Looking for something to do this August? If you’re in Michigan, check out one of these fine festivals or events.
The Nautical Mile Festival will be held in Rogers City this August 4th through 9th. They’ll have an antique car show, fireworks, a fishing contest for kids, as well as carnival rides and lots to eat. The armed sloop, Welcome, a replica of a ship built at Fort Michilimackinac in 1774 will be open for tours ($5 adult, children under 18 free). On Sunday, there will be a Polka Mass and a Chicken Barbeque. This is also the time and place for the Northern Lake Huron Powwow and Voyageur Rendezvous, with re-enactors demonstrating the crafts and skills of the voyageurs.
If you’re a magician, amateur or professional, you probably already know about Abbott’s Magic Get-Together in Colon August 5th through 8th. Colon, Michigan is home to the largest manufacturer in the country of magic tricks, and hundreds of magicians from all over the world gather every year at Colon. This is the 72nd year of this get-together, the longest-running in the country. It features stage shows, lectures, competitions, and (magic related) shopping. The fee is $150 for the full four days. See www.magicgettogether.com for more details.
The National Blueberry Festival will be held in South Haven from August 6th through 9th. There will be a pie-eating contest, parade, cook-off, free concerts, a 5K run, crafts fair, and blueberries, blueberries, blueberries!
The Saginaw Chippewa Reservation in Mt. Pleasant is home to the Saginaw Chippewa Tribal Powwow on August 7th through 9th. There will be more than 350 dancers, and 15 drum groups from across the US and Canada. This is Michigan’s largest powwow. Expect beadwork, baskets, and leatherwork, Native American food, but no alcohol. This is a substance and alcohol-free event. This is the 25th year for this event.
The Les Cheneaux Islands Antique Wooden Boat Show and Festival of Arts will take place in Hessel on August 8th. There will be about 150 vintage wooden boats to view, as well as a juried arts and crafts show. A narrated boat tour of the 36 Cheneaux Islands, just off the southeastern tip of the Upper Peninsula, is also available.
The River Raisin Jazz Festival will be held in St. Mary’s Park, Monroe, the weekend of August 8th and 9th. It features well-known national acts. A second stage will also feature regional and local musicians. In addition to the music, expect an art fair, and food including barbequed chicken and ribs.
Port Austin hosts Sawmill Days on August 15th. Saw and shingle mills will be featured, along with entertainment, chain saw sculpting, food, demonstrations, and a petting zoo. Admission is free.
The Woodward Dream Cruise on August 15th is the world’s largest one-day celebration of car culture, and is attended by more than one million visitors each year. It runs from 9 am to 9 pm and is hosted by the communities of Berkley, Birmingham, Bloomfield Hills, Bloomfield Township, Ferndale, Huntington Woods, Pleasant Ridge, Pontiac, and Royal Oak. The cruise takes place along a 16-mile stretch of the legendary Woodward Avenue. There are plenty of places to sit and watch the cars go by, or you can participate in the cruise itself. (If you’re not driving a classic or vintage car, please stay out of the two right-hand lanes, however.) There is no fee to participate. This is the Cruise’s 15th year.
The African World Festival will take place in Hart Plaza, in downtown Detroit, the weekend of August 14th through 16th. The event celebrates the African Diaspora with parades, artwork, and music, and is free.
Colonial Kensington is held at Kensington Metropark in Milford on August 15th and 16th (10 am to 6 pm on Saturday, 10 am to 4 pm on Sunday). More than 200 costumed re-enactors portray the American Indians, English, French, and Americans during the years 1700-1796. There will be authentic and reproduction home décor and toys for sale, as well as entertainment such as stringed instrument ensembles, a Punch and Judy show, and demonstrations of blacksmithing, tinsmithing, cooking, candlemaking, carpentry, woodcarving, and quilting and sewing. A vehicle entry pass to the park is required ($4 daily or $20 annual)
The UP State Fair takes place August 18th through 23rd in Escanaba. There will be livestock, music, the midway, and lots of food. Adults and children 13 and older pay $8, ages 6 to 12 are $5.
The Wild Blueberry Fest in Paradise will be held August 21 through 23. There will be a blueberry brunch, a pie eating contest, a crafts fair, fish fry, live entertainment, and lots of food.
The Kalamazoo Scottish Festival occurs on August 22nd in Kalamazoo, from 9 am to 6 pm. There will be Celtic folk entertainment, bagpipes, dancing, athletic competitions, highland cattle and horses, border collies, children’s activities, and lots of food. Admission is $10 for adults, $5 for children age 5 to15.
The Michigan Renaissance Festival takes place August 22 to Oct 4, on weekends only (plus Labor Day). There will be jousting, games, comedy, costumed players, food and drink. There are theme weekends throughout the season: August 22-23 is Wild Days and Amazing Knights, and August 29-30 is Highland Fling. The charge for adults is $18.50; children 5 to 12 are $9.95.
The Michigan State Fair takes place in Detroit from Aug 28 through Sept 7. This is America’s first state fair, and has been held every year since 1849. Expect agriculture and livestock, live animal births, daily parades, cooking and hog-calling contests, a midway, concerts, and nearly 100 food vendors.
Whatever you’re interested in, there’s sure to be something fun for you to do in August. For even more festival and special events, visit the Michigan state website, www.michigan.gov.
sources: www.michigan.gov, www.magicgettogether.com, www.sagchip.org, www.woodwarddreamcruise.org, www.michiganrenfest.com, www.michigan.gov/mistatefair.
