofbrauhaus, Warsteiner and Paulaner – pit-roasted Bavarian pig and chicken, homemade German sausage, stuffed cabbage, goulash with spatzle, homemade pastries and more.
The festival officially kicks off Saturday afternoon with an opening ceremony showcasing a “Trachten Parade” with over 150 participants dressed in authentic German costumes. There’s onsite parking and convenient shuttle parking from ABC Daycare and St. John Dry Ridge School. Donauschwaben Oktoberfest runs from 6 p.m.-midnight Friday (car show from 10 a.m.-3 p.m.), 1 p.m.-midnight Saturday, and 10 a.m.-8 p.m. Sunday at 4290 Dry Ridge Road, Colerain Township. Admission is $5 per person. cincydonau.com.
2. Mindful Joy: A Music and Art Collaborative
Baker Hunt Art and Cultural Center (620 Greenup St., Covington) hosts a socially distant indoor and outdoor art opening showcasing new paintings by acclaimed Cincinnati artist Cedric Michael Cox. The exhibit’s title is a reference to the contemplative inner peace the artist experiences when creating art, and the works themselves embody a feeling of separating from negativity and celebrating the enduring positive spirit of humanity through passionate color. Only 50 people can enter the Baker Hunt ballroom at a time, so guests are invited to enjoy refreshments, appetizers and the music of modern master violinist Preston Charles III while touring the campus gardens.
The reception runs from 5:30-8:30 p.m. Friday and the exhibition will be on view through Oct. 31. While the reception is free, due to safety guidelines, visitors need to call ahead to reserve their time slot for the opening. Call 859-431-0020 or visit bakerhunt.org.
3. Hueston Woods Apple Butter Festival
“Double, double, toil and trouble, fire burn and cauldron bubble” may be a rhyming couplet from Shakespeare’s “Macbeth,” but it’s also a fairly accurate description for the process of making apple butter. Those of us with roots in Appalachia can probably recall the “toil and trouble” of picking, peeling and chopping up mountains of apples in preparation, but we also know the end result – a deliciously thick and buttery caramelized apple spread – is worth the time and effort.
Whether you are familiar with the process or just interested to learn more, this traditional fall festival provides a window into what life was like on a 19th-century farm. You get to see apple butter-making demonstrations in the pioneer fashion as well as demonstrations of other pioneer crafts like blacksmithing, tractor baling, spinning and weaving. Tours of the Doty homestead and barn – both of mid-1800s vintage and exhibiting a broad display of museum artifacts – take place throughout the festival.
In addition, you can enjoy visits with alpacas, live bluegrass music and presentations by a Hueston Woods park naturalist, plus you’ll be able to buy traditional fall items like cider, apple butter, fresh apples, gourds and pumpkins. The Apple Butter Festival runs from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at the Doty Homestead, Hueston Woods State Park, 6924 Brown Road, Oxford. Admission is $4, free ages under 12. oxfordmuseumassociation.com.
4. Sunflower Festival
Another historic farm hosting a festival this weekend is Gorman Heritage Farm (10052 Reading Road, Evendale). The Sunflower Festival features live music, hayrides, pumpkins, a craft marketplace, a corn maze and a sunflower maze, farm animal meet and greets, mule-drawn carriage rides, food trucks, the High Grain beer garden and cut-your-own sunflowers ($1 per stem).
The festival takes place from 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Saturday and Sunday, rain or shine. Admission is $10, $5 ages 3-17 and ages 60-up. Advance tickets are required, no tickets will be sold at the gate. gormanfarms.org.
5. Pumpkin Patch Express
Wear your autumn sweater and climb aboard the Pumpkin Patch Express for old-fashioned train travel through a countryside dotted with fall’s bright flame of color. You’ll ride in restored 1930s Lackawanna coach cars during the two-hour journey, which includes scarecrow hosts making balloon pumpkins for the kids, and a layover at a field where passengers will receive a small pie pumpkin and enjoy a variety of fall activities before returning to the station.
Pumpkin Patch Express runs at 10 a.m., 12:30 and 3 p.m. Saturday and Sunday through the end of October at Lebanon Mason & Monroe Railroad, 16 E. South St., Lebanon. Tickets are $25 for adults, $20 for ages 2-16 and seniors over age 62, and $5 for infants 1-year and younger. lebanonrr.com.
Honorable mention: Tri-State Antiques Market
The final Tri-State Antiques Market of the season takes place Sunday at the Lawrenceburg Fairgrounds (351 E. Eads Parkway) and it’s traditionally one of the best ones for bargain hunters because vendors are looking to sell before the winter months when antique shows are few and far between. You’ll find over 200 vendors selling antique, vintage and retro merchandise from a variety of time periods. Early bird admission is at 6 a.m., with regular admission from 7 a.m.-3 p.m. Admission is $4. lawrenceburgantiqueshow.com.
Honorable mention: The Warrior Run
One in five individuals live with a diagnosable mental illness – it’s more common than you think. In July 2008, Mariemont resident Jim Miller was lost to suicide. A group of his friends started the Jim Miller Memorial Mile as a way to commemorate Miller, who had coached Mariemont recreational track and recreational soccer. This race is now the Warrior Run, which supports 1N5, an Ohio-based non-profit that increases awareness and education about mental health in teens and adults. Participants can complete the 5K/1 mile on the official Warrior Run course, or virtually wherever you are. The in-person race starts at 5:15 p.m. Saturday at the Bell Tower at Dogwood Park, 3706 Pleasant St., Mariemont. An afterparty of music, kids’ games, food and fun follows the race. Registration is $35-$45 adults, $10 ages 5-22, free for ages under 5. cincywarriorrun.org.
Honorable mention: OTR 5K and Kids Fun Run
This popular race features highly coveted Rookwood Pottery medals to the top finishers, but nearly as popular are the race shirts, where this year you get the option to tie-dye the shirt after the race. Now in its 14th year, the OTR 5K run/walk takes participants through the city’s historic Over-the-Rhine and Pendleton neighborhoods, starting and ending at 13th and Republic streets. Afterward, stay for the post-race celebration in Washington Park (1230 Elm St.), with live music, family-friendly activities and a local vendor market. The race and post-party run from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday, but stick around for the FC Cincinnati pre-game festivities from 4 p.m. until game time. Race proceeds benefit OTR Chamber of Commerce. $40, $10 for kids fun run. otrchamber.com/otr5k.
