🌊 What's Happening in North County This Weekend

In today's Carlsbad Scoop:

• A free 1980s-themed party at Moonlight Beach marks 40 years of Encinitas as a city

• Taste of Oceanside turns downtown into a food and drink walk

• A jazz festival in Escondido puts Brian Blade and Danilo Pérez on one bill

• Billy Currington headlines Boots & Brews at the Del Mar fairgrounds

• The Forum Carlsbad's new owner, and the 40 million-year-old bones an Oceanside crew found

Let's get to it.

🗓️ Upcoming Events in (and around) Carlsbad

Thursday 10/1

• Oceanside Sunset Market | Pier View Way at Coast Highway, Oceanside | 5-9pm
  Up to 240 food and retail booths line five blocks, with dishes from around the world, desserts and live music, every week all year. details

• Boots at the Yard | Junkyard Sports Bar & Grill, 3617 Ocean Ranch Blvd, Oceanside | 8-11pm
  Country night with a line dance lesson for the first two hours, then a DJ playing honky tonk. No cover, drink specials, and all ages until 10. Wear the boots you bought for a wedding and never wore again. details

• Halloween Light Show | The Camp Store, 7201 Carlsbad Blvd, Carlsbad | 6:30pm
  Lights set to Halloween songs run every night through October 31, and a holiday version follows in December. details

Friday 10/2

• barre3 Carlsbad 1-Year Anniversary | barre3 Carlsbad, 5814 Van Allen Way, #145, Carlsbad | All day
  The studio turns one, so every class is free, and it happens again Sunday. All fitness levels are welcome, and mats, weights and bands are provided. Grip socks are required, and you can buy a pair at the studio if you need one. details

• First Friday Oceanside Art Walk | Civic Center Plaza, Oceanside | 5-8pm
  Free, with more than 60 local artists and makers along Artist Alley and the library plaza, plus live music all evening. The art museum is free that night too, with a docent tour at 6 and a cash bar, and the After Art Party concert runs from 8 to 9. details

• Haunted Corn Maze | Carlsbad Strawberry Company, 1050 Cannon Rd, Carlsbad | 7-10pm
  Opening night for the season, aimed at teens and adults. Part of the $25 ticket goes to the Agua Hedionda Lagoon Foundation, and it's open Fridays and Saturdays through Halloween. details

• Pumpkin Palooza | 1200 Laurel Tree Ln, Carlsbad | 9am-9pm
  Petting zoo, mechanical bull, big blue slide, corn pit and six inflatables. Getting in is $3, free for babies 12 months and under, with rides and attractions extra. Weekends add movie nights and food trucks. details

• Boots & Brews | Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd, Del Mar | 5:30-10pm
  Billy Currington and Dylan Scott headline, with Jayden Secor on the bill. Open to all ages, with tickets from $59.99. details

Saturday 10/3

• Batiquitos Lagoon Kayak Fundraiser and Cleanup | La Costa Avenue Park and Ride, 710 La Costa Ave, Encinitas | 7:30am
  Paddle waters that are normally closed to boats while you help clean up the lagoon. Now in its 20th year, with launches both weekend days. A two-person kayak is $160, and kids as young as six can ride along with a parent. details

• City of Encinitas 40th Anniversary Celebration | Moonlight Beach, 400 B St, Encinitas | 8am-8:30pm
  A sandcastle exhibition in the morning, BETAMAXX playing '80s hits at 4 and Back to the Future at 6:30. Four blocks south at Pacific View Arts Center (380 W F St), there's a chalk art party at noon and '80s line dancing at 2:30. All free. Bring a blanket and a low-back chair for the movie. details

• St. Francis Day Festival and Blessing of the Animals | Mission San Luis Rey, 4050 Mission Ave, Oceanside | 10am-2pm
  The friars bless pets throughout the festival. There's live music, food, pet vendors and animal demos, and the parish is collecting non-perishable food, toiletries and pet food if you'd like to bring a donation. details

• Public Safety Open House | City of Carlsbad Safety Training Center, 5750 Orion St, Carlsbad | 10am-1pm
  A SWAT demo, the police K-9, a fire extinguisher demo and sidewalk CPR, all free. Police cars, fire trucks and public works vehicles are parked out to see up close, and the police shooting range is open for tours. details

• Clean Air Fair | Solana Beach Library, 157 Stevens Ave, Solana Beach | 11am-1pm
  Booths from local groups including the Girl Scouts and the SeaWeeders Garden Club, plus live music, food and giveaways, all free. Exhibitors share practical ways to cut food waste and save energy at home. details

• Del Mar Wine + Food Festival Grand Tasting | Surf Sports Park, 14989 Via de la Valle, Del Mar | 1-4pm
  Sat-Sun with the same hours both days, as more than 100 chefs and restaurants plate bites alongside 150-plus wineries, breweries and distilleries. Tickets start at $185 for a day or $275 for both. details

• Taste of Oceanside | Downtown Oceanside, 311 N Tremont St, Oceanside | 1:30-5pm
  A self-guided walk with about 70 tasting stops, plus DJs and a free trolley between areas. Admission is $80 with drinks or $60 for food only. details

• San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival | California Center for the Arts, 340 N Escondido Blvd, Escondido | 2-9:30pm
  Drummer Brian Blade and his Fellowship Band close the night, after pianist Danilo Pérez and the seven-piece Mingus Dynasty. The two outdoor sets are free, with food trucks at the dinner break, and a pass to the three concert hall shows runs $54 to $90. details

• Rancho BEERnardo Festival | Webb Park, 16826 Bernardo Center Dr, Rancho Bernardo | 2-5pm
  The Rotary club's annual festival, now in its 14th year, is $65 to get in ($10 for designated drivers), with more than 75 tastings from breweries, wineries, and cider and kombucha makers, plus games and The Rubber Band. No kids or pets allowed. details

• Tommy Castro and the Pain Killers | Martin Luther King Jr. Park, 4500 Mesa Dr, Oceanside | 3:30-6:30pm
  A free afternoon of blues from the Levitt music series, with Sue Palmer and Liz Ajuzie opening. There'll be vendors and activities for kids. Bring a blanket and folding chairs, and pack a picnic or buy food there. details

• Halloween Spooktacular | Williams Barn at Walnut Grove Park, 1950 Sycamore Dr, San Marcos | 4-8pm
  A costume parade, dance party and crafts in the barn are free. Games, treats and inflatables run $1 each, or $10 for ten tickets, and signing up ahead gets you a mini trick-or-treat tote with the bundle. Food trucks will be on site. details

• Hudson Westbrook | Frontwave Arena, 3475 Hero Dr, Oceanside | 7pm
  The Texas country singer behind "Take It Slow" brings his Hits Me Tour, with Kenny Whitmire and Ethan Burdick opening. Doors open at 6. details

Sunday 10/4

• Super Hero Obstacle Race | Alga Norte Community Park, 6565 Alicante Rd, Carlsbad | 8-10am
  Kids and parents run a 2K course together in costume, with 20 obstacles including inflatable mazes, wrecking balls and web crawlers. Everyone gets a cape, a bib and a medal, and registration is $33 a person for ages 4 and up. Online sign-up closes Friday at 5. details

• Solara Wellness Festival | Fox Point Farms, 1200 Fox Point Farms Lane, Encinitas | 9am
  $129 covers every class at this outdoor day of yoga, breathwork and sound baths, with wellness talks, live music and a marketplace of local brands in between. details

• Poway Fall Festival | Midland Rd between Poway Rd and Hilleary Pl, Poway | 9am-4pm
  A classic car show, a beer and wine garden, food trucks and hundreds of vendors, and it's free to get in. Street parking fills fast, so the chamber suggests the HomeGoods or Aldi shopping centers or the Lowe's lot. details

• Baby Goat Yoga | Splitrock Farm and Retreat, 39032 Harris Trail, Fallbrook | 10-11am
  Yoga under big palms, pines and oaks while baby goats climb and jump. No experience needed, and you can bring your own mat or borrow one. Arrive between 9:30 and 10 to park and spend some time with the goats first. details

• SoCal Shih Tzu Festival | Encinitas Community Park, 425 Santa Fe Dr, Encinitas | 11am-1pm
  Hundreds of Shih Tzus, off leash or on, at $10 a person with tickets capped at 500. There's food, treats and a share table for gently used dog gear, and extra funds go to local dog rescues. The big moment is the TZUnami wave and group photo at noon sharp. details

• Free First Sunday: Art for All | Oceanside Museum of Art, 704 Pier View Way, Oceanside | 12-2pm
  Museum admission is free, and the monthly hands-on session adds projects led by local artists and cultural partners. details

• Vista Makers Market Fall Harvest Market | The Commons, 802 S Santa Fe Ave, Vista | 1-5pm
  Local makers and artists set up inside and out with fall and Halloween goods, plus live music and kids crafts. Admission and face painting (1-4pm) are both free, and Ascend Coffee Roasters is open from noon. details

• Free Thriller Dance Class | 4543 Essex Ct, Carlsbad | 6-7pm
  Learn the zombie dance from Michael Jackson's "Thriller" video, free and open to all ages. Beginners are welcome, and you RSVP through the details link first. details

• Becoming Leonard Cohen | New Village Arts, Ray Charles Stage, 2787 State St, Carlsbad | 7pm
  Singer-songwriter Niels Lund performs Leonard Cohen's songs and poetry, with "Suzanne," "Bird on the Wire" and "Hallelujah" among them, for $30 to $35 a ticket before fees. details

• Michelle Branch with SASAMI | The Sound, Del Mar Fairgrounds, 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd, Del Mar | 8pm
  You probably know "Everywhere" and "All You Wanted" from 2001's The Spirit Room, and "Goodbye to You" from 2003's Hotel Paper. This is her Everywhere and Back Again tour, open to all ages, with tickets from $39.99. details

🍊🥑 Farmers Markets 🍓🧺

• Wed  Carlsbad, State Street, 2:30-7pm  details

• Thu  Oceanside, Pier View Way, 9am-1pm  details

• Fri  San Marcos, N City Drive, 4-8pm  details

• Sat  Vista, Courthouse lot, 8am-12pm  details

• Sat  Cardiff, MiraCosta Campus, 10am-2pm  details

• Sat  Del Mar, Civic Center, 12-4pm  details

• Sun  Rancho Santa Fe, Del Rayo Center, 9:30am-2pm  details

• Sun  Leucadia, Oak Crest Middle School, 10am-2pm  details

• Sun  Solana Beach, Cedros Avenue, 12-4pm  details

🌤️🌊 Carlsbad Weather and Wave Forecast

🛍️ The Forum Carlsbad Has a New Owner

The Forum Carlsbad has been sold to EDENS, a national owner of open-air shopping centers that already runs The Shops at La Jolla Village and Bonita Centre in San Diego County. The sellers, Northwood Investors and Nuveen, announced it September 24 and didn't give a price. The center covers about 34 acres off Calle Barcelona and opened in 2004.

Before the sale, the owners spent the last few years reworking the tenant list. They added The Henry, Vuori, SusieCakes, Alo and Abercrombie, expanded the Apple store, and say Aritzia and Barry's are still on the way. Nobody has said what EDENS plans to change, and for now the Forum's own Halloween event and the tree lighting are still on the calendar. Learn more

🦴 An Oceanside Construction Crew Dug Up a 40 Million-Year-Old "Thunder Beast"

A city infrastructure dig in Oceanside hit fossils about 12 feet down this month. Paleontologist Joseph El Adli spotted them during routine monitoring, and his team spent seven days cutting limb bones and ribs out of several tons of rock. The biggest piece looks like a femur, close to three feet long. The city isn't saying where the site is.

The bones are 40 to 45 million years old and probably belonged to either a brontothere, the rhino-sized "thunder beast," or an amynodont, a squat, hippo-like relative of the rhino. The city has found one before, too, when a saber-toothed predator turned up during road work near College Boulevard. These bones are headed to a lab, then a museum. Learn more

Until next time,

Carlsbad Scoop