Kelly and I were up for Pumpkin Patch Fest last weekend and it was a genuinely great trip. The color was turning a beautiful gold, yellow, orange, and red.

Sister Bay Fall Fest is this weekend, which means the fall festival season is not done with you yet. Get up here while you can.

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This week:

A few things worth knowing about this week.

Al Johnson’s is dropping a goat at midnight. One of the more delightful pieces of Door County news in recent memory: Al Johnson’s Swedish Restaurant will ring in 2027 with the inaugural New Year’s Eve Goat Drop at the Stabbur Beer Garden in Sister Bay. At midnight, a large illuminated goat will descend toward the grass-covered roof as the crowd counts down the final seconds of 2026. The heated tent opens at noon on New Year’s Eve with live music, warm drinks, cold beer, and food throughout the afternoon and evening.

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The airport is open for business again. Runway and taxiway improvements at the Door County Cherryland Airport in Sturgeon Bay are complete. The project ran into some complications along the way, including significant rain that required extra base work and more fill than originally budgeted. The good news is the runway is fresh and ready for fall flying season.

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Miss Door County applications are open. The Miss Door County Scholarship Organization is accepting applications for the 2027 competition, which will be held on February 6 at the Southern Door Community Auditorium. Next year marks the program’s 30th anniversary, and the organization has set a goal of awarding $30,000 in scholarships to celebrate. The Miss Door County, Miss Cherryland, and Miss Door County’s Teen titles are all available to women who live, work, or attend school full-time in Door County, Algoma, or Luxemburg.

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A Sister Bay institution says goodbye. Twice the Quilt and More, a quilting and gift shop that Virginia Erickson built from a simple idea after spotting an empty storefront in Door County years ago, closed permanently on Saturday. Erickson typically closed for the season around this time of year, but this time it is for good.

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Baileys Harbor’s wastewater plant is getting a major overhaul. The Baileys Harbor Wastewater Treatment Plant, which has been in operation since 1988, is facing a $7.7 million upgrade. The town is borrowing $3.268 million through the Clean Water Fund program and will likely pass some costs along to residents and businesses through a new fee structure. The town board is taking up the fee resolution this week.

Kelly and I were up for the Pumpkin Patch Fest weekend and it turned into one of those trips where every meal becomes a story.

We hit SAVOR BBQ and Taphouse, Waterfront Mary’s, Northern Grill, Barringer’s, Klaud’s Kitchen, Red Barn Biscuit, Leroy’s, and AC Tap over the course of a few days. Every single one delivered. SAVOR was amazing, which is why it is the weekly pick this week. Barringer’s was as good as I remember. And Klaud’s Kitchen, which I had not been to before, absolutely earned a return visit.

We also made it to Newport State Park to look at the stars, which is one of those Door County experiences that makes you feel genuinely small in the best possible way. And of course, the Pumpkin Patch Fest itself.

Each day, the color was a little more red, orange, and yellow than the day before. More on that in the foliage report below.

UPDATE ON THE FALL COLOR

The color this week is moving but still not at its peak in the mid-county villages. Kelly and I noticed solid color in the northern reaches last weekend, with Ellison Bay and Gills Rock showing strong reds and golds in the maples. The villages from Sister Bay south were still a bit green, which tells us the peak is close but not quite here.

The good news is the forecast this week is ideal for color development. Highs in the low to mid 50s with cool overnight lows in the low 40s by the weekend are exactly the conditions that accelerate the change. The window for peak color in Fish Creek, Egg Harbor, and Sturgeon Bay is likely this week through next weekend.

Kelly and I posted our photos from last weekend on the site, and some reader photos have come in as well. Keep them coming. Send me your best fall shots and tell us where and when you took them.

The fall foliage guide is updated weekly and includes an interactive animated map that lets you track the color progression across the county in real time. Check it before you head up so you know where to point the car.

Fall in Door County is not just about the leaves. The fishing out here in October and November is genuinely exceptional.

Salmon and brown trout are running in Lake Michigan, walleye and smallmouth bass are active in the bay, and the crowds that competed for the best spots all summer are largely gone.

The complete fall fishing guide covers where to go, what to target, and the charter options worth knowing about.

Read the complete fall fishing guide here.

Every week we spotlight a recently sold home and an active listing to give you a feel for what the Door County real estate market looks like.

JUST SOLD: Ellison Bay

A three-bedroom, two-bath home on Badger Road in Ellison Bay sold for $610,000. Situated on 6.52 acres near the end of a quiet road, the property is minutes from downtown Gills Rock and Ellison Bay shops, coffee, beach, and marina. If the idea of 6.5 acres of quiet at the northern tip of the county sounds appealing, you understand exactly why this sold.

FOR SALE: Sister Bay

A three-bedroom, three-bath home in Sister Bay is listed at $799,900, fully furnished and ready to walk into. Less than a mile from downtown Sister Bay, the property features an expansive deck, a private hot tub, and a fire pit surrounded by a peaceful wooded setting. Whether you are looking for a year-round home, a second property, or a proven short-term rental, this one checks every box.

SAVOR BBQ and Taphouse was new to us last weekend and it will not be new for long.

The barbecue was exactly what good barbecue should be: smoky, deeply flavored, and confident enough that you did not really need the sauce, though it was there if you wanted it. The service was friendly and fast, which is not always easy to pull off when you are serving thousands of customers a week. The prices were more than reasonable for the quality on the plate.

It has officially landed on the must-visit list. If you have not been, go. If you have been, you already know.

Julie’s Park Cafe and Motel sits right at the entrance to Peninsula State Park in Fish Creek, which means hiking, biking, and trail access are essentially out your front door. The property offers clean rooms, pet-friendly options, cottages, and condo-style units for families who need more space.

The attached cafe serves breakfast and lunch and is genuinely good, which is a convenience you do not take for granted when you are steps from one of the most visited state parks in Wisconsin. If your trip is built around being outside, Julie’s puts you exactly where you want to be.

If you are thinking about a fall getaway, browse Door County availability on Booking.com.

Boos and Brews runs Thursday from 3 to 6 p.m. at the Ridges Sanctuary Cook-Albert Fuller Nature Center in Baileys Harbor. The event is a nature walk through the sanctuary focused on the local plants that go into craft beer, including yarrow flowers, spruce trees, and goldenrod, followed by a brewery tour and cellar walkthrough at Sway Brewing. Participants get a brewery pour and a Ridges pint glass to take home. A genuinely unique fall afternoon that combines two of the better reasons to be in Door County.

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Austin Skalecki plays live at the Cherry Hut in Fish Creek on Friday starting at 3 p.m., right at the start of Fall Fest weekend. The Cherry Hut is one of those spots that feels perfectly placed for an afternoon like this, and live music there during Fall Fest is about as Door County as it gets.

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Trails and Treats runs Friday evening starting at 5 p.m. at Crossroads at Big Creek in Sturgeon Bay. The family-friendly event takes participants along the nature trails at Crossroads with treat stations along the way. Costumes are encouraged and the setting, wooded trails at dusk in mid-October, does not need much help feeling atmospheric. One of the better Halloween-season options for families up here this weekend.

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Sister Bay Fall Fest runs all weekend, with Saturday looking like the best day weather-wise. The 80th annual celebration brings the whole village together with live music, food, vendors, and the kind of small-town October feel that Door County does better than anywhere. Get there Saturday when the skies are clear and the temps are in the low 50s.

Tuesday arrives at 58 degrees with low rain chances, a cool and mostly clear fall day. Wednesday drops to 55 and stays dry. Thursday brings a 55 percent chance of rain and a high of only 53, the wettest and coolest day of the stretch, so plan around it if you can.

The weekend shapes up well for Sister Bay Fall Fest. Friday comes in at 50 with manageable conditions. Saturday is the best day of the weekend at 53 degrees and zero percent chance of rain, which is about as clean as you can ask for in mid-October. Sunday climbs back to 56 with a slight chance of rain returning.

Those overnight lows dropping into the low 40s Friday and Saturday night are going to do real work on the fall color. Watch the maples closely next week.

The Barenaked Ladies’ Gordon came out in 1992 and it is one of those records that is permanently attached to a specific era for me. I was in college, a friend told me about this new band, and I went out and bought the CD that day. The original cover, before the album blew up and they changed it.

Years later, Kelly had the chance to meet the band. I asked her to get my original cover signed. She did. The autograph said: Hi Kelly.

You see my grievance? My name is not Kelly.

The Barenaked Ladies at their peak were one of the most inventive and genuinely funny bands making music. If you have not listened to it in a while, I wish I had $1,000,000, alone makes it worth putting on.

No photos came in this week, which means we are falling behind on our job of documenting the pets of Door County.

Fall is one of the best seasons to bring a dog up here. The trails are quiet, the beaches have room, and a dog running through fallen leaves on a Peninsula State Park trail is one of the more purely joyful things you will see in October. If your pet has been up here this fall, we want to see it.

October is not running out of reasons to enjoy Door County.

See you up here,
Brian.