Hey Salem,
Fall officially started Tuesday, and this weekend is proof.
Pumpkin patches are opening. Enchanted Forest is running its last rides of the year. And someone is throwing a Dolly Parton roller skate night. (Yes, really. Details below.)
You'll notice a couple of small changes this week. The weekly regulars (improv, Irish dance, salsa) now live together in one spot near the bottom, and there's a new Save the Date section so you can plan a little further ahead.
One ask: what are we missing? Hit reply and tell me the event, the venue or the corner of town you never see in here. Keizer, West Salem, East Salem, South Salem... I'm looking at you.
And if you missed Tuesday's issue, here's what we actually know about the school closures (and what we don't). Worth the read if you have kids in Salem-Keizer.
Jacob
Also, don't miss these opportunities to get connected in Salem:
The WHS Community — our $20/quarter membership for people who want to go deeper: connect with fellow Salemites, swap recommendations, and get the inside scoop on the city.
The Dinner Club — take a quick quiz, get matched with five Salem folks, and meet for dinner at a spot revealed the morning of. No awkwardness, just good company.
Quick ad and then we will get back to the story…
And starting this Saturday, you can go looking for them.
Extreme Velocity’s Zombie Shoot opens September 26, turning the mall’s basement into a 50-minute survival adventure. Your group follows a guide, searches for a missing doctor, solves puzzles, and fights off zombies with airsoft rifles.
You get eye protection, a rental rifle, and a magazine of ammo. The zombies don’t shoot back. Small comfort when you’re the one heading downstairs.
Sessions hold up to eight people. Bring the friend who always says they’d survive a zombie apocalypse. Let’s see it.
Tickets are $25–$39 per person, depending on your session. It’s all indoors at Salem Center’s north building, with select dates through November 1.
May be intense for kids under 13; parental discretion advised.
okay, now back to the story…
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🍂 Fall Farm Weekend: One Last Ride, First Pumpkins
If you've been waiting for the "real" start of fall in Salem, this is the weekend. Here's where to go.
Sat–Sun, Sept. 26–27 | Enchanted Forest, Turner
Last call! Enchanted Forest has been open weekends only this month, and Sunday, Sept. 27, is the last day of the season. If you haven't made it out this year, this is your window. Check hours and tickets on their site before you go.
Sept. 26–Oct. 30 | 5504 Hazelgreen Rd NE | $5–$12.50
You don't have to leave Salem for the classic pumpkin patch. E.Z. Orchards' HarvestFest kicks off Saturday with the pumpkin patch, the Oregon-themed corn maze, hayrides and a barnyard full of piglets, goats, calves and more. New this year: sensory boards and musical flowers for the little ones.
Pro tip: Weekdays are the budget move. Admission is $5 from 9AM–1PM (no hayrides) or $7 from 1–6PM (hayrides included). Weekends are $12.50, and kids under 2 are free. Pumpkins are 49¢ a pound.
Hours: Mon–Fri 9AM–6PM, Sat 9AM–5PM, Sun 11AM–5PM
Sat–Sun, Sept. 26–27 | 9AM–5PM | Bauman's Farm & Garden, Gervais
Week two at Bauman's is Farm Days: vintage and modern tractors, animals to pet and the debut of a mechanical rooster ride. (We have questions.) There's also a new 20-foot spider web on the ropes course, plus the usual 30+ activities, fresh cider and those cider donuts.
Keep Saturday, Oct. 3 open, too. That's the Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off, with the Giant Pumpkin Drop at 1PM.
Saturdays through Oct. 31 | 9AM–2PM | 865 Marion St NE
Harvest season is peak market season, and there are only six Saturdays left. Stock up on produce for the week and support the farmers and makers who keep this Salem tradition going.
This Friday and Saturday! Save 5% off your purchase and a FREE Burger from Bo & Vine. We will be there on Saturday at noon, come say hi!
Sponsored by Kite String Consulting — my agency
A few of you keep asking what I do besides What’s Happening Salem: I run a social media agency called Kite String Consulting. It started with me figuring it out every day and a handful of clients who told their friends. Now there’s a real machine over here.
Here’s what I believe: you’re already great at running your business. Posting about it just isn’t your job. Around Salem, the businesses that show up consistently — and sound like humans — are quietly lapping the ones winging it. That’s the gap we close: real photos and video, social run for you, on-brand, on your budget.
We know this town because we are this town.
Have an event for us to feature? Submit your events HERE to get them added to the newsletter
🍻 Oktoberfest at Bryn Mawr Vineyards
Fri, Sept. 25 | Seatings 5PM–6:30PM | Bryn Mawr Vineyards, 5935 Bethel Heights Rd NW | $25
Missed Mt. Angel? The Lauer family is celebrating its German roots up in the Eola Hills. Your ticket gets you a plate of German-inspired food from estate chef Jonathan Jones, with German and Austrian-inspired wines and Santiam Brewing's Edelweiss Hefeweizen available to pair. Lederhosen and dirndls strongly encouraged.
🎸 Summer Uncorked Finale: Hit Machine
Fri, Sept. 25 | Gates 5PM, music 6PM | Eola Hills Wine Cellars, 501 S Pacific Hwy 99W, Rickreall | $25
Send off the summer concert series with Hit Machine, a cover band spanning decades of party favorites, from the Bee Gees and Prince to AC/DC. Venue change: With rain in the forecast, Eola Hills moved the show from its Legacy Estate vineyard in Salem to its Rickreall winery. Wine is available at the bar.
📚 Storybook Character Adventure
Fri, Sept. 25 | 4PM–6:30PM | The old Cinebarre, 501 Marion St NE | Free
Costumes encouraged! Meet favorite storybook characters, do crafts and activities, and celebrate reading at this free family night supporting Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, hosted with Wandering Players Theatrics.
Want to do a little extra? A $16 donation sponsors a full year of free books for a local kid and comes with a handmade cape while supplies last.
🛼 Traveling Wheelz Open Skate: Dolly Parton Tribute
Fri, Sept. 25 | 7:30PM–9:30PM | The MadHouse, 1335 Madison St NE | All Ages
Make it a full Dolly day. Traveling Wheelz turns the MadHouse into a Dolly Parton skate night, and festive attire is encouraged. Big hair, rhinestones, double denim... you know what to do.
🥋 Oregon Open Jiu Jitsu Championship
Sat–Sun, Sept. 26–27 | Starts 9AM | Jackman Long Building, State Fairgrounds | $15/day
Oregon's biggest Jiu Jitsu tournament is back for its 20th year. Adults and Masters compete Saturday; Youth and Teens take the mats Sunday. Spectator passes are $15 a day or $25 for both days, and kids 9 and under get in free.
🔊 IASCA West Coast Satellite SPL Finals
Sun, Sept. 27 | Registration 9AM | The Pavilion, State Fairgrounds | Free for spectators, $10 parking
Also at the fairgrounds this weekend: some of the loudest car audio systems on the West Coast going head to head. If you've ever wondered just how loud a car stereo can get, bring earplugs and find out.
🏡 2026 Tour of Remodeled Homes
Sat, Sept. 26 | 10AM–6PM | Eight homes around Salem & Keizer | Tickets required
Dreaming about a kitchen or bathroom redo? The Home Builders Association's self-guided tour opens the doors on eight recently finished remodels around Salem and Keizer. Buy tickets before you go. Heads up: shoes come off inside, and there are no strollers, pets, photos or food allowed.
🍞 Beginning Sourdough Class
Sat, Sept. 26 | 1PM–3PM | Chemeketa Eola, 215 Doaks Ferry Rd NW | $60, registration required
Pointer Farms Bakery teaches the stress-free way to fit sourdough into a busy life. You'll mix your own loaf, practice stretch-and-folds and leave with a jar of starter and a loaf to bake at home. Registration is required, so sign up ahead.
🎬 Getting Back + Director Q&A
Sat, Sept. 26 | 2PM | Salem Cinema
See an Oregon-made film with the person who made it. Getting Back follows a 6-year-old and his dog lost in the wilderness, guided by the imagined presence of his late brother, while his parents wrestle with their own grief. Director Haven Garber stays after the screening for a Q&A.
🧘 Yoga in the Gardens
Sun, Sept. 27 | 10AM–11AM | Deepwood Museum & Gardens | Donation-based
Welcome fall with an hour of yoga on Deepwood's front lawn, surrounded by one of Salem's most beautiful historic gardens.
🪶 Curator Talk: Indigenous Northwest Biennial
Sun, Sept. 27 | 1PM–2PM | Bush Barn Art Center, 600 Mission St SE | Free
Artist and curator Steph Littlebird, an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, leads a personal tour of the first-ever Indigenous Northwest Biennial. The show features 16 Indigenous artists from across the Pacific Northwest, from traditional weavers and beadworkers to painters and photographers.
Can't make the talk? The exhibit is free and on view through Oct. 25.
🎻 Camerata Musica: 50th Season Opener
Sun, Sept. 27 | 2:30PM | Loucks Auditorium, Salem Public Library | Free
Salem's free chamber music series turns 50 this season. It opens with cellist Garrick Woods and pianist Daniela Mineva playing romantic works by Beethoven, Grieg and Rachmaninoff. Free classical music on a Sunday afternoon is one of Salem's best-kept secrets.
🎨 Folktales Art Market
Sun, Sept. 27 | 2PM–6PM | Fork Forty, 440 State St
Browse local art and handmade goods at this downtown art market. Can't make it Sunday? The next one is Oct. 25.
🎞️ Manhattan Short Film Festival
Sun, Sept. 27 | 12:30PM & 6:30PM · Mon, Sept. 28 | 6:30PM | Salem Cinema
Ten short films from ten countries, and you're the judge. Audiences at more than 500 venues around the world watch the same finalists and vote for Best Film and Best Actor. Past finalists have gone on to earn Oscar nominations.
🎸 Candlebox: Can't Quit You Tour
Sun, Sept. 27 | 7:30PM (doors 6:30PM) | Elsinore Theatre | From $48.22 | All Ages
Close out September with a dose of '90s alternative rock. Seattle's Candlebox, the band behind "Far Behind" and "You," brings its Can't Quit You Tour to the Elsinore, with Detroit's Sponge opening.
🎷 The Carter Collective Open Jazz Jam
Sun, Sept. 27 | 5:30PM–9PM | Christo's | No cover
Salem drummer Jason Carter hosts his last-Sunday-of-the-month jam with pianist Marcus Harbaugh and bassist Ken Anoe. Musicians of every level can put their name on the list and sit in. Everyone else gets a Sunday night of live jazz.
🩰 Swan Lake: Symphony of Lights
Tue, Sept. 29 | 7PM | Salem's Historic Grand Theatre
Tchaikovsky's classic ballet meets modern technology, pairing the traditional score with a lighting-driven production. A different kind of Tuesday night out.
🔁 This Week's Regulars
Same time, every week. Pick one and make it your thing.
Mon | Drop-In Improv Comedy Class | 7:30PM | Salem's Historic Grand | $5, first class free
Tue | Céilí of the Valley Irish Dance Class | 6:30PM | $5 | All levels
Tue | Latin Dance Night | Lesson 8PM, social dancing 9PM–11:30PM | Honky Tonk Bar & Grill | 21+
Wed | Queer Salsa Nights | 7PM–10PM | Riverfront Park | Free or $5 suggested donation | Beginner-friendly, lesson included. It's outdoors, so check their page if the weather turns.
📌 Save the Date
Fri, Oct. 2 | Traveling Wheelz Emo/Punk Open Skate at the MadHouse. Dig out the eyeliner.
Sat, Oct. 3 | Giant Pumpkin Weigh-Off at Bauman's, with the Giant Pumpkin Drop at 1PM
Sat, Oct. 3 | Cats Just Wanna Have Fun: Paws & Purrsonality Gala | Salem Convention Center | $75
Oct. 16–17 | The Great Junk Hunt vintage market | Fri 4PM–9PM, Sat 9AM–4PM | Columbia Hall & Jackman Long Building, State Fairgrounds
Oct. 22–24 | Quilt, Craft & Sewing Festival | Columbia Hall, State Fairgrounds
Interested in connecting with our audience and supporting the growth of this publication? Simply reply to this email and we can help you get started.
Thanks for keeping up with Salem this week!
Spotted something interesting in town? Drop us a note at [email protected]. We love hearing from you.
See you next Thursday,
Jacob