Morning. The leaves are putting on a show, and Halloween is 11 days out.
This week's Buzz is brought to you by The Christmas Light Guys. They put your lights up, take them down in January, and store them at their place until next year. You never touch a ladder or untangle a single strand. They're a small local crew with limited spots, so book soon. Get a free quote HERE.
Inside: a farmhouse near Markdale that made the Michelin Guide, pumpkins that grow Frankenstein faces, and a free haunted harbour in Meaford.
Let's get into it.
Do you have an event coming up that our readers should know about? Submit your local events HERE to be featured in upcoming editions.
Top 3 this week
Here are our 3 favourite events happening this week
Halloween week, three ways: a haunted park in Owen Sound, a free haunted harbour in Meaford, and a $5 Spook Haus in Teeswater.
Haunt at Harrison — Friday-Sunday, October 23-25 | Fri 5-10 PM, Sat 12-10 PM, Sun 12-9 PM | Harrison Park, Owen Sound
After 6, Harrison Park turns into a lantern walk, scare trails, a haunted house, escape rooms and haunted mini golf. The daytime festival is free Saturday and Sunday, noon to 5. Passes are $32.50, or $20 for kids 12 and under, and it all supports Special Olympics.
Meaford Haunted Harbour — Saturday, October 24 | 1-9 PM | Meaford Harbour
Free all day. Pumpkin carving at 1, a Moonlight Market at 3, and a haunted house at 7 that starts with ghosts and ends with clowns. It's suggested for 10 and up. Bring a donation for the food bank.
Teeswater Spook Haus — Saturday-Monday, October 24-26 | 7-9 PM each night | Teeswater Fairgrounds
A two-storey haunted house with moving floors and a tunnel of terror, for $5. Add the spook walk for $4 and the maze for a buck. Cash only, and every dollar stays in the community.
Help us decide
Port Elgin is winning (so far)
Last week we floated a back-burner idea: one digital punch card for local shops all over Grey-Bruce. Tap your phone at the till and the punch lands on your card.
The town leaderboard is getting interesting. Port Elgin is out front, with Walkerton, Southampton and Hanover tied for second.
If this happens, it starts in the towns with the most sign-ups. Want it in yours? This is your vote.
It's still just an idea. Tell us your town and your go-to shops. Takes 20 seconds.
Then forward this to the friend who's at the same coffee shop every morning.
Full Weekly Calendar
Community Calendar
Our Community Calendar covers Grey & Bruce Counties. It's a large area, so if we missed an event we are sorry, we will do better next time!
630-plus events this week, and plenty of them come in costume. Trick-or-treat trails hit Kincardine, Saugeen Shores and Dundalk on Saturday, the Bruce County Museum has a Halloween night Friday, and The Falls Inn is pouring a haunted afternoon tea Sunday. Plus peak colours, and election day Monday.
It all lives on the map. Open it, find your town, tap a pin, see what's close. Same events, way less scrolling.
3 more worth getting off the couch for:
Douglas Street Haunted House — Durham, Fri and Sat, 5:30-9:30 PM. $5 for the haunted house and the Forsaken Forest, all for the food bank. 5:30 to 6:30 is the Not So Scary Hour.
Williamsford Fall Craft Market — Sat, 10 AM-2 PM. Free, 60-plus vendors, and a raffle for the animal shelter.
Fall colours hike to the Halfway Log Dump lookouts — Bruce Peninsula, Fri, 10 AM. A free 6 km Bruce Trail hike to the lookouts. Only 8 spots were left Monday, so register fast.
Foodie Flash
Down Home - near Markdale
There's a restaurant on a concession road outside Markdale that's in the Michelin Guide. It's also somebody's house.
Joel Gray and Hannah Harradine Gray opened Down Home in their farmhouse four years ago. Joel cooks. Hannah is a trained winemaker who made wine in Portugal and Australia.
This fall it made the Michelin Guide for the third year running, and it's No. 39 on Canada's 100 Best list.
Dinner is one seating, Thursday to Saturday, for about 16 guests: 10 courses, $225 a person. The menu changes every week. Lately that's meant duck smoked over the fire for six hours.
Seats go fast, so join the notify list for cancellations.
Not ready for $225? Their new farm shop sells house preserves, baking, cheese and local meats. Check their page for hours.
The Michelin Guide found its way down a Markdale concession road. Now you know where it is too.
Community Bulletin
Quick hits from around Grey-Bruce
Maggie's a hound with a big heart (and a little extra)
Meet Maggie, a 4-year-old hound cross at the Grey Bruce Animal Shelter. She's foxhound-sized, a little chunky and very sweet, and good with dogs and people. She'll be ready for a home after her shots and spay. Call 519-372-1911 to book a visit.
Election day is Monday. Your ballot might already be open.
Voting closes Monday, October 26 at 8 PM. In Owen Sound, West Grey, Kincardine, Brockton, Saugeen Shores and South Bruce, it's online or by phone, and it's already open. You'll need the PIN from your voter letter. Can't find it? Call your municipal clerk.
Want your thing in next week's Bulletin? Reply to this email.
Hidden Gem of the week
Preposterous Pumpkins - Eugenia
Right next to Eugenia Falls, there's a pumpkin stand where the pumpkins have faces. Frankenstein. Chucky. King Kong. A witch. A skull.
Nobody carves them. Each one grows inside a hand-placed mould, so it comes off the vine shaped like a monster.
Little ones are $15 to $25 and full-size monsters run $75 to $100, plus regular pumpkins and gourds for the porch.
They're open Saturday and Sunday, 10 to 5, through Halloween, but the moulded ones are almost gone. Go soon.
Make a day of it. The falls are right there, and the colours are peaking.
Know a hidden spot that you want to share? Reply to this email and let us know!
Poll of the week
What did you think of this weeks edition?
Thanks for spending a few minutes with us.
If one of today's events sparks a little adventure, hit reply and tell us how it went, we love hearing your stories.
Forward the Buzz: Know a friend who's always asking, "What's happening this weekend?" Pass this email along and help them get in the loop.
Catch you next Tuesday with a fresh batch of local events, hidden gems, and small-town surprises.
Stay curious,
— Cody & The GB Buzz Team
P.S. Quick reminder of how the Buzz works: nobody pays to be a Foodie Flash or a Hidden Gem, ever. Those spots are earned, not sold. The clearly marked sponsor spots are what pay for the rest, and a couple open up every month. Fall is booking now. Want your business in front of 8,000+ neighbours across Grey-Bruce? Hit reply and I'll send you what's available.