Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
AUGUST
Sweet Corn Festival
West Point, Iowa
The Corn State's biggest corn-harvest hoedown: a 4-day celebration with carnival rides,
races, arts and crafts, music, tractor pulls, horseshoe pitching, a corn queen and parade, and
17 tons of free corn-on-the-cob consumed along with barbecue chicken and pork chops.
&
319/837-6313;
www.westpointcornfestival.com
National Blueberry Festival
South Haven, Michigan
Kicking off with a blueberry pie social, this four-day event on the Lake Michigan shore
features food booths, a parade, a car show, a 5K run, a sand-sculpture contest, live
music, and of course daily pancake breakfasts.
&
800/SO-HAVEN
(800/764-2836) or 269/637-5252 for South Haven visitor info; www.
blueberryfestival.com
Mendota Sweet Corn Festival
Mendota, Illinois
Held since 1947, this harvest festival takes over downtown Mendota with food booths,
crafts and games, carnival rides, beer garden, talent contest, corn recipe competition,
corn-eating contest, a parade, and loads of free buttered fresh Del Monte corn on
the cob.
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815/539-6507;
www.sweetcornfestival.com
Fisherman's Feast
Boston, Massachusetts
Dating from 1911, this 4-day Italian street fair carries on such Sicilian fishing village tradi-
tions as a Blessing of the Waters, a procession of the Madonna, and “angels” flying
through a blizzard of confetti. Food booths, crafts, games, and entertainment galore.
www.fishermansfeast.com
Great Taste of the Midwest
Madison, Wisconsin
Book early (in person or by mail-order lottery) for this always-sold-out outdoor beer fest
in mid-August on the shores of Lake Monona, where 5,000 lucky beer lovers get to
sample brews from over 100 brewpubs and microbreweries throughout the Midwest.
www.mhtg.org
La Pourcailhade (Festival of the Pig)
Trie sur Baïse, France
Colorful 1-day event in rural Pyrenees town includes contests for best shop window
painting, best sausage eating, piglet racing, and guessing a porker's weight, culminating
in a contest for best imitation of pigs' cries. Over 60 booths and festive meals as well.
&
33/5/62-35-44-08;
www.pourcailhade.com
SEPTEMBER
Jackson County Apple Festival
Jackson, Ohio
Founded in 1937, this 5-day apple harvest celebration in southern Ohio features a gala
parade, carnival rides, food stands, games, races, and live music, as well as apple-butter
making, an apple-peeling contest, and apple-pie judging.
www.jacksonapplefestival.com
Great Chowder Cook-Off
Newport, Rhode Island
Newport's historic waterfront hosts this festive daylong competition, where restaurants
from across the country vie for Best Chowder and Best Clamcakes awards, while specta-
tors down 30,000 gallons of chowder and enjoy live entertainment on three stages.
www.newportfestivals.com/chowder-cook-off
Great American Beer Festival
Denver, Colorado
This 3-day event at Colorado Convention Center hosts almost 500 breweries from across
the U.S., serving nearly 3,000 beers. Over 40,000 attendees line up for tasting sessions,
seminars, food-pairing sessions, dinners, and a Boulder County Brews Cruise.
&
888/822-6273
or 303/447-0816; www.beertown/events/gabf
