Kawartha Localist is an editorial series from kawarthaNOW sharing trusted local recommendations, hidden gems, and favourite discoveries from people who know and love this region. It’s what we love about where we live. Kawartha Localist is sponsored by Kawartha Financial Services.
Thanksgiving is meant to be spent with loved ones. Whether your weekend plans involve stuffing the turkey and stirring the gravy, attending a fall fair, or enjoying the taste of some fall treats, the experience will be made even better when your family is by your side.
That’s why this week’s Kawartha Localist is rounding up all the fun ways to enjoy time with your family on the Thanksgiving long weekend. From shopping for holiday décor at a farmstead in Bancroft to joining a community fundraiser in Cobourg, there’s no shortage of things to do with your loved ones — and yes, there are lots of fall-flavoured local goods on the list for you to gobble up, including some items you can’t find anywhere else.
Here are 14 ways to spend Thanksgiving weekend with your loved ones across the greater Kawarthas region.
Get some exercise for a good cause at the Fenelon Falls Turkey Trot
Since Thanksgiving is all about giving thanks, why not spend the weekend giving back to the community?
The Fenelon Falls Turkey Trot has been held since 2016, encouraging you to earn the turkey dinner and pumpkin pie you’ll soon be sinking your teeth into. This year roughly 550 participants will be showing up, hoping to raise $2,200 for Women’s Resources of Kawartha Lakes, a not-for-profit organization helping women and their children who are fleeing abuse.
Race day begins at 10 a.m. Saturday, October 10 at the gazebo in Garnet Graham Park. The course follows a flat out-and-back trail on the Kawartha Rail Trail, with the option for participants to join a family and kids one-kilometre run, a five-kilometre run, or 10-kilometre run for adults and seniors.
Following the race, awards will be given to the top finishers, the best costumes, and the best fundraisers. And you won’t want to miss the grand draw prize of a sweetheart package for a night out in Fenelon Falls. It includes show tickets to The Grove Theatre, a gift certificate to a local restaurant, a bouquet of flowers, and a room package for a local bed & breakfast.
Following their race, participants can enjoy the snack table full of butter tarts, scones, power bars, coffee, tea, hot chocolate, apple cider, and other festive goods. Throughout the day, there will be an Indigenous drumming performance, cheerleaders, a masseuse for participants, and a shoe collection drive for BioPed, which collects used shoes for the less fortunate.
Garnet Graham Park is located at 98 Francis Street West in Fenelon Falls. To learn more about the Fenelon Falls Turkey Trot, visit www.fenelonfallsturkeytrot.ca.
Pick up a Thanksgiving turkey and homemade sourdough at Duff Acres in Keene
There’s still time to get a locally grown Thanksgiving turkey by dropping into Duff Acres in Keene.
The farm stand at this family farm will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday and Saturday (October 9 and 10), with turkey pre-orders opening on Thursday. There will be limited quantities available, though, so be sure to reserve your bird soon at www.duffacres.ca.
Otherwise, at the farm stand, you’ll find the farm-raised beef, pork, and lamb, as well as homemade goods including cranberry sauce, honey, creams, and even dog treats from local makers. Handmade sourdough is also available for pick-up, though it must be pre-ordered by Wednesday.
Duff Acres is located at 784 Serpent Mounds Road in Keene.
Shop from a variety of Ontario artisans and crafters at the Buckhorn Harvest Craft Show
Is it too early to think about your Christmas gift-giving? If not, or if you simply need some last-minute goods for your Thanksgiving plans, drop into Buckhorn Harvest Craft Show hosted by the Buckhorn Community Centre.
On Saturday, October 10 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday, October 11 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., this 47th annual juried show will see upwards of 85 artisans and makers hailing from across Ontario. You’ll find jewellery, clothing, home and garden décor, baked goods, bath and body products, stained glass displays, candles, one-of-a-kind works of art, Christmas décor, and so much more.
Alongside a snack bar serving soups and chillies, you can also find baked goods, cheese, preserves, and desserts, and other goods you might just need for your Thanksgiving dinner. All attendees have the chance to win a $100 shopping spree to the 2027 Spring Craft Show.
Admission to the Buckhorn Harvest Craft Show is priced at $5 (kids under 12 are free) and goes toward supporting the community centre’s local programming.
Buckhorn Community Centre is located at 1782 Lakehurst Road in Buckhorn. To learn more, www.buckhorncommunitycentre.com/harvest-craft-show/.
Stock up on Thanksgiving dinner and décor at the Back Forty Farmstead outside Bancroft
Are you hosting this weekend and need some ingredients or home décor to deck out your home? All last-minute décor can be picked up at the Back Forty Farmstead just outside Bancroft in L’Amble.
On a family property purchased by Mallory Kelly and Dillon Trumble in 2019, the Back Forty Farmstead is open from sunup to sundown. Leave cash or send an e-transfer after collecting all the pumpkins, corn stalks, straw bales, and varieties of pumpkins and gourds you need to welcome guests this weekend.
You will also find merchandise branding with the Farmstead’s logo, made by local business J&C Embroidery as well as natural bug sprays, soaps, shower steamers, and more from Wildly Appropriate, based in Coe Hill.
Then, load up on your eggs, pork sausages, pork chops, and ground pork all raised right there on the family farm. The Back Forty Farmstead also has limited quantities of Thanksgiving turkeys available. Those interested can contact Trumble at 416-347-9407.
The Back Forty Farmstead is located at 1579 Detlor Road in Bancroft. To learn more about the Back Forty Farmstead, follow them on Facebook.
Spend a day or three at the grand Norwood Fall Fair
Every Thanksgiving weekend, residents and visitors — 45,000 of them! — look forward to the annual Norwood Fall Fair, which is returning to the fairgrounds at 48 Alma Street from Saturday to Monday (October 10 to 12).
First established in 1868, this fall fair celebrates the harvest in the community, with all kinds of fun on the docket for the whole family. Cattle shows, horse shows, sheep shows, goat shows, and poultry shows will all be on the lineup, but, if that’s not enough animal immersion for you, head to the petting zoo to find ponies, piglets, bunnies, rabbits, ducklings, and other animals — and you can feed them, too!
Throughout the weekend, there will also be sheep shearing demonstrations, the Ontario Xtreme Cowboy Competition, an antique car show, a tractor show, flyball (a relay race for dogs), and lawn tractor racing, alongside continuous live music. Kids can also enjoy the midway, join the talent contest, or enter their favourite stuffed animal for the stuffed creature and teddy bear show! Be sure to check out one of the most beloved events of the weekend, the Norwood Fair Parade, starting at the Norwood Public School at 12 p.m. on Saturday.
The Norwood Fall Fair runs from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on each day of the Thanksgiving long weekend (the midway opens at 10:30 a.m.) for $15 daily ($25 for a weekend pass). Children under at 12 are free. To learn more and see the full schedule, visit www.norwoodfair.com.
Get everything you need for Thanksgiving dinner at the Harvest Market in Stirling and other local farmers’ markets
If you have to make the Thanksgiving meal this year, why not make it with locally grown produce and goods? We’re coming close to the end of market season here in Ontario, but it’s not too late to get everything you need for all your Thanksgiving Day plans.
The Stirling-Rawdon Business Improvement Area is marking the end of their seventh annual farmers’ market season with the Harvest Market event in downtown Stirling on Friday, October 9. There will be everything you need for the weekend including vegetables, meat, beer, cider, maple and honey products, homemade goods like knit hats and pottery, as well as food vendors selling cozy goods like kebabs, sausages, and hamburgers. Live bands will set the soundtrack as you cross things off your shopping list.
Here are some of the farmers markets that will be open this weekend (some for the last time this year!):
- Lakefield Farmers’ Market: Thursday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Lakefield Arena Parking lot
- Lindsay Farmers’ Market: Thursday, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., Wilson Fields
- Fenelon Falls Farmers’ Market: Friday, 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 45 Bond Street
- Haliburton County Farmers’ Market: Saturday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Milne and Prince Streets
- Peterborough Farmers’ Market: Saturday, 7 a.m. to 1 p.m., Morrow Park
- Peterborough Regional Farmers’ Market: Saturday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Quaker Foods City Square
- Cobourg Farmers’ Market: Saturday, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m., Rotary Harbourfront Park
- Bancroft Farmers’ Market: Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., Riverside Park
- Campbellford Farmers’ Market: Saturday, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., 66 Front Street South
Fall for the innovative flavours at Bobcaygeon Brewing Company and Kawartha Dairy
You’ll have no problem finding pumpkin spice lattes and apple crisp across the greater Kawarthas this season, but there are some places close to home serving up some highly original and creative fall flavours for a limited time only.
First, drop into the Bobcaygeon Brewing Company for a sip of the Pumpkin Pie-PA, a pumpkin spice west coast IPA. This limited-edition cozy beverage is infused with real pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, and clove. Not much of a pumpkin fan? Bobcaygeon Brewing Company has another fall drink on the menu: the Foliage Autumn Ale, made with cinnamon, ginger, and toffee in a traditional English-inspired ale.
Then, after dinner, head to one of the Kawartha Dairy outlets across the region in Bobcaygeon, Peterborough, Cobourg, Lindsay, Bancroft, Minden, or an independent grocer to get a scoop or pint of pumpkin pie ice cream. This seasonal sweet treat is made with real pumpkin and creamy marshmallow ripple. Another seasonal ice cream being served by Kawartha Dairy is the spiced apple ripple, a creamy vanilla swirled with — you guessed it — spiced apple ripple.
Pick your own apples and pumpkins across the region
Get locally grown produce and do a family activity at the same time by picking out your own pumpkins, gourds, and apples this weekend by visiting a local farm.
Head to Northumberland County to pick your own apples at Dunnett Orchards in Brighton, or at Pieter’s Appleyard, Burnham Family Farm Market, or Moore Orchards in Cobourg.
In the City of Kawartha Lakes and Peterborough County, you’ll find an abundance of local pumpkin patches for a large variety of gourds. McQuaid’s Country Market in Omemee, McLean Berry Farm (Buckhorn location), Stellmar Farm in Little Britain, Vanderview Farms in Norwood, and MacArthur’s Pumpkin Patch in Oakwood will all be open throughout the weekend.
Check their respective websites to confirm long weekend hours and opening dates.
Strut your best Thanksgiving look at the Northumberland Turkey Trot
A Thanksgiving Monday tradition, the Northumberland Turkey Trot gives you the opportunity to celebrate with your family and friends, get some exercise in, give back to the local YMCA, and still be home by noon to prep your Thanksgiving meal — and you might just win a turkey or pie to cook up!
Avid runner Rod Simpson has been hosting this family-friendly event since 2012 and, over the years, has raised $60,000 towards the YMCA Northumberland Strong Communities Campaign. Roughly 600 participants will gather, often with their families and friends, to join in this fundraiser that involves walking through an urban green space.
Check-in will begin at 830 a.m. at the YMCA Northumberland Cobourg (339 Elgin Street West), before the turkey trot takes flight, beginning with the Gobble Wobble for participants four years old and under, and the one-kilometre kids Wing Ding untimed fun run, where every participant will earn a prize.
Adults can then join in the fun with their choice of a five-kilometre trot or a 2.5-kilometre run or walk. The first male and female finishers of each race will be given a prize: a frozen turkey for the five-kilometre races and a coveted pie from Burnham Family Farm Market for the shorter trot.
Throughout the morning, there will also be chances to win tons of draw prizes donated from local and international sponsors. Last year’s event saw winners walking out with wheelbarrows and New Balance footwear! And, most importantly, don’t forget to pluck your feathers and practice your gobble to earn the acclaimed Golden Drumstick Award for the best spirit.
Registration is available on the day of the Northumberland Turkey Trot, though advance registration is encouraged given that there is limited availability for each race. To learn more and register, visit northumberlandturkeytrot.org.
Take in the fall colours at Sir Sam’s annual Thanksgiving Festival in Haliburton County
Haven’t yet taken the chairlift ride to the top of Sir Sam’s Ski/Ride in Haliburton County to view the stunning fall colours? You have the perfect chance to do so during the resort’s annual Thanksgiving Festival, running from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, October 10.
In addition to taking in the fall colours before their gone, there will be opportunities to browse and buy at a local vendor market, engage in kids’ activities and games, get discounts on products from Delancey Sports, enjoy a barbeque on the deck, listen to live music, and get the insider’s scoop on the announcement for the name of the hill’s newest ski lift.
The Thanksgiving Festival is also the last chance to get your season passes and books of eight (eight discounted lift ticket vouchers) while they’re still on sale.
Admission to the Thanksgiving Festival is free, though chairlift rides are priced at $10 per person. To learn more, visit www.sirsams.ca.
Pre-order all your baked goods from Robin’s Nest Farm Market in Warkworth
Want to bring some homemade goods to the Thanksgiving dinner you’ll be attending this weekend, but don’t have the time to actually make them? Place an order with Robin’s Nest Farm Market in Warkworth for any of the country kitchen goods on your wishlist.
Amanda Twigg and her family raise their own beef, pork, and chicken to sell with varieties of locally grown produce and dairy products. Alongside offering catering, Robin’s Nest Farm Market also houses an in-store bakery serving homemade baked goods, freezer meals and lunch, alongside gifts and home goods crafted by local makers.
Until October 7, there’s still time to pre-order your Thanksgiving desserts from fruit or pumpkin pie to tarts, squares, and other fall favourites.
To learn more about Robin’s Nest Farm Market, visit www.robinsnestfarms.ca.
Experience the annual salmon run in the Ganaraska River in Northumberland County
This might not be your typical Thanksgiving activity, but watching the salmon run in the Ganaraska River should certainly be on your radar this weekend.
Every fall, people gather in Port Hope to watch tens of thousands of Chinook and silvery Coho salmon swim up the river on their way to their home spawning grounds. And for good reason! This river is one of the healthiest small rivers into Lake Ontario, populated entirely with naturally reproducing fish.
The best vantage point to view the salmon run is The Fish Ladder, managed by the Ministry of Natural Resources and located on the west side of Corbett’s Dam, which is managed by the Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority. You can also see the pooling stations for the fish in the shallow water at locations in town, or take a riverside trail to follow the fish on their journey.
But don’t delay — the salmon won’t be swimming upstream for much longer! More information about the salmon run is available at www.visitporthope.ca/en/things-to-do/fish-migration.aspx.
Stop at Leahy’s Farm and Market in Douro-Dummer off Highway 28
Spending your Thanksgiving weekend at the cottage? On the way, be sure to make a stop at Leahy’s Farm and Market where you can stock up on all the produce and décor you need, while having some fun at the same time.
Located on Highway 28 in the Township of Douro-Dummer, this market has been a staple stop for cottagers and locals for more than 50 years. Right now, it’s your one-stop shop for everything you need for Thanksgiving, with varieties of pumpkins and gourds, fall mums, apples, apple ciders, and so much more. You’ll also find baked goods, Halloween decorations, and an abundance of other high-quality fruits and produce.
With its elevated location, this market is the perfect vantage point to view the changing fall colours across the rolling hills, and the team at Leahy’s is hopeful they will have the corn maze open ahead of the Thanksgiving weekend.
Leahy’s Farm & Market is located at 3267 Highway 28 in Douro-Dummer and will be open for extended hours throughout the Thanksgiving weekend, from 8 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday, Saturday, and Monday, and 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday.
Pick up a Thanksgiving treat box at Frosted Flour Co. in Port Hope
Make sure you save some room for dessert after Thanksgiving dinner this weekend, because you won’t want to miss out on trying the wide selection of festive baked goods you’ll find at Frosted Flour Co. in Port Hope.
This week is extra-celebratory for owner and self-taught baker Hannah MacDonald, as she is celebrating nine years since opening the doors to this boutique bakery where you’ll find a rotating selection of baked goods made daily. Frosted Flour Co. will be open for extended hours this weekend — from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Friday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday — so you have plenty of time to stock up on sweet treats for whatever you have on the go.
Throughout both days, the bakery will undoubtedly be full of the smells of the seasons, with cinnamon buns, cinnamon rolls, pecan pie, caramel apple cookie sandwiches, and frosted cookies all on the shelves. You’ll also find anything and everything in pumpkin flavour — we’re talking pumpkin-flavoured cheesecakes, cookie sandwiches, bars, macaroons, and so much more.
There will also be donuts available on Saturday and, throughout both days, hand-decorated designer cookies that are Thanksgiving and fall-themed. In store, you’ll also find treat boxes filled with a variety of Thanksgiving goods, so you don’t have to make the decisions yourself. Don’t forget to pair it with a pumpkin spice latte on your way out!
Frosted Flour Co. is located at 73 Mill Street in Port Hope. To learn more, visit www.frostedflourco.ca.
Kawartha Localist is an editorial series from kawarthaNOW celebrating the places, experiences, businesses, and communities that make our region extraordinary. Written by people who live here, work here, and have spent nearly 30 years exploring the Kawarthas and surrounding region, each edition shares trusted local recommendations, hidden gems, and favourite discoveries from across Peterborough County, the City of Peterborough, Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland County, Haliburton County, and Hastings Highlands.
Whether you’re looking for your next hiking trail, favourite patio, scenic drive, farmers’ market, or weekend adventure, Kawartha Localist is what we love about where we live.
Kawartha Localist is sponsored by Kawartha Financial Services.
