Around the Valley
October arrives in Nazareth and Easton: Garlic Fest, a two-town 17th, and the rivalry finale
This post covers the turn from the last full week of September into October across Nazareth, Easton, and the townships in between. The headline dates: Easton's Garlic Fest fills Centre Square on October 3 and 4, Nazareth pairs its Halloween parade with the Fall Festival on October 17, and the regular-season football finale pits Nazareth at Easton on October 30. Everything below was checked against live municipal, district, and venue sources this week, and each date is worth a final glance at the official calendar before you go.
This week in the Valley: September 22 through 27
The week is already moving. At Nazareth Area High School, Homecoming Spirit Week runs Monday the 21st through Thursday the 24th, with Josten's Parent Night for order-placement on Thursday from 5:00 to 7:00 p.m. The Nazareth Farmers Market keeps its Saturday run on the circle at Main and Center Streets from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. Friday the 25th is the two-town football night, Nazareth hosting Emmaus at Leh Stadium and Easton hosting Allentown Central Catholic at Cottingham, both at 7:00 p.m., with Easton Out Loud holding its traditional Fourth Friday run downtown the same evening. Confirmed times for the street festival live at shopdowntowneaston.com.
Downtown Easton has a full calendar of its own this week, per the city events page. The Fall Book Sale runs Wednesday the 23rd through Monday the 28th across participating shops. The West Ward Market, the city's neighborhood market, moves to Thursday the 24th with a new time and location, so check the city calendar before heading out. Saturday the 26th pairs the Easton Farmers Market in Scott Park with an Open House at Lower Hackett Park, and Latin Fest Easton closes the week on Sunday the 27th.
Garlic Fest weekend fills the circle: October 3 and 4
The Easton Garlic Fest takes Centre Square on Saturday and Sunday, October 3 and 4, from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. both days. Admission is free and the event runs rain or shine, with 120-plus vendors serving garlic-themed food, live music, cooking contests, crafts, and family activities, organized by the Easton Main Street Initiative. It is the circle's biggest food weekend of the fall, and one logistics note matters: the Easton Farmers Market takes October 3 off for the festival, so the market's next regular Saturday after this week is October 10.
The quarter ahead stacks up quickly around the square. PA Bacon Fest celebrates its 15th anniversary on Saturday and Sunday, November 7 and 8, the biggest food weekend of the year downtown. And the Easton Winter Village returns November 27 through December 20 in a reworked format, spreading holiday lights, activities, and shopping across downtown instead of concentrating the vendor huts in the circle. Worth knowing now if you plan guests around the holidays.
Nazareth's October 17: parade, festival, and a raffle month
One Saturday anchors Nazareth's fall calendar. The Nazareth Halloween Parade, presented by Vigilance Hose Company No. 1 with the Nazareth Area Kiwanis Club, steps off at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, October 17, rain or shine. The route runs from Belvidere and Liberty Streets west on Belvidere to Main, north on Main to the circle, then east on Center Street to Nazareth Area Senior High School, where parade participants get hot dogs and soda. Registration happens at the Nazareth Firehouse on South Broad Street.
The Nazareth Fall Festival follows the same afternoon, 2:00 to 5:00 p.m. on South Main Street between Belvidere and Walnut, hosted by the Nazareth Area Chamber of Commerce with live music, food trucks, drinks, and craft vendors. Vendors and crafters take note: the application deadline is Friday, September 25. October also keeps the Saturday traditions going, the Nazareth Farmers Market on the circle through the end of the month and the Martin Guitar raffle at 2 South Main Street, with confirmed drawings on October 3, 10, and 17.
Football through the regular season
With Friday the 25th set, here is how October shapes up on both schedules, every game at 7:00 p.m. unless noted. The Nazareth Blue Eagles are away at Stroudsburg on October 2, home against Bethlehem Liberty on October 9, away at Bethlehem Catholic on October 17, home against Northampton on October 23, and away at Easton for the regular-season finale on October 30.
The Easton Red Rovers play an unusual Thursday night game at Pocono Mountain East on October 1, then host Northampton on October 9, travel to Liberty on October 16 and Freedom on October 23, and close the regular season at home against Nazareth on October 30. That makes October 9 another two-town home night, Nazareth and Easton both hosting, and the 30th the rivalry finale, always the loudest date on the Lehigh Valley prep calendar.
School district notes
In Nazareth, Homecoming Spirit Week wraps Thursday the 24th, and the Nazareth Area School Board holds its regular September meeting this Tuesday evening, with the confirmed time and agenda posted on the district events calendar. The board-approved 2026-27 calendar shows no school for students and staff on Monday, October 12.
The Easton Area School District has a fuller October. Monday, September 28 is a teacher in-service day, no school for students. The regular board meeting lands Tuesday, September 29 at 7:00 p.m. at the Easton Area Education Center, 1801 Bushkill Drive. In October: standing committee meetings Tuesday, October 6 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m.; an early dismissal limited to Easton Area Middle School students on Wednesday, October 7; no school Monday, October 12; the regular board meeting Tuesday, October 20 at 7:00 p.m.; and K-5 parent conferences with early dismissals Monday through Wednesday, October 26 to 28.
Municipal meetings for residents: the October edition
Here is what is on the books for October across the boroughs and townships, confirmed against each municipality's own site this week. Rooms and times do move in the fall, so give the office a call before driving over.
- Nazareth Borough Council business meeting Monday, October 5 at 6:00 p.m. in Borough Hall, 159 West Center Street, agendas on nazarethboroughpa.com.
- Upper Nazareth Township Supervisors meet Wednesday, October 7 and Wednesday, October 21 at 7:00 p.m., the first-and-third-Wednesday round, on uppernazarethtownship.org.
- Bushkill Township Supervisors meet Thursday, October 1 at 6:00 p.m., the first-Thursday session, at bushkilltownship.com.
- Forks Township Supervisors hold meetings Thursday, October 1 and Thursday, October 15 at 7:00 p.m., the first-and-third-Thursday round, at forkstownship.org.
- Palmer Township Supervisors publish a pattern of first, third, and fourth Mondays at 7:00 p.m., pointing to October 5, 19, and 26, but confirm against the township's 2026 meeting schedule on palmertwp.com.
- Lower Nazareth Township posts a yearly meeting schedule PDF on lowernazareth.com, so grab the October dates there.
- Stockertown Borough does not publish a fixed schedule online, so call the borough office to confirm its council dates. Northampton County Council agendas post on norcopa.gov, and Easton City Council meetings stream on the city site.
Things to do: the State Theatre, Martin Guitar, Crayola
The State Theatre Center for the Arts opens October strong: violinist Itzhak Perlman on Thursday, October 1 at 7:30 p.m.; So Good, the Neil Diamond Experience, Friday, October 2 at 7:30 p.m.; Meredith Willson's The Music Man on Broadway tour Thursday, October 8 at 7:30 p.m.; and Lewis Black live Friday, October 9 at 8:00 p.m. Any one of them makes a full downtown evening with dinner in the circle beforehand.
At C.F. Martin & Co. on Sycamore Street in Nazareth, the museum and the 1833 Shop stay open weekdays, and the guided one-hour factory tour runs Monday through Friday with six departures between 10:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m., limited to eight people with tickets required in advance; a behind-the-scenes tour is offered weekdays at 9:30 a.m. at about $25 per person, reserved by phone at 610-759-2837. The Martin event calendar had not posted October special programming at press time, so check it before planning.
The Crayola Experience in the circle runs Screamin' Green Hauntoween from September 19 through November 1, included with general admission: Halloween photo-ops, weekend trick-or-treating stations, themed crafts, a scavenger hunt, and character appearances. It is the all-weather anchor for a rainy October afternoon at 30 Centre Square.
Good places to eat
In Nazareth, Bella Bean Coffee Shop on South Broad remains the dependable morning stop, the Nazareth Diner is the any-meal standby, and Paradise Dogs covers the casual end near the circle. For this season's additions, Birthright Brewing Company pours on South Main Street, and Pizza Joe's Italian Restaurant on South Main handles the pizza-and-pasta side of town. The Circle Cafe sits right on the market circle itself.
Downtown Easton for festival weekends: Josie's New York Deli on the square is the fast, no-nonsense stop, Pearly Baker's Alehouse on the circle pours the classic pint, The Bayou Easton brings Cajun flavor off the square, and Rios Brazilian Steakhouse on the circle does the rodizio. ThreeBirds Coffee House on Bushkill Street anchors the coffee end, and the Easton Public Market on Northampton Street stays the easy indoor option, from noodles to pastry to the farmstand.
On the horizon
Circle these dates: October 3 and 4 for Garlic Fest in the square; October 9 when both football teams play at home; October 17 for Nazareth's parade-plus-festival afternoon; October 30 for the Nazareth at Easton rivalry finale; November 7 and 8 for PA Bacon Fest's 15th anniversary; and November 27 through December 20 for the reworked Easton Winter Village downtown. If you are watching the local housing market, the weekly Northampton County sales roundup tracks what homes are selling for week to week, and Easton-based Victaulic's recent supplier acquisition, covered by WFMZ, is a reminder that the Valley's business base keeps investing here. For anything dated, the Easton city events page, Downtown Nazareth's events listing, and each township site stay more current than any single post can.