Today we flip the calendar to September and a month full of fun things to do in Green County. Here are some options for enjoying live music under the sun or under the stars, savoring the flavors of the harvest, and watching the wheels turn as we roll into the fall season.
Get Outside for Live Music
Leisure Lanes of Monroe is one of those local businesses that likes to find ways to give back to the community. Stop in on September 18-19 for their Music Festival, with a lineup of local-ish bands and a variety of musical genres. Proceeds from Saturday will be donated to the Green County Foster Program, and Sunday’s benefactor is Vets Roll.
Main Street Monroe hosts this season’s final Concert on the Square on September 17. Local hometown favorite The Jimmys play from 6:30-9 p.m. Brazilian-style drummers and dancers will entertain with a carnival-flavored intermission.
Break out your lederhosen! New Glarus pulls out all the stops for Oktoberfest on September 23-26. Polka with the Steve Meisner Band on Thursday, rock on with Super Tuesday on Friday, boogie with Boogie and the Yo-Yo’z on Saturday, and tap your toes to a rootsy Americana-Bluegrass blend when The Mascot Theory plays on Sunday. There’s a lot going on in New Glarus for Oktoberfest weekend; go to swisstown.com for the schedule.
Savor the Flavors
Bailey’s Run Vineyard in New Glarus welcomes those with clean feet to participate in their second annual Grape Stomp on September 4. Two-person teams compete for prizes, including wine, of course! Bonus: live music with the Alpha Romeos after the stomp.
From apples to zucchini, ‘tis the season for fresh farmer’s market produce from A to Z. Shop the market in downtown Monroe on Wednesday afternoon and Saturday morning, or Monticello (by Lake Montesian) on Thursday afternoon, or New Glarus (along Wis. 69) on Friday afternoon.
How about them apples? Ten Eyck Orchard near Brodhead is hitting peak season! In addition to numerous varieties of apples from tart to sweet available every day, on weekends you can enjoy apple cider donuts, hand-dipped caramel apples, and apple hand pies. There’s also a six-acre corn maze and don’t forget to selfie with the giant red apple.
Roll with It
It’s a Labor Day Weekend tradition in Brooklyn — the annual Truck and Tractor Pull presented by the Brooklyn and Oregon Snowmobile Clubs on September 3-5. Various classes compete: Pro Farm, Mini Rods, Super Stock, Antique, and even kiddie pedal tractor pulls on both Saturday and Sunday at noon. The Green County Fall Nationals Tractor and Truck Pull is September 25 at Green County Fairgrounds in Monroe. It’s a ticketed event (buy yours in advance to be included in the prize drawings), with profits going right back into the community to support individuals and families who are dealing with hardships.
Get on track with the Green County Model Railroaders at their Show and Swap Meet on September 25-26. Held in Monroe at the Stateline Ice and Community Expo, the show features more than a dozen operating layouts plus vendor tables and prize drawings.
Brodhead’s Tractor Drive and Ride for the Alzheimer’s and Dementia Alliance of Wisconsin is Sunday, September 26. Register at 9 a.m. at Kelch Aviation Museum at the Brodhead Airport. All tractor brands are welcome, and wagons are available for riders without tractors. The tractor parade route was still in progress as press time, but you can call coordinator Fritz Wenger at 608.214.4371 for updates.
For the complete county-wide calendar of events, visit GreenCountyWisconsin.info.
— Noreen Rueckert is director for Green County Tourism and Green County Cheese Days, and helps out with Main Street Monroe’s Concerts on the Square. Her favorite cheese is rumored to be Feta. She has the best office in the county — overlooking Monroe’s Square from the tower of the Historic Green County Courthouse. She dabbles in photography and graphic design, adores cats and iced coffee, and secretly loves the Cheese Days Song.
