NJ Lighthouse Challenge, Cranberry Festival, Fall Float Top Events In New Jersey This Week

Hey there! Hope you had a great weekend – the weather sure was beautiful! My family and I enjoyed some time on a local farm and spent much of the weekend outdoors. This week, there are a ton of fantastic New Jersey events coming up. We’ve got the great Lighthouse Challenge of New Jersey, an awesome festival celebrating the New Jersey cranberry harvest, a journey through time in Union County, and lots more! Read on for the top five things to do in New Jersey this week…

1. Chatsworth Cranberry Festival

October 17 & 18, 2015
9am-4pm
Free admission; $5 parking fee for parking at the school (recommended)

Route 563
Chatsworth, New Jersey

The 32nd annual Chatsworth Cranberry Festival celebrates New Jersey’s cranberry harvest (the 3rd largest in the US) and is a tribute to the local arts and culture of the New Jersey Pine Barrens. This family-friendly South Jersey event – the second largest cranberry festival in the country – features many local artists and craftsmen, some of whom will be demonstrating their crafts as well as offering their items for sale. Other highlights of the Chatsworth Cranberry Festival include breakfast each morning (6-11 am) at the Chatsworth Volunteer Fire House, Southern/Classic Rock performed by the Bullzeye Band, an antique and classic automobile show featuring over 100 automobiles (9am -4pm Sunday), antique dealers and a Quilt Display. Limited cranberry bog tours will be offered. Fresh cranberries and cranberry products will be offered for sale.

2. Lighthouse Challenge of New Jersey

October 17 & 18
8am-6pm (extended hours at lighthouses offering night climbs)

All New Jersey Lighthouses

New Jersey Lighthouses and select museums and life-saving stations will host the “Lighthouse Challenge of New Jersey” this weekend. Visitors can enjoy an opportunity to explore the state and visit each lighthouse in New Jersey over the course of a weekend. Lighthouses have played a significant role in New Jersey’s history, protecting our coasts and guarding mariners for over 100 years. The Lighthouse Challenge offers visitors the opportunity to step back in time and learn more the history of New Jersey and our nation, as well as the role that lighthouses have played in that history. A souvenir will be offered at each stop along the challenge. The New Jersey Lighthouse Challenge helps to raise funds for the continued preservation of New Jersey lighthouses. Night climbs will be offered at Absecon, Cape May, Tinicum, and Tuckerton lighthouses from 6-8pm on Saturday. Climbing fee applies at some lighthouses. To learn more about New Jersey’s lighthouses, check out this post!

New Jersey lighthouses, museums, and life-saving stations participating in the Lighthouse Challenge include:

• Absecon
• Barnegat
• Cape May
• East Point
• Finn’s Point
• Hereford Inlet
• Navesink Twins
• Sandy Hook
• Sea Girt
• Tinicum
• Tucker’s Island
• Tatham
• U.S. Life Saving Station 30
• Barnegat Light Historical Museum

3. Hoboken Harvest Festival

October 17th, 2015
11:00am – 3:00pm
Free event

Pier A Park
100 Sinatra Drive
Hoboken, New Jersey

Head on over to Pier A Park for a day of family-friendly fall fun including pumpkin painting, live music and dancing, a hay maze, a trackless train, horse and carriage rides, inflatable rides, a petting zoo, pony rides, craft activities, face painting, local vendors, delicious food, and much more!

4. Fall Foliage Family Float Festival

October 18, 2015
9:00am – 4:00pm
Free event

Historic Smithville Park
803 Smithville Road
Eastampton, New Jersey

Enjoy an day of canoeing and kayaking on the Rancocas Creek or Smithville Lake and take in the beautiful fall foliage as you float along. Launching takes place at Historic Smithville Park. After your paddling trip has concluded, you’ll be will be shuttled back to Smithville Park for a fun-filled autumn day of great food, music by Zydeco-a-go-go, and activities for all ages including hayrides, face painting, a juried art exhibit, games, magic, scarecrows on parade, and lots more!

5. Four Centuries in a Weekend

October 17 & 18, 2015
Free event

28 Locations Throughout Union County
Union County, New Jersey

Four Centuries in a Weekend is an award-winning program that began in 1994. It was the first of its kind in New Jersey, and it has been growing ever since. This year’s event includes more than two dozen historic sites and museums, from simple farmhouses to extravagant mansions, which tell the story of Union County’s evolution from the Colonial era Elizabethtown of 1664 into the twenty-one bustling cities and towns that make up Union County today. Highlights of the weekend will include:

• Revolutionary War reenactments
• the opportunity to “meet” Molly Pitcher (as portrayed by historic reenactor)
• guided hikes
• theatrical and musical performances
• old-fashioned children’s games
• archaeological activities
• talks and tours led by local historians
• demonstrations of apple cider pressing, open-hearth cooking, spinning fiber, farming techniques, and more!

Looking for more things to do in New Jersey this week? Check out Things To Do In New Jersey’s October Calendar of Events!

Featured Photo Credit: MAC via Flickr

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