Looking for plans to fill the upcoming football bye weekend? Consider heading to the Penn State Arboretum for its annual Pumpkin Fest.

The annual festival will be held from 5 to 9 p.m. on Friday, October 18, and from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Saturday, October 19, at the H.O. Smith Botanic Gardens.

From 5 to 8 p.m. on Friday, the Pumpkin Fest will feature live music from Twin Reverb. From 6 to 9 p.m., the festival will have food trucks and its jack o’ lantern contest.

Folks are welcome to enter the jack-o’-lantern contest by submitting their carved pumpkin from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday, October 18. People of all ages are able to participate, though the competition is divided into age groups.

Additionally, for $5, kids can decorate a pumpkin. Be sure to register for this event ahead of time to reserve a spot. 

On Sunday, events will kick off with story time with the Schlow Library running from 10 to 11 a.m. The Arboretum will also go quiet for those with sensory issues from 10 a.m. to noon. From 11 a.m. to noon, Adam Swartz Puppets will put on a puppet show. Winners of the jack-o’-lantern contest will be announced at 1 p.m.

From 1 to 9 p.m., the Arboretum will offer exhibits by the Happy Valley Adventure Bureau, Penn State Sustainability, Master Gardeners, Dr. Keiko Miwa Ross Student Farm at Penn State, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the Center for Pollinator Research, and Shaver’s Creek Environmental Center, and live music by Picker and Paw Paw.

A second puppet show will run from 2 to 3 p.m. before live pumpkin carving by the Pittsburgh Pumpkin Guy runs from 4 to 8 p.m.

For more information, visit the Arboretum’s website.