The topoguide list that Tim linked to is basically my lifetime to-do list. Very useful.
Grüne Hölle is great fun for wet days in summer but it might be a bit dank in October. Weissenstein is perma-dry, ten seconds approach from the road, and a must if you want to live the cliche and walk in the - polished - footsteps of Kurt'n'Wolfie. Crowded, polished, old-skool bolting ... but still manages to be a worthwhile place to visit with classics at basically every grade from 5b to 7c.
I can't comment from personal experience on other good spots for upper 7's. People seem to rate the Bärenschluchtwände.
5's & low 6's in October? Elfenwelt Sector Patsy is a very pretty spot with some great routes. Faces north but is in a quite open & airy situation so a good chance of being dry on a nice autumn day. If "low 6's" can stretch to stiff 6b there are a couple of really great routes up a super impressive looking pillar on the Leienfelser Burgruine.
Schaumschläger on the Roter Fels in Pegnitztal is *the* local classic at 6a+ but achtung! Thirty seven metres. Lowerable with a 70m rope with care. There are some super impressive looking 7a's on the same crag that are similarly long, again with rather old school bolting. They look absolutely fantastic and I suspect by any reasonable standard they might well come under your "mid to upper 7" rubric. If you're in that area at least look at the Anaktalwand. Untypical for Franken, just off vertical crimpy face climbing. Some fantastic looking classics in the upper 7's range. And while you're there there's good food at the Goldener Lamm in Hartenstein. (There are also good 5's & 6's on the Hartensteiner Wand, but it's north facing, shady & unlikely to be good in October. Might be ok if there's a long dry spell)
A couple of accommodation tips: I usually camp at
Gasthof Fischer in Stierberg. Very scenic and relaxed campsite, good food, with a quite nice moderate grade crag (Stierberger Gemsenwand) within walking distance, but the b&b rooms are a bit basic. A slightly posher option if you want to show your partner a good time is the
Hotel Drei Linden at Bärnfels near Obertrubach. I can vouch for the food being excellent; I've never stayed there but friends who have enthuse about it. Melissa Le Neve apparently hangs out at the
Betzenstube when she's working Action Directe, so that's another good tip for eats.
