A Tuesday letter from the Pioneer Valley

Issue 023 · Oct 13, 2026
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Haunted Trains, Bonfires and a 4-time Winner


By Neal Quesnel ·

Look Park's Haunted Train runs ten nights starting Thursday October 15 in Florence, and the Hatfield Bonfire Festival lights up Saturday the 17th at 15 Billings Way with Giovannie and the Hired Guns for $35 a ticket. Doors Open Holyoke brings free access to the Victory Theatre, Wistariahurst, and the fire department on Saturday from 10am to 3pm, the same day as Westfield PumpkinFest's ninth year with 1,200 free pumpkins at Amelia Park. The 30-year fixed jumped to 7.40%, putting a $500K Valley mortgage roughly $360 per month above where it stood last October. Northampton landed $2.9 million in MassWorks infrastructure money, Springfield got $425,000 for urban green space, and Colleen Flanagan won the Holyoke Battle of the Bars for the fourth time. A lot of action this weekend.

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ChatGPT’s top pick for a Springfield lawyer had the wrong photo.

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This Weekend

§ 01
  1. № 01

    The Happy Accidents at Incandescent Brewing

    Fri Oct 16 · 6pm to 9pm · Incandescent Brewing, Bernardston

    Live music at the Bernardston brewery on Friday night. No cover. The musicians ask for a suggested donation of $5 to $10.

  2. № 02

    Nosferatu in the Wistariahurst gardens

    Fri Oct 16 · 6:45pm to 9pm · Wistariahurst Museum, Holyoke

    The 1922 silent Nosferatu on a 12-foot screen in the museum gardens, with light refreshments. Bring a blanket or a chair. If the weather turns, it moves inside to the music room. Tickets through the museum.

  3. № 03

    52nd Annual Multiband Pops at UMass

    Fri Oct 16 · 7:30pm to 10pm · Tillis Performance Hall, Amherst

    UMass jazz, wind, orchestral, choral, percussion and chamber ensembles in one show, with the Minuteman Marching Band playing the whole second half. Tickets are $27, or $20 for students, seniors and UMass employees.

  4. № 04

    Doors Open Holyoke

    Sat Oct 17 · 10am to 3pm · Holyoke City Hall, Holyoke

    A day of open doors across the city, starting at City Hall: the Victory Theatre, the Children's Museum, the fire department, Wistariahurst and the International Volleyball Hall of Fame.

  5. № 05

    Westfield PumpkinFest

    Sat Oct 17 · 11am to 3pm · Amelia Park fields, Westfield

    The ninth year, with more than 1,200 free pumpkins to carve while they last, trunk or treat and food trucks on the athletic fields behind Amelia Park. Rain or shine. It also starts the haunted-houses drive-by map that runs to the 31st.

  6. № 06

    Franklin County Fall Festival and Classic Car Show

    Sat Oct 17 · 12pm to 6pm · Franklin County Fairgrounds, Greenfield

    Classic cars, local food and live entertainment on the fairgrounds, run by the fair's own society.

  7. № 07

    Arts & Ale Trail in the Easthampton mills

    Sat Oct 17 · 2pm to 5pm · Easthampton mill district, Easthampton

    The first one: a half-mile walk between nine mill venues. The ticket covers a T-shirt, art at every stop and five tickets for food or a pour. Registration opens at 1:30pm near the Farm Kitchen Workshop, and there are childcare add-ons for ages 6 to 13.

  8. № 08

    Hatfield Bonfire Festival

    Sat Oct 17 · 5pm to 10:30pm · 15 Billings Way, Hatfield

    The Hatfield firefighters' fundraiser, with Giovannie and the Hired Guns headlining, Austin Meade, Sterling Elza and Cottonwood on the bill, and a big fire. $35, and kids 8 and under get in free.

  9. № 09

    Tinsmithing, Toys and Games at Historic Deerfield

    Sun Oct 18 · 10am to 4pm · Historic Deerfield, Deerfield

    Holly and Rich Eckert demonstrate tinsmithing alongside old toys and games. Included with general admission: $20, $5 for ages 13 to 17, and free for 12 and under.

  10. № 10

    Pumpkin Festival at Outlook Farm

    Sun Oct 18 · 12pm to 4pm · Outlook Farm, Westhampton

    A pig roast from noon to 3pm, a backyard taproom, and live music from 1pm to 4pm, with pick-your-own apples open the same day. $5 cover. No coolers, outside food or pets.

  11. № 11

    Soup Cook-Off at Vanished Valley

    Sun Oct 18 · 12pm to 3pm · Vanished Valley Brewing, Ludlow

    Free to taste every entry in the beer garden, and free to enter a pot of your own, with prizes for the top three. Entries go to Kara at the brewery.

  12. № 12

    Holyoke Civic Symphony opens its season

    Sun Oct 18 · 3pm · Holyoke Community College, Holyoke

    Old Wine in New Bottles: Beethoven's Fifth, Quinn Mason's trombone concerto Sonorous with Matthew Russo, and Lauren Bernofsky's Overture on themes from The Mensch. Free, like every concert this season.

Kids Corner

§ 02
  1. № 01

    Look Park's Haunted Train

    Thu Oct 15 · 5-9pm · Look Memorial Park, Florence
    Ages · All agesCost · Cost not posted

    Look Park's Haunted Train opens Thursday for a ten-night run through Oct 30. Rides go from 5pm to 9pm, with the last ride at 8:45pm each night.

  2. № 02

    Halloween BOO-k Bash at the Carle

    Sat Oct 17 · 10am · Eric Carle Museum, Amherst
    Ages · All agesCost · Cost not posted

    The Halloween BOO-k Bash brings families to the Eric Carle Museum for an autumn-season Saturday morning program. It is listed as a family event, so plan for a mixed-age room.

  3. № 03

    Belchertown 4-H Annual Trunk or Treat

    Sat Oct 17 · 4-7pm · Town Common, Belchertown
    Ages · All agesCost · Cost not posted

    The Belchertown 4-H Annual Trunk or Treat takes over the Town Common on Park Street for three hours of decorated-trunk candy stops. Costumes are the whole point, and the late-afternoon window works for younger kids who fade by dark.

  4. № 04

    Union38 Tot Time at Tilton Library

    Wed Oct 14 · 10am · Tilton Library, South Deerfield
    Ages · ToddlersCost · Free

    Union38 Tot Time at the Tilton Library in South Deerfield is the weekday morning drop-in for toddlers and caregivers. A good midweek option up Route 5 if the weekend lineup is already stacked.

  5. № 05

    Custom Halloween Candy Bag

    Thu Oct 15 · 4pm · Palmer Library, Palmer
    Ages · KidsCost · Free

    The Custom Halloween Candy Bag program at the Palmer Library hands out canvas totes, fabric paint, and fabric markers so kids can decorate their own trick-or-treat bag before the 31st. Trade a plastic pumpkin for something that actually holds the haul.

  6. № 06

    Halloween Costume Swap

    Sat Oct 17 · 11am · South Hadley Public Library, South Hadley
    Ages · All agesCost · Free

    The Halloween Costume Swap at the South Hadley Public Library trades donated costumes for tickets. Drop costumes (all ages and sizes) at the main desk through Friday Oct 16 to earn a ticket per item, then bring the tickets to the Saturday swap in the Community Meeting Room.

  7. № 07

    Pumpkin Painting & Pasta Art Making

    Sat Oct 17 · 10am · UMass Downtown, Amherst
    Ages · All agesCost · Free

    Pumpkin Painting & Pasta Art Making at UMass Downtown lets families paint a mini pumpkin and make a pasta-art craft for National Pasta Day. Part of the UMass free drop-in crafting series for families, so you can arrive when it suits.

Real Estate Pulse

§ 03

This Week’s Rates

Freddie Mac PMMS · October 8, 2026

InstrumentThis WkLast WkYr Ago
30-yr fixed7.40%7.28%6.30%
15-yr fixed6.73%6.60%5.53%
10-yr Treasury5.22%5.24%4.13%

Both mortgage rates jumped while the 10-year Treasury barely moved, pushing the spread over the benchmark to 218 bp and the 30-year a full 110 bp above where it sat a year ago. A Valley buyer financing $500K at 7.40% is now paying roughly $360 more per month than the same loan would have cost last October, which is why showings are thinning and sellers who priced in August are starting to cut.

Fed Note · October 8
“Overall, the new data reinforce my view that the labor market is stable and inflation is too high. For at least the near term, policy will be focused on the inflation side of our mandate.”

Waller walked through why he supported the September hike and signaled the Fed's attention is now on inflation, not employment. The mortgage desk is reading this as confirmation that the recent 25 bp hike is not a one-off and that near-term policy stays tilted toward restraint.

Christopher Waller, Federal Reserve Governor →

Around Town

§ 04
  • · Town

    Northampton is getting just under $2.9 million from the state's MassWorks program, part of the latest round of infrastructure grants announced this week. The Reminder has the award details.

  • · Town

    Springfield is receiving $425,000 in state funding for urban green space work, according to Mayor Domenic Sarno. WWLP has the announcement.

  • · Opening

    Salt Flower and Tilted Orbit Arcade get joint ribbon cuttings in Amherst on Friday, October 16, hosted by the Amherst Area Chamber of Commerce. Two new storefronts marked on the same afternoon.

  • · Quirk

    The sixth annual Michael Ahearn Golf Tournament was held in South Hadley last week in honor of the late Holyoke parade committee leader. WWLP has the recap.

  • · Town

    The Digital Access for All Coalition gathered at Springfield City Hall last Friday to press state leaders on internet affordability and access. WWLP covered the stand-out.

Local Wins

§ 05

Battle of the Bars, the friendly competition among Holyoke-area bars that raises money for the Holyoke St. Patrick's Parade, crowned the same local bartender champion, Colleen Flanagan, for the fourth time this past week. The parade is one of the largest in the country and fundraising like this helps make it happen.

The parade committee is already deep into the 2027 season of pancake breakfasts, road races, and bar nights that keep the floats rolling down Northampton Street.

Valley Fact

Springfield Thunderbirds

On October 15, 2016, the Springfield Thunderbirds dropped the puck on their first AHL season at the MassMutual Center, keeping a 90-year run of pro hockey in Springfield alive after the Falcons decamped to Tucson. The ownership group that pulled it off was local: Paul Picknelly of Peter Pan Bus Lines and a consortium of Springfield hotel owners bought the Portland Pirates and moved the franchise south in a matter of months. A city has iced an AHL team every year since 1954, and that streak nearly broke in the spring of 2016.

That’s the week. Say Hi to a stranger. Talk on Tuesday.

– Neal

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