Monroe Lake is inviting people to Paynetown State Recreation Area on October 25-26 for its annual Halloween special event, the Ghostly Gathering.

Early arrivals on Friday, October 25 can drop the Activity Center Shelter from 3 to 5 pm to paint a miniature pumpkin. During the evening hours, a naturalist will rove the Campground with fascinating facts about some of our neatest nocturnal animals.

A campfire program, Tall Tales and Not-Too-Scary Stories, is scheduled for 8 pm on Friday night at the Activity Center Amphitheater.

The fun continues on Saturday, October 26. A creepy, crawly craft session will be offered from 1 to 3 pm at the Activity Center Shelter. An all-ages costume contest starts at 4 pm at the Activity Center Shelter.

Trick-or-treaters are invited to walk through the Campground from 5:30 to 7:30 pm. During the same hours, you can check out the Halloween and harvest decorations that campers have put up and vote for your favorite campsite.

The event concludes on Saturday night with the Ghostly Gathering Halloween Party from 8 to 9:30 pm at the Activity Center. Seasonal games, activities, and refreshments will be offered both inside and outside the building.

Day visitors are welcome at all programs. Campsites are also still available for the weekend and reservations can be made at www.CAMP.IN.gov.

Observe artists capturing the beauty of Brown County in the fall. The Indiana Plein Air Painters will be demonstrating their craft at the T.C. Steele State Historic Site. A different artist will be present every weekend afternoon in October to paint and chat about their work.

Showcasing photographs taken by local residents, the ‘This is How I Live United’ gallery captures how our friends, family, and neighbors Live United by giving, advocating, and volunteering to create a better tomorrow for our community.

United Way of Monroe County and our partners work every day to ensure everyone in our community has the building blocks for a better life — Education, Earnings, and the Essentials. And you are part of this work — whether through donations, volunteering, or lending a helping hand to those in need.

The Bloomington Community Farmers’ Market is held every Saturday from 8 am until 1 pm, from April through November.

The Farmers’ Market is located at 401 N. Morton St. next to City Hall – Showers Building. Locally grown produce, annual and perennial plants, and a variety of prepared foods are available. Purchase your food directly from farmers and ask them questions about their products. Local entertainment adds to the shopping as well as socializing experience. Tantalizing scents and the inviting atmosphere may cause you to make the Market a weekend tradition.

Nathan Hunter & Vincent Edwards, contemporary furniture; CRUSH II, jewelry; Kelly Novak, jewelry; Indianapolis Area Artists, prints, drawings, & paper quilts; Vincent Desjardins, digital illustration. M-F 9-7; Sat 9-5. Closed Sun.

Discover the world of blood-sucking creatures, including bed bugs, ticks, fleas, lice, and more! “Nature’s Vampires” is a special interactive exhibition on display now at WonderLab.

Chamber Market Share is a LIVE broadcast featuring Chamber members who talk about their business, share why they like doing business in Monroe County, and other topics of choice. We’ll be there every Saturday beginning in May through October!

Interested in being featured? Contact Mary Jo Orlowski at [email protected] to sign up!

Fall Festivities at Freeman Family Farms runs until October 27. Activities include:

Pumpkin Patch – pick your own pumpkin!
Hay rides! Petting Zoo!
A fun filled mini train with 7 cars made just for the little pumpkin pickers!

Friday, 4 – 7 pm; Saturday, 10 am – 8 pm; Sunday, Noon – 5 pm.

Artist show of “Moe’s Menagerie” by Cappi Phillips. A collection of animals, birds, fish and much more, all derived from recycled and up-cycled materials.

For our autumn feature the Farmer House Museum steps back in time and presents “Psychedelic Art.” In our Workroom Gallery we will exhibit striking examples of the work of major San Francisco rock and roll poster artists of the late 1960’s. The posters will be displayed with information about the artists, promoters and the bands they advertised. We will also take a look back at the student culture of the time. In a back room, we have created a special feature: a dark room with blacklight posters of the era. In the dining room we continue the psychedelic theme with a table setting designed by Peter Max.

Show runs until November. Museum closed Monday. See website for all hours and further details.