Back after a 2 year absence (pandemic) the Blues Festival did not disappoint. They always have a…read morefantastic lineup consisting of some of the best blues artists around and also some jam bands and folk music that crosses all genres. This high energy event attracts people from Portland and all over the country. Dancing, chilling, people watching - it's perfect for all of that. The festival takes place on the waterfront lawn in front of RiverPlace Marina with views of the Williamette River and bridges. There is not any shade so definitely come prepared with a hat and sunblock. This year the weather was perfect, low 70s and some days overcast, but other years it's been high 90s with blazing sun and lots of sunburned people. There are four stages, two showcase the more well known bands. You can purchase seats or bring your own chair and blanket and sit in the lawn, which is what we do. But get there early or be prepared to squeeze into a spot. Those lucky enough to own or have a friend with a boat, dock in the Marina adding to the ambiance. Even kayaks and paddle boarders flock to this area to enjoy the music. The smell of weed permeates; smoking pot is common, even before it was legal, so just be aware if the smell turns you off. It's everywhere, not limited to specific seating areas. There is an area dedicated to local venders selling music memorabilia, jewelry, clothing (including tie-dye and embroidery), artwork, crafts and local services. Also food carts with varied cuisines, definitely something for everyone. Prices range from $8-15. You can also buy beer, wine and cider. Water stations are throughout and there are lots of portable bathrooms underneath the Hawthorne Bridge. The Festival culminates on July 4th with a phenomenal fireworks display on the river. They shoot them from a barge situated right in front of the Hawthorne Bridge and the fireworks reflect on the water. It's spectacular! Trucks and cars often stop on the various freeways overlooking the river and families gather on the lawns of the surrounding park, esplanade and residential area to picnic and watch the display. The Blues Festival used to be free with a donation of canned goods but now they charge a fee. You can purchase single day tickets or passes for the entire festival. Early bird prices are the way to go. Check their website for details.

I attended this on July 2nd, blues festival since Buddy Guy was playing. He's 86 and so this is…read morehis last tour. Prepaid tickets in June was $50. I also saw Cha Wa from New Orleans. They are a Mardi Gras Indian Band with feathered head dress. They were great performers doing Mardi Gras songs and R & B. Delgres, French Caribbean band performed on the Front Porch Stage. It's a smaller stage. Eric Gales did a great performance before Buddy Guy came on too. The festival got super crowded after 6 pm. One thing I didn't like was that there were only one area where the Sanican Restrooms were set up. So you had to walk to the center of the grounds and under the bridge. It got really dark at 5 pm when the lights were not turned on yet. Some of the grassy area had bird poop around, so you really have to sanitize your shoes and blanket afterwards.

Community vendor for many years pre-Covid and current. Great crowds, crowd management, and support.read more

Going strong in 2022!…read more Crowds are thick, but nearly every store on Mississippi Ave (and then some) have a tent in the street. You can buy tons of locally made goods, from clothes to books to art to plants. There are several beer tents, kombucha, a vegan hotdog stand, and at least two stages with live music. I walked, but parking was sprouting up nearby for $20-25/spot. Four stars because it's hard to escape the crowds, and it's tough to navigate with any strategy. Jump on in and don't swim upstream!

It's a naked bike ride, what more is there to say. It can be fun and interesting. Be open minded…read moreand remember it's for a great cause. It's to protest the world's dependency on oil.

The only problem is the date. It should be a Saturday in July. Its mostly at night and it was a…read morerefreshing 60 degrees. Cathedral Park was the best start location in five years. The band, stage, slope for viewing, just perfect.

We attended the 6th annual Clackamas County Lavender Festival which is held just outside of Carver,…read moreOregon. What a great location. I didn't realize this location was there. I had a great time listening to the band and drinking lavender lemonade. They had several craft vendors on site as well as free demonstrations on how to make lavender wreathes. The Clackamas River Basin Council had a nice set up of native plants in a portable display kind of fun to check out, however, the placement was next to face painting so I don't think they got as much foot traffic as they had hoped for. They had plenty of u cut lavender. I'm sure they will continue to have that throughout the season. Check out the scene. It's really nice there.

Went to their 10'th Annual Lavender Festival for my first time here and it was so lovely! The first…read moresite of seeing fields of lavender just blew my mind as I was in the parking area from afar walking in. I was welcomed with the sound of festivities with live bands, drinks, food, various vendors, and u-pick lavenders with a choice of making it into a lavender bouquet or wreath. This place is beautiful and has efficient sprinkler mist system and waterfall ponds for kids to play in, which was perfect for this very warm sunny day. The festival lasts for two days, so this year it was on June 25-26, 2016. The event is free! I was bummed that I forgot to bring a nice camera. Great lavender fields for photography! The scent of lavender everywhere just adds that aromatic touch to the whole experience. *These lavender bushes attract a lot of bees. There will be many bees per lavender bush, but they don't really bother you.

Now before you go getting all snarky with the name of this 36 year old Vancouver institution, I…read moremust note that Stephen Colbert already made fun of it: http://www.comedycentral.com/colbertreport/videos.jhtml?videoId=80965 So don't worry about being obligated to step up to the plate. It's cool, we've got it. That being said, the Couve's Sausage Fest is an annual stronghold in the city. The Friday - Sunday party every first weekend of September has become the event in which the city welcomes the fall. The whole going is a cash only party for local families. There are carnival rides and games for the kids, a craft fair, awesome live (and usually local) music all day & everyday, and yummy Oktoberfest-esque food to munch on while you mill around all the activities. An extensive beer garden also takes up a good portion of the site with $4.00 domestics and $5.00 local micros on tap. While it is a little more spendy than the local happy hour, proceeds from the fest all go to the elementary school owned by the grounds that the event is held on. If you're looking for something to do regardless of age, but don't really like the huge crowds that county fairs tend to bring this is a nice alternative. If anything it's worth a few wholehearted laughs and a spin on the tilt-a-whirl on a pleasant late summer night. Hmm...maybe I'll get around to making a UYE in 2009.

First of all, you really should come up with a better name. Secondly, if you're going to call it a…read moresausage festival, you should probably have more that ONE mediocre, at best, type of sausage. If I'd have known this before hand, I'd have saved the trip, gone to Otto's or New Season's, picked up some GOOD sausage, and had my own sausage fest. Yeah, I said it. The only reason this gets 2 stars is that if you ignore the fact that it's supposed to be a sausage festival, then it's not a bad little carnival event. If you're into that, check it out next year - just don't expect anything special in the way of sausages.

Oh the fair. What to say. It's the fair lol Spendy food, rides, games and lots of people. Oh and…read morelets not forget about the numerous vendors selling their spendy loot too. Some of the food is good, most isn't worth the money. The monster trucks can be fun to watch! And I personally enjoy looking at the animals. The fair is probably more enjoyable if you have kids to take and enjoy it with. Overall if you've never been most definitely go! But would I make this a yearly routine...likely not.

Its a good time! Lots of fun things to see and do. Loved the expanded food items this year. With…read morethe expo people were s little less pushy. But iverall it's a fair. Its expensive and busy but that us to be expected. The monster trucks never disappoint, we mostly come every year to check those out, the rest is frosting on the cake.

we went to the Alabama tribute concert, Wednesday 4/18. concert was great, as well as the staff. we…read morepaid for (2) vip tent access. all information on the website was wrong, waste of $90.00. I will not do this again, the staff was apologetic. I heard there was a lot of complaints, from other quests. no food (as stated on website), poor seating arrangement. I used to run these events in my past, next time can the fair coordinate this part of the event better. as I stated before, the staff was great!!!

I went to the fair with the wifey we got thier went it 1st opened went to get a turkey leg they…read morewere closed the guy said give us 15 minutes to make sure the legs were done. They were done alright very dry. So after 2 bites I thorough that way over priced leg away. I really wanted 1. I paid a good amount for it . It it was good like most place price doesn't matter. So after I thought that away. I went and got elephant ears. Now that was great just enough sugar and cooked perfect. That's why I give this place 3 stars. The turkey gets 0 stars

Haven't visited since the summer and came during the winter season on such a nice day! Loved the…read morevariety of booths and offerings! Also really appreciated some of the booths offering samples of their products! I usually only get food when I come to the farmers market, but I was tempted get a bouquet of flowers because they have the best flower arrangements! Street parking is now no longer free but easy to use with Parking Kitty.

The Vancouver Farmer's Market is truly exceptional. They have a variety of vendors - jewelry,…read morecrafts, woodwork, cat nip, bakeries, veggies, produce, artisanal clothing, soaps, coffee, wine, plants, gorgous fresh flower bouquets - all lining wide streets making its easy to walk around and not be enveloped in crowds. In the late summer, early fall the fruit and produce is abundant! Juicy peaches, plums, cherries, the last of the blueberries and blackberries, rhubarb, eggplant, tricolored peppers, and beets fill the stalls. everything so colorful and delicious. Was excited to happen upon the Catnip Takeout booth filled with the most adorable handmade, felted cat toys that of course contain catnip. The owner gives you a takeout box and you fill it with the toys of your choice. She had veggies, mushrooms, hearts, eyeballs, bees, round balls, fruit- all adorable! since my house is very spa like with shades of cream, gray and blues, I was excited to find so many options in these colors. My cat immediately began batting the ball around the minute I gave it to her! The nursery here is the biggest and best I've ever seen at a Farmers Market. The variety of plants was impressive and all were healthy and thriving. they also sell sun catchers, perfect for inside a window or in your garden - every garden deserves a bit of whimsy imo. Lots of food carts serving a variety of cuisines. some are within the market, several more line the street on the outside of the market. The gyros caught my attention, the scent of grilled lamb everywhere. it didn't disappoint! I ordered the mega traditional which had extra meat so I could have half for lunch and the other half for dinner. Love that this market is open both Saturday and Sundays until 3pm April through October. Saturday they open at 9am; on Sundays they open at 10am. Parking is on the street, use parking kitty to pay. On a Sunday at 12:30 I had no issue finding a spot close by.

How can you not like a old fashioned small town festival? Held in Pioneer Park it provides a fun…read morevenue to wander around the woods. Local community groups such as the Kiwanis Club, Boy Scout's, Sandy High ect. provide a variety of fair food everything from elephant ears to corn on the cob and BBQ. Artisans from all over the Northwest some out to show their wares. As well as bands, dance troupes and singers. In my opinion the big draw is the art booths and food vendors. However, they have a pageant featuring a princess or Queen in each age group, carnival rides for the kids, and other events throughout the week. However, if you aren't directly involved in the community of Sandy, the vendors are the big draw. It's exactly what it sounds like an old fashion community fair!