In an effort to maintain our French language skills, Library Director Rich Boulet and volunteer Natalie Moses will host French Roast, a weekly in-person French language conversation group that meets every Thursday at the Blue Hill Public Library.  Refreshments will be served, and this program is free and open to all. For more information, please contact Rich at rboulet@bhpl.net or 374-5515.

Throughout the day on Thursday, October 1, students from schools around the peninsula will join Tape Artists Michael Townsend and Leah Smith to create a collaborative art piece in the library's Britton Gallery, Howard Room, and one of the stairwells. A tape art mural will be "drawn" directly on the walls of the library for a remarkable, temporary artwork that responds to the October art exhibit, which will feature art created by several local art teachers. From 3:00-5:00 p.m. the general public is invited to come try their hands at Tape Art as well, adding to the work that was completed earlier in the day.

Anyone is welcome to stop by to watch the process unfold, or join us later for a special art reception from 5:00-7:00 p.m. in the library's Howard Room and Britton Gallery, which will coincide with the Friends of the Library Volunteer Appreciation event. The reception will be followed by a presentation and slideshow with artists Michael Townsend and Leah Smith, who will share their experiences with tape art and answer questions. 

The Blue Hill Chess Enthusiasts meet each Thursday evening for pick-up games of chess at the Blue Hill Public Library. All experience levels are welcome to drop in for friendly games any time between 5:00 and 8:00 p.m. Interested players can also join the Blue Hill Peninsula Chess Nuts group on lichess.org to play online games any time. This free program is sponsored by the library. If you have any questions, contact Assistant Director Kayleigh at kayleigh.thomas@bhpl.net or 374-5515.

Knitters are invited to come sit by the fireplace at the Blue Hill Public Library to work on and share projects with fellow knitters. The Knitting Group meets every Thursday evening at 6:00 p.m. Anyone is welcome to attend this free event. Coffee and tea will be available to purchase. If you have any questions, contact Assistant Director Kayleigh at kayleigh.thomas@bhpl.net or 374-5515.

Everyone is invited to the library for a presentation and Q&A with artists Michael Townsend and Leah Smith on Thursday, October 1 at 7:00 p.m. Michael and Leah will speak on the history of Tape Art, their experiences with the art form, and share examples of their work in a slide show before taking questions from the audience. 

Penobscot Marine Museum will hold SardineFest on Saturday, October 3, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. The free, day-long event celebrates Maine’s sardine industry and the coastal communities connected to it, with music, food, family activities, exhibits, demonstrations, and stories from Maine’s working waterfront. 

The day will feature live music, talks, a children’s stage, crafts and games, and a sea life touch tank with Herring Gut Coastal Science Center. Visitors can sample sardines and other offerings, talk with exhibitors, visit the Sardine Craft Exhibition Hall, and meet champion sardine packer Rita Willey. Museum exhibits and Set Sail demonstrations will be open throughout the day.

On October 3rd, David Tarr, scalloper, lobsterman, and policy advisor, is the first of three speakers in the Food from the Sea Talks series, who will share their unique perspective on fishing and harvesting seasons, the effects of weather and environmental concern on catching and harvesting, what makes our area unique, and how this work will change in the future. Come and learn about how the challenges, the rewards, and the ways this hyper-local work links to broader issues.

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Join us at the Friend Memorial Public Library (1 Reach Road) for an art reception of Gayle Lewis's "Pin-Ups" show, featuring copies of water colors created over the last 25 years. Lewis's work will also be on display in the library for the month of October. Come celebrate this exciting art opening; anyone is welcome to join, free of charge!

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Join the town of Brooklin to celebrate Fall! The Friend Memorial Public Library (1 Reach Road) will be open special hours from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., and all over town events will be going on to welcome the season. On top of being open, the library will be hosting Maine singer songwriter Cheryl Jeanette for a concert and sound healing circle at noon. We will host a small book sale as well as local farmers and growers on the front lawn.

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A service of thanks and appreciation to honor all our local fire, police, and EMS providers. Please come in uniform—all family and friends welcome! Lunch by Hearth & Soul Oven and baked goodies will be served.

Presentation: "Protecting Seniors from Scams"

The Walk-In Café meets every Wednesday from 9:30–11:30 a.m., either indoors at Fisher Hall in the Blue Hill Congregational Church or outdoors in the parking lot behind the church, weather permitting. The café is always free and open to all ages. It is about a bit of food and conversation. It is a place where the community comes together.

The Walk-In Café is sponsored by Healthy Peninsula in partnership with the First Congregational Church of Blue Hill.   For more information, please contact Healthy Peninsula at 207-374-3257 or email info@healthypeninsula.org

Join Blue Hill Heritage Trust and Island Heritage Trust for our first Friends From the Field webinar of the season!

To astronomers, dark skies — the absence of light pollution — represent a precious and increasingly rare aspect of the environment, one that mainstream environmentalists sometimes overlook. Our speaker, Michael Goldstein, is vice-president of the Mid-Hudson Astronomical Association, and leads its project to identify dark observing sites. He recently visited Deer Isle and experienced its exceptionally dark skies first-hand. Goldstein’s talk will compare local conditions to other areas of the United States and Maine, and will illustrate the incredible power — and rapidly improving ease of use — of today’s observing technologies.

Registration is required. Sign-up here:
https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_rWDF0Uu2SzOg9QkJV0Abaw

Free, PMM’s Main Street Gallery

Sing along or listen as PMM staff and volunteers lead an afternoon of sea chanteys and sailors’ songs. If you have a chantey to share, you are welcome to lead one. There will also information about how these songs were used as work songs. Attend once or come regularly. All ages are welcome, and no experience is needed.
www.penobscotmarinemuseum.org

On October 10th, Abby Barrows (Deer Isle Oyster Co.), oyster farmer and marine scientist, is our second speaker in the Food from the Sea Talks series, who will share their unique perspective on fishing and harvesting seasons, the effects of weather and environmental concern on catching and harvesting, what makes our area unique, and how this work will change in the future. Come and learn about how the challenges, the rewards, and the ways this hyper-local work links to broader issues.

friendml.org

This program will be an exploration of the exposed summit of Blue Hill Mountain focusing on its geological history, the successional process on its exposed bedrock that created its graceful outcrop communities, and how one can walk among these fragile communities and have no impact on them at all.

Participants will meet a BHHT staff member at 9:00am (meeting location will be provided upon registration). We will hike to the summit along a trail that includes several steps, ledges, rocks, and roots. Trail length is approximately 1 mile and is rated easy-difficult. Tom will be waiting for the group at the summit, and once his talk is over BHHT staff will lead the group down the mountain.

**Space is limited to 12 participants and registration is required. Register here: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1Vhk-AHN75TepwzQOk7ZmDplSRuTXjKvn9X_7T4vK3Vo/edit

Bingo and Birthdays

The Walk-In Café meets every Wednesday from 9:30–11:30 a.m., either indoors at Fisher Hall in the Blue Hill Congregational Church or outdoors in the parking lot behind the church, weather permitting. The café is always free and open to all ages. It is about a bit of food and conversation. It is a place where the community comes together.

The Walk-In Café is sponsored by Healthy Peninsula in partnership with the First Congregational Church of Blue Hill.   For more information, please contact Healthy Peninsula at 207-374-3257 or email info@healthypeninsula.org

Join us for a fun and family-friendly Storybook Trail along John Murphy Trail in Blue Hill, in collaboration with the Word Literary Arts Festival. This is a self-guide trail walk event running through 10/26/2026.

Enjoy a leisurely walk through nature as you read the classic children’s story, The Very Hungry Caterpillar! This trail has increased accessibility features and is great for strollers, walkers, and wheelchairs and is located in the heart of Blue Hill.

There will be accompanying program at the Blue Hill Public Library on Saturday, October 24 at 10:00am. Kids can join a read-aloud and cook-along event and make their own caterpillar fruit kebabs! To learn more, visit the BHPL website: https://bhpl.libcal.com/event/17212366

To learn more about the Word Literary Arts Festival, visit: https://www.wordfestival.org/

On October 17th, Micah Woodcock (Atlantic Holdfast Seaweed Co.), seaweed harvester and policy advisor, is our final speaker in the Food from the Sea Talks series, who will share their unique perspective on fishing and harvesting seasons, the effects of weather and environmental concern on catching and harvesting, what makes our area unique, and how this work will change in the future. Come and learn about how the challenges, rewards, and the ways this hyper-local work links to broader issues.

friendml.org

An annual fall festival to benefit the PCS 8th grade class. Will include Trunk or Treat, pumpkins and other local produce, a silent auction, bake sale, face paint, henna, concessions.

Laurie Baker from Bates College comes to Maine Maritime Academy to give a seminar: “Reading the Wind: Recovering 19th Century Weather from Diaries in the Gulf of Maine”

AARP Grant Celebration

The Walk-In Café meets every Wednesday from 9:30–11:30 a.m., either indoors at Fisher Hall in the Blue Hill Congregational Church or outdoors in the parking lot behind the church, weather permitting. The café is always free and open to all ages. It is about a bit of food and conversation. It is a place where the community comes together.

The Walk-In Café is sponsored by Healthy Peninsula in partnership with the First Congregational Church of Blue Hill.   For more information, please contact Healthy Peninsula at 207-374-3257 or email info@healthypeninsula.org

Join BHHT staff at the Healthy Peninsula's Walk-in Cafe for a fun pumpkin carving event! The Walk-in Café is a casual social gathering with refreshments and conversation held in the basement of the Blue Hill Congregational Church. This week we will be carving pumpkins to add to BHHT's 4th Annual Pumpkin Promenade, which will be located at the Murphy Trail right next door. Pumpkins will be lit up and ready for viewing along the trail from October 29th through October 31.

Come learn about upcoming BHHT programs, enjoy refreshments, and carve pumpkins with us. Some pumpkins and tools will be provided but please feel free to bring your own. Registration is not required and all are welcome!

BHHT staff will be at our Pumpkin Promenade trailhead (the John Murphy Trail near the First Congregational Church in Blue Hill) on Halloween! Come in costume, walk the trail, see the pumpkins, and get some candy. Enjoy tons of Halloween fun and also learn about the Trust. All are welcome!

Alice Hotopp from Downeast Salmon Federation comes to Maine Maritime Academy to give a seminar: “River Restoration and Science Communication in Downeast Maine”

Coffee and Conversation

The Walk-In Café meets every Wednesday from 9:30–11:30 a.m., either indoors at Fisher Hall in the Blue Hill Congregational Church or outdoors in the parking lot behind the church, weather permitting. The café is always free and open to all ages. It is about a bit of food and conversation. It is a place where the community comes together.

The Walk-In Café is sponsored by Healthy Peninsula in partnership with the First Congregational Church of Blue Hill.   For more information, please contact Healthy Peninsula at 207-374-3257 or email info@healthypeninsula.org

Jeff Bozanic from The Explorers Club comes to Maine Maritime Academy to give a seminar: "The Coldest Dive: Antarctica”

The Walk-In Café meets every Wednesday from 9:30–11:30 a.m., either indoors at Fisher Hall in the Blue Hill Congregational Church or outdoors in the parking lot behind the church, weather permitting. The café is always free and open to all ages. It is about a bit of food and conversation. It is a place where the community comes together.

The Walk-In Café is sponsored by Healthy Peninsula in partnership with the First Congregational Church of Blue Hill.   For more information, please contact Healthy Peninsula at 207-374-3257 or email info@healthypeninsula.org

Cristen Messerschmidt from Anchor QEA Consulting comes to Maine Maritime Academy to give a seminar: “From Research to Remediation”

Maine Medicare Choices with Vince Murray

The Walk-In Café meets every Wednesday from 9:30–11:30 a.m., either indoors at Fisher Hall in the Blue Hill Congregational Church or outdoors in the parking lot behind the church, weather permitting. The café is always free and open to all ages. It is about a bit of food and conversation. It is a place where the community comes together.

The Walk-In Café is sponsored by Healthy Peninsula in partnership with the First Congregational Church of Blue Hill.   For more information, please contact Healthy Peninsula at 207-374-3257 or email info@healthypeninsula.org

Phoebe Oehmig from Dartmouth College comes to Maine Maritime Academy to give a seminar: "Claws for Concern? A PFAS and coastal land use analysis for Maine lobsters”