MAINE LOBSTER FESTIVAL

AUGUST 3–7, 2016 Rockland, Maine

800-576-7512 mainelobsterfestival.com

Dating back to 1947, this festival was originally conceived to revitalize summer tourism in the Camden area after World War II. Today it draws 30,000 people each summer to indulge in more than 20,000 pounds of lobster (straight up or in a roll, wrap, or salad) and 1,700 pounds of butter. Runners can work off the excess in a 10K race (or kids’ fun run) on Sunday. Live music, comedy, an art show, and the coronation of the 69th Maine Sea Goddess round out the entertainment.

For more on Maine’s annual lobster celebration, visit: YankeeMagazine.com/ Festival

Finer Feasts

If your taste runs more to white tablecloths than picnic benches, there’s a calendar’s worth of food and wine galas to attend in some of New England’s most beautiful destinations. At the long-running Nantucket Wine Festival ( nantucketwinefestival.com), award-winning vintners and chefs descend upon the island for big parties, intimate dinners, and a whole lot of tasting in advance of the busy summer season (May 18–22, 2016). In the fall, the Newport Wine & Food Festival ( newportmansions.org) features luminaries such as Jacques Pépin, Martha Stewart, and Jacques Torres, who lead dinners, tastings, and seminars at The Elms, Rosecliff, and Marble House (Sept. 23–25, 2016). Not to be outdone by its island neighbor, Martha’s Vineyard launched its own annual four-day Food & Wine Festival ( mvfoodandwine.com), with a portion of the proceeds going to island schools and farmers (Oct. 13–16, 2016). And, finally, Harvest on the Harbor ( harvestontheharbor.com) in Portland, Maine, kicks off with a splashy gala and features a lobstercooking competition, dinners pairing chefs with produce from local farms, and plenty of wine, beer, and cider (Oct. 19–23, 2016).

Corn Festival

SEPTEMBER 17–18, 2016

Norwell, Massachusetts

Wild Blueberry Festival

AUGUST 19–20, 2016

Machias, Maine

207-255-6665 machiasblueberry.com

The 41st annual version of this Down East blueberry fête includes farm tours, a cooking contest, a pie-eating contest, a blueberry quilt raffle, and road races for all ages. The church-sponsored extravaganza has an especially classic, homespun feel—and it’s pointedly family-friendly. Kid-focused events include a children’s parade, birdhouse building, and an interactive puppet show. Don’t miss the Blueberry Festival comic musical, written, choreographed, propped, and costumed by locals (last year’s theme: “History of the Blueberry: Part 1”).

ABOVE : You’ll find hearty johnnycakes among the offerings at the annual Corn Festival in Norwell, Mass. BELOW : A beautiful sea of red marks the cranberry harvest, celebrated on Nantucket and in many other coastal locales.

Corn has deep roots in our rocky soil: bred by Native peoples, fed to hungry Pilgrims, folded into our core cuisine. That heritage will be on display at this homespun festival (now in its 40th year), with demonstrations of centuries-old crafts, a cornshucking contest, corncob dolls, hayrides, pony rides, and a corn pit for kids. (The organizers swapped out bounce houses and balloon animals years ago in favor of more-historical fun.) As for eating, you’ll find plenty of corn chowder, johnnycakes, and other corn-based treats to taste.

Fall Apple Harvest Festival

SEPTEMBER 30–OCTOBER 2, OCTOBER 7–9, 2016

Southington, Connecticut 860-276-8461 southington.org/AHF

Spanning two weekends and drawing about 100,000 visitors, this apple bonanza runs the festival gamut, with live music, arts and crafts, road races (a 5-miler, a 5K, a 2-mile walk, and “Little Fritter” fun runs), fireworks, a parade, Zion Lutheran Church’s famed apple fritters, pie baking and eating contests—plus the sweetest contest of all, as Southington kids nominate their grandmothers for festival “Granny Apple” honors.