Mid-Lakes Navigation's homepage had one line at the top all fall: "Season ends October 12th!" That date is today. The dock at 15 W. Genesee Street goes quiet for the winter. The office and store at 3 W. Genesee Street list Wednesday through Sunday hours, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
The next six weeks run on a different schedule. The summer services close one after another. The village switches over to yard cleanup. Then the Skaneateles Area Chamber of Commerce runs a festival it describes as being for local families, and this year that festival has a second venue it didn't have before. Dickens Christmas starts on November 27.
The Closing Order
The summer services don't all end on one day. They wind down over about ten days:
- Skaneateles Farmers' Market. The Thursday market ran May 21 to October 8, and the Saturday market ran May 23 to October 10. Both were held in the Austin Park Pavilion parking lot at 1 East Austin Street, with vendors including Folls Farms, Good Karma Garlic, Mountain Morning Farms, Saint Fiacres Farms, Lionheart Farms FLX and CiCi Bakery.
- Mid-Lakes Navigation. The last cruises ran October 12.
- Village brush pickup. It runs September 28 through October 16, 2026, under the Village's rules on size and placement.
- Skan Ellus Drive-In. Open "through October 18th."
- Village leaf pickup. It starts October 19, 2026, according to the Village of Skaneateles DPW. The routes and end date are on a flyer linked from that page.
Brush pickup ends on a Friday and leaf pickup starts the following Monday, so village streets get no break from curbside piles. Four days after leaf pickup starts, Fall Fest begins downtown.
A Festival Pitched at Neighbors, Now With a Second Venue
The Press-Observer's preview of the weekend in Eagle News said Skaneateles may be known as a summer hot spot, but Fall Fest has for years been aimed at local people and families. In the same article, Chamber assistant director Charlene Holmes-Sullivan described the event this way:
"Fall Fest has always been about bringing families and neighbors together. It's a tradition that generations of people in our community have enjoyed, and it continues to be a great way to celebrate the season while supporting local businesses and organizations."
The kids' trick-or-treat parade, Shop, Sip & Stroll and the pet costume contest all return. The new piece is a Fall Fair and Vendor Market at the Skaneateles Community Center. Holmes-Sullivan told Eagle News the idea came out of the Community Center's successful Fourth of July event, when organizers started talking about how to expand Fall Fest. Planning began in July, and she said the response from artisan vendors exceeded expectations.
The fair puts part of the weekend inside a building with an ice rink and a pool. Eagle News lists free swimming and skating as part of the Community Center Open House that day. In late October, an indoor option is a real addition to a festival that used to depend on the weather.
Friday Starts in the Shop Windows
The Chamber's Fall Fest page has the scavenger hunt opening Friday, October 23. Forms are available at the Chamber starting at 10 a.m., and players look for cutouts in shop windows around the village. Completed forms are due back at the Chamber by the end of the day Sunday for a chance at one of 10 prize bags. The hunt is open to all ages and geared toward children 12 and under. The Barrow Gallery runs walking tours focused on the artist John D. Barrow at 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. the same day.
Saturday, October 24, by the Clock
Saturday is the full day. Events happen in three places: downtown, the Community Center and the Skaneateles Historical Society.
| Time | What | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 10 a.m. | Trick-or-treat sidewalk parade, led by Play2Learn, rain or shine | Starts in the alley at 22 Jordan Street, between Doug's Fish Fry and Lucky Dogs |
| 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. | Fall Artisan Craft & Vendor Fair with more than 25 vendors, food trucks, raffle baskets, costume Glow & Skate, bounce houses, pumpkin painting | Skaneateles Community Center |
| 10:30 a.m., 12 p.m., 1:30 p.m. | Cemetery tours, about 45 minutes, free, reservations required | Skaneateles Historical Society |
| 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. | Live music by Tom Barnes | Skaneateles Community Center |
| 2 to 5 p.m. | Shop, Sip & Stroll | Participating village businesses |
Space on the cemetery tours is limited. You can reserve by calling 315-685-1360, stopping by the museum at 28 Hannum Street, or emailing [email protected]. The vendor list mixes small makers with local institutions. It includes Frozen Ocean Apiaries, Forge Gone Conclusions, Lake Life Laser Studio, Not Your Dad's Woodshop, Tug Hill Homestead, Trellis Moon and the Skaneateles Historical Society.
Shop, Sip & Stroll works like this: buy something at a participating shop and you get a drink coupon for a cocktail or mocktail at a participating restaurant or bar. The specials posted so far:
- All My Friends Books: a tote bag with a $50 purchase, while supplies last
- Rhubarb Kitchen Shop: tastings of Finger Lakes Harvest's nonalcoholic Swedish GLÖGG, plus Syracuse Salt Company
- Emma + James and Hap + Main: 15% off the entire purchase
- The Local Branch: a free custom key fob with a $50 purchase
- Village Bottle Shop: 15% off wine
- Skaneateles Historical Society: 20% off gift shop purchases October 23 and 24, 1 to 4 p.m.
On the drink side, Bluewater Grill offers a free glass of wine, draft beer or well drink with a purchase. Elephant and the Dove and Hidden Fish are taking $10 off dine-in orders of $50 or more. The Sherwood Inn is pouring a glass of house wine with a meal purchase, and Valentine's Pizza & Deli has 40% off any food item. The Chamber says it will keep updating the page as more businesses send in specials.
Sunday Moves to Smaller Rooms
Sunday, October 25, has three events spread across the day. At 11 a.m., the Skaneateles Library hosts the Howl-O-Ween Dog Costume Contest, judged by Lucky Dogs. At noon, the Community Center holds a pumpkin pie contest with five local celebrity judges, who haven't been announced yet. From 4 to 5 p.m., the Witchy Women of the Finger Lakes host trick-or-treating at The Sinclair of Skaneateles. Holmes-Sullivan told Eagle News the pie contest started as a fun idea during a planning meeting. It's the second year-one addition to be hosted at the Community Center.
What Keeps Running Into November
The new pickleball courts at Austin Park opened September 28, as Eagle News reported. The complex will be named the Miron Family Pickleball Courts after Steve and Jackie Miron, the project's primary private donors. Vitale Companies of Auburn built the courts over the summer. They have an 8-foot fence with wind screens on three sides and 4-foot fences between every two courts. The money came from a $200,000 state grant secured by State Sen. Rachel May and $339,000 from more than 70 private donations. No local tax dollars were used. A shaded waiting area is being designed and is expected next spring. The courts sit next to the pavilion lot where the farmers' market wrapped up for the year on October 10.
At 26 West Genesee Street, the Sherwood Inn has live music on Sundays from 4 to 7 p.m. on October 18 and 25 and November 1, 8, 15, 22 and 29. Its Thanksgiving service runs 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Thursday, November 26.
If you live near Andrews Road, Bryant Lane, West Lake Road or Kane Avenue, keep an eye on the Town's water main project. A Town presentation dated June 23, 2026, gave a tentative schedule: Andrews Road in September, Bryant Lane and West Lake Road in October, Kane Avenue in November, and pump-station site prep in October. It warned of possible noise, dust, lane closures and brief driveway blockages. Those months were estimates in June, so the Town's latest notices are the better guide to actual closure dates.
November 27 Starts the Next Season
The Chamber has Dickens Christmas 2026 running noon to 4 p.m. on November 27, 28 and 29, December 5, 6, 12, 13, 19 and 20, and December 24. Thanksgiving at the Sherwood is the day before the first of those afternoons, and the Sherwood's last scheduled fall Sunday music night is November 29, the third. The stretch between the last tour boat and the first Dickens Saturday comes to 47 days.
If you own a home here and wonder what the fall market looks like on your street, Jeremy Allen can give you a straight answer. Get Your Instant Home Valuation, and you'll know your number before Dickens weekend starts.
