The good news is there are still 37 official days of summer left for the beach retreating and rosé swilling. In the meantime, it doesn’t put a damper on that nice tan to pencil in a few of these six fall events near NYC for your September agenda.
FOOD
1. 9th Annual Hudson Valley Food and Wine Festival | September 11 – 12
At the Gourmet Food Showcase, nibble on boneless coffee braised short ribs from The Tavern at the Beekman Arms in Rhinebeck or try an array of delicious gluten-free eats from Soul Dog & Food For All located in Poughkeepsie. Learn about the Basic Art of Italian Cooking from Chef Maria Liberati or how to create different Stuffed! foods as part of the Cooking Demonstrations program. Swing by the rhythm and blues tent then refresh your knowledge of vino during the wine education seminars.
How to get there: Buy one Amtrak ticket and get one for free, plus free shuttle service to and from the festival. Use discount code V849 when booking. Children age 2-15 receive half-price tickets. Visit amtrak.com or hudsonvalleywinefest.com for more details.
2. Feed Your Soul | September 19
On this special Sunday in September, eat a great, green meal at some of the best environmentally responsible restaurants in New York City (from places like iCi in Brooklyn to Bare Burger in Astoria) knowing that a portion of the proceeds from your meal will be donated to the Food Bank For NY. For more information, visit offmanhattan.com/feedyoursoul
FAMILY
3. 28th Annual Queens County Fair | September 25 – 26
Between the two-acre interactive corn maze, pie-eating contests, carnival rides, country western music, farm fresh fare, Big Apple Circus acts, petting zoo, and livestock competitions, your kids will feel like they’re stepping into the pages of Charlotte’s Web.
How to get there: Take the E or F Train to Kew Gardens/Union Turnpike Station or Q46 Bus (eastbound on Union Tpk.) to the Little Neck Parkway stop. For more information about the fall festivities, visit queensfarm.org.
SPORTS
4. NYC Century Bike Tour | September 12
What better place to enjoy the fall foliage than from the seat of a bike. Now in its 21st year, the annual tour accommodates both novice and seasoned cyclists with a diverse choice of scenic routes from 15 miles to 100 miles. Be a part of America’s only fully urban century ride and help support Transportation Alternatives while you pedal.
How to get there: Meet at 5:30am in Central Park at Harlem Meer, enter at 110th Street and Adam Clayton Powell Jr. OR at Willink Drive or Flatbush Ave. in Prospect Park near the carousel at 6:00 am. Visit nyccentury.org for more details.
5. U.S. Open | August 30 – September 10
The tennis stars you love to watch whizzing the balls and grunting on the courts (Rafa, Federer, Djokovic, Serena, Venus, Del Potro, Roddick, Hewitt, Safina, Wozniacki) will all be there in Flushing Meadows in just a couple of weeks.
How to get there: The 7 train provides easy service from Grand Central Terminal (or Port Authority) to Mets-Willets Point Station, including connections for all Metro-North Trains from Westchester and Connecticut. For more information, visit usopen.org.
ARTS
6. Dumbo Arts Festival | September 24 – 26
Combine a beautiful waterfront setting with 150 of the best musicians, street performers, DJs, painters, and puppeteers in NYC, and you have a free, three-day celebration you don’t want to miss.
How to get there: F train to York Street; A/C train to High Street. For more info, visit dumboartsfestival.com.
By the way, there is no bad news. (Just start a petition for Fall Fridays.)
The co-founder and editor-at-large at offMetro, Lauren is a sustainable travel specialist and freelance journalist with frequent bylines in National Geographic, Bicycling Magazine and Shape. Follow Lauren’s adventures at @laurenmati.
Sarah Knapp is a Brooklyn based entrepreneur whose love for the outdoors and community building led her to the October 2013 creation of OutdoorFest. She has a BA in History, is a Wilderness First Responder and a NY state hiking, camp and boating guide. Her proudest achievement to date is reading the Aeneid in Latin. 
Allison was one of our first top writers and Chief Editor but is no longer working with offMetro. Allison is a native New Yorker, who has lived in Rome, Tuscany, Melbourne, Toronto and Los Angeles. She frequently contributed travel pieces to Family Travel Forum, using her own children as guinea pigs as they travel the globe. She never missed a chance to sample local delicacies, as her love for travel goes hand-in-hand with her love for food and wine. 
Josh Laskin is a freelance travel writer and photographer based in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. When he is not at work or on the road, you can find him in the mountains snowboarding, climbing, hiking, fly fishing, mountain biking, and eating bagel bites.
Annie is a travel writer, environmentalist, and surfer based in Venice, CA. She heads up our West Coast team, keeps our grammatical errors in check, and makes sure our California writers always have a plan for their next adventure. Follow Annie’s travels @annelisemcb.
Carly Pifer is a freelance writer who has been known to follow whims inspired by romantic movie scenes or colorful street style shots to India, Japan, Tunisia and Argentina. After stints living in Seoul, Boston, Paris and Los Angeles, writing and searching for something intangible, she landed somewhat steadily in Brooklyn and has begun to find inspiration in her more immediate surroundings. 
Kate E. O’Hara is a New York based freelance writer and photographer who loves all things food—especially the people who make it and market it. Her writing aims to capture the essence of the food experience; the stories that go well beyond a plate of ingredients. In addition to her love of food, Kate is also known to have a hankering for red wine and craft beer. You can also find Kate on Instagram