Sandy Smith
| Fri, 9.25.26|Issue #52|Penobscot Valley |
Old Town Riverfest Turns 30 This Weekend
For 30 years, Riverfest has given Old Town a reason to gather downtown, and this weekend the celebration returns for three days, September 25–27.
Things get underway Friday evening at Binette Park from 6–9 PM with food trucks, music and fireworks. Then Saturday morning brings one of Riverfest’s best-known traditions — the parade through Old Town, beginning at 10 AM. The UMaine Marching Band is among those scheduled to take part in this year’s anniversary celebration.
If you’re heading toward Old Town or Indian Island Saturday morning, there’s one important thing to know before you go: Main Street/Route 43 will close to general traffic at 9:30 AM ahead of the parade. Give yourself a little extra time.
What makes Riverfest worth leading this Weekend Edition isn’t simply that it’s another event on the calendar. Thirty years is a pretty good run for a community celebration. Generations of families have watched the parade, wandered downtown, bumped into neighbors and made Riverfest part of their September.
And this year, Old Town gets to celebrate that history while making a few more memories.
Riverfest 2026
We’ll have more weekend choices below, but if you’re looking for one place where a lot of the Valley will be gathering, Old Town is a good place to start. |
Thirty years of Riverfest says a lot about Old Town. Events don’t last that long unless people keep showing up, pitching in and making them part of the community.
That’s one of the things I like about this weekend. From Old Town to Lincoln, Dover-Foxcroft, Bangor and the smaller towns in between, there are plenty of reasons to get out and spend a little time close to home.
We’ve done the digging for you. Here’s what’s worth knowing before the weekend gets underway.
— Sandy |
Treworgy Family Orchards — Levant
This week’s Hidden Gem really earns the title. Treworgy Family Orchards has been voted the Best Corn Maze in the USA for five straight years, and the 2026 design may be one of its most striking yet — a Statue of Liberty maze celebrating America’s 250th anniversary. Treworgy says its maze is also the longest continually running corn maze in Maine.
The four-acre maze is made from about 60,000 corn plants, with riddles and stations along the way. Finish the puzzle and you can turn in your ticket for a free kiddie soft-serve cone.
Treworgy Family Orchards
For a place this close to home to keep winning nationally year after year is pretty remarkable. This one belongs on the fall list. |
Common Ground Country Fair
The 50th annual Common Ground Country Fair runs Friday through Sunday, September 25–27, at MOFGA’s Common Ground Education Center, 294 Crosby Brook Road in Unity. Gates are open 9 AM–6 PM Friday and Saturday and 9 AM–5 PM Sunday. At-the-gate admission this weekend is $25 for adults 18–64 and $20 for seniors 65+, veterans and youth ages 13–17. Children 12 and under are free, although MOFGA still requires a ticket reservation for them.
If crowds aren’t your thing, Sunday may be the better choice. MOFGA specifically recommends Sunday for smaller crowds, lighter traffic and a more relaxed pace.
This is a big one — more than 1,000 exhibitors and speakers and hundreds of scheduled activities covering farming, gardening, food, crafts, forestry and rural living. Give yourself time. This isn’t really a “stop in for an hour” kind of fair. |
Northern Maine Outdoor Movie Fest — Dover-Foxcroft
5th Annual Recovery Palooza — Bangor Waterfront
Chinese Mid-Autumn Festival — Bangor Public Library
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Brewer Fall Book Sale + Lego Fun Time — Saturday
Taste of Lincoln Showcase — Saturday Night
Mahjongg at the Orono Public Library — Saturday
Knitting Social — Brewer — Friday Morning |
Friday, September 25
Hampden Farmers’ Market
Newport Community Market
Saturday, September 26
Brewer Farmers’ Market
Orono Farmers’ Market
Bangor European Market
Dover Cove Farmers’ Market
Sunday, September 27
Bangor Farmers’ Market
Howland Farmers’ Market
September is winding down, but there’s still plenty coming out of Maine gardens, farms and kitchens. This is a good weekend to stock up while the seasonal markets are still running. |
MAC Heat Pumps — Bangor
MAC Heat Pumps is a good example of a Maine company that grew by solving a very Maine problem.
Adam Barker-Hoyt started Maine Alternative Comfort in 2011 after looking closely at energy costs, heating technology and ways Mainers could reduce their dependence on oil. The company became MAC Heat Pumps in 2016 and has since installed thousands of systems in homes and businesses across Maine.
What I like about MAC is the emphasis on education, service and long-term customer care, not simply selling equipment. Their work includes installation, repair, troubleshooting, preventive maintenance and system upgrades.
MAC Heat Pumps
A locally built company, still led by its founder, and one that has become a familiar name in Maine home comfort. |
A weekend like this is a good reminder of how much is happening close to home if we pay attention.
Old Town is celebrating 30 years of Riverfest. Treworgy is drawing national attention again with its corn maze. Common Ground is marking 50 years. And all across the Valley, local businesses, farms and community groups are still doing the steady work that gives these places their character.
None of that happens by accident. It happens because people keep showing up. They volunteer. They open the doors. They organize the parade. They plant the field. They stay late, get up early and do it again next year. That’s the part I never want us to overlook.
Big anniversaries are worth celebrating, but the real story is all the ordinary days that came before them.
Enjoy the weekend. Say hello to somebody you know. And if you stop somewhere local, let them know you’re glad they’re here.
Scout & I will be back on the trail on Tuesday and we look forward to seeing you right here.
— Sandy |
Newsletter Sponsor Marshall Communications — Nancy Marshall
Section Sponsors North Star Property Solutions — Tony LaPrino
Maine Endurance Sports Alliance— Laura McIntyre
Woof, LLC — Peter Richmond
Pete Gray Painting — Pete Gray |