Send ideas to montereycountynow.com/events 26 MONTEREY COUNTY WEEKLY OCTOBER 1-7, 2026 www.montereycountynow.com (aka food for sharks) and economics of coastal and ocean regions. Led by Dr. Barbara Block at Hopkins Marine Station, the Monterey Bay White Shark Project is on the cutting edge of genomics research, the use of drones, electronic tagging technology and more. This event invites you to hear directly from these scientists about their work, and see a short film about them by local filmmaker/photographer Kip Evans. [SR] 2-4:30pm Saturday, Oct. 3. Asilomar Conference Grounds, Merrill Hall, 800 Asilomar Ave., Pacific Grove. Free. montereybaywhitesharks.org. VILLAGE PARTY The annual village fundraiser for the Carmel Valley Village Improvement Committee is back, going on 13 years of dancing the night away for a cause. It’s a whole community celebration, bringing together live performances by Brianna Colliard & The Desert Marigolds and the B-Keepers, who are brought back by popular demand. Tickets get you a barbecue dinner by Kiwanis; raffle tickets available for purchase. More importantly, the proceeds go toward supporting all sorts of public benefits, including new bike racks installed throughout the village, ongoing tree work and landscaping, crosswalk systems and more. [KR] 5:30pm Saturday, Oct. 3. Hidden Valley Music Seminars, 104 West Carmel Valley Road, Carmel Valley. $65. cvviv.org. HOLLY IS NEAR California native Holly Near has been an extraordinary voice in folk music and social justice for more than five decades. This singer, songwriter and activist returns to the Central Coast for an evening of music and community. Over the last 50 years, Near has recorded over 30 albums; in 1970, she was a cast member of musical Hair on Broadway. She will be accompanied by pianist Tammy Hall, bassist Jan Martinelli and dynamic folk duo, Emma’s Revolution. Hurry; tickets are limited. [AP] 7pm Saturday, Oct. 3. Unitarian Universalist Church of the Monterey Peninsula, 490 Aguajito Road, Carmel. $45. (831) 624-7404, wildroseproductions.com. SO FETCH Pop & Hiss is trying to make it happen. Of course, fans of Mean Girls will recognize the date that only a dreamy-eyed boy could convey to a girl who spent most of her adolescence in Africa before being flung into the shark tank that is an upper-middle class high school. So the crew at the iconic Downtown Pacific Grove record store bar wants to know where you fit in. Are you jingle-bell rocking with the Plastics? Or scowling with the gays and the goths? However you decide to celebrate Oct. 3, DJ Y2Kayvon will be there to help. [SC] 7pm Saturday, Oct. 3. Pop & Hiss, 215 Forest Ave., Pacific Grove. $5. All ages. (831) 2753303, popandhiss.net. Saturday, Oct. 3- Sunday, Oct. 4 FLUTTER IN We’re crossing our fingers that the Western monarch butterflies make their way back to Pacific Grove for the winter. As Butterfly Town patiently waits for their return, residents are celebrating their favorite invertebrate with an entire weekend of events, including the Sunset Celebration on Saturday, Oct. 3, hosted by The Heritage Society of Pacific Grove, at the newly renovated Pt. Pinos Lighthouse, built in 1855. There will be lighthouse tours, dinner and dancing to the Dave Holodiloff Trio, all while watching the sunset over the Pacific. HOT PICKS comedians’ expense—but this is what they live for. [EC] 8-10pm Friday, Oct. 2. La Casa del Sazón 2, 438 Salinas St., Salinas. $5. 21 and over. (831) 783-1277, bit.ly/ RoastBattleSalinasOct2. Friday, Oct. 2-Sunday, Oct. 4 ROAD RAGE The glory days of American muscle are not behind us, at least according to teams in the Trans Am Western Series. Growling Ford Mustangs. Snarling Chevrolet Camaros. Angry Dodge Challengers. But this is multiclass racing. So these beasts take to the track at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca alongside Ferraris and Camrys and other stock cars in race trim. The series races both Saturday and Sunday. In between, vintage race cars—classic muscle, prototypes from the past, GT cars—also hit the asphalt. There is never a moment of silence on track. [DF] 8:30am-6pm Friday, Oct. 2-Sunday, Oct. 4. WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, 1021 Highway 68, Salinas. $15-$40. (831) 2428200, weathertechraceway.com. Saturday, Oct. 3 PLAY ON There’s live music happening pretty much all the time at Deja Blue. For the second annual Seaside Music Festival, the fun flows out the doors and onto lower Broadway, taking over the neighborhood for live music, local vendors selling food, crafts and band merch, and community connection. The lineup starts at 11:30am with Joint Chiefs, follows by Aki Kumar at 1pm, Rjae Haas at 2:45, then Wrockinfoose at 4:15. The headliner, the Al James Band, goes on from 6-8pm. Bring a lawn chair and stop by to soak up Seaside vibes. [SR] 11am-8pm Saturday, Oct. 3. Deja Blue, 490 Broadway Ave., Seaside. Free. (831) 3240044, dejablue.com. A GOOD, CLEAN TIME Monterey Waterkeeper is on a mission to ensure water is clean for all to enjoy, whether it’s for swimming, drinking or fishing. The importance of water cannot be understated; it’s the foundation of life, after all. The organization does so through cleanups, advocacy and other work. We can help further its mission and have a fun time doing so. Monterey Waterkeeper’s annual garden party is a fundraiser to support its work. Expect an afternoon of mimosas, bites, coffee and live music. Clean water tastes good, but it’ll taste even better here. [EC] 11:30am-2pm Saturday, Oct. 3. Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History, Native Garden, 165 Forest Ave., Pacific Grove. $75. (831) 204-1381, montereywaterkeeper.org. FINS FORWARD “Sharktober” has begun, and with it comes an opportunity to hear directly from the scientists who know the most about the incredible predators that live in Monterey Bay. For 25 years, this interdisciplinary team has been studying white sharks (and other predators, like tuna), marine ecology and landscape, pinnipeds like seals and sea lions Popular soul and R&B group the Al James Band is the headliner at the second annual Seaside Music Festival that runs all day Oct. 3 on lower Broadway in Seaside. PATRICE WARD Monterey Waterkeeper’s mission is in its name: to make sure we all have clean water. Oftentimes that means getting dirty to clear out trash in the waterways. Help support its goal with a party in the garden Saturday, Oct. 3.
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