A giant stage with lively bands playing, people of all ages dancing, a beer garden, food, vendors,…read moredogs, amazing weather...yup, this is pretty much one of my favorite local events. In fact, I'd say Downtown Sounds is the quintessential Bellingham experience. Held on multiple Wednesdays during the summer months, this free concert/street festival brings together the best our sweet city has to offer. And this year it got even better as the layout of the festival was flipped on its access, creating a larger beer garden (no more long lines!) with full view of the action on stage, plus a great food truck area with local yumminess like tacos, tamales, and ice cream. If it's a warm summer night, there's simply no place better to be. Want to experience Bellingham for all it is? Check out Downtown Sounds!

After being washed out for two weeks in a row, Downtown Sounds finally got a break from the weather…read moreGods. Perfect summer weather, great Latin vibe and lots of food, kids activities and dancing!

I think I was 12 years old before I realized most communities don't wait in eager anticipation of a…read moreyearly festival in celebration of logs, proudly wearing their red DEMING LOG SHOW suspenders year round. It makes sense if the livelihood of most people in the community depends on helping convert happy trees to logs :/ I was 13 years old when I realized that most people don't wear suspenders. Started in 1962, the DEMING LOG SHOW, always the second weekend of June, is a fund raising event "For Busted-Up Loggers" that rose out of loggers' lack of health benefits or disability. It's the most popular event in Deming, and is packed with people. Don't miss events include the early morning loggers breakfast, the "Bull of the Woods" award, opportunities to drive the CATs, and the many log rolling, log climbing, log cutting, etc. contests.

A great slice of Americana - entertaining show and nice venue. Friendly people, and all for a…read moreheart-warming cause (fundraiser for busted up loggers). We went on a whim, having been years earlier in our college days. Reserved an RV site and stayed from Friday through Sunday. We got the last site available, due to the ill health of one of the 'regulars' - and were immediately greeted by our immediate neighbors who were more than welcoming and friendly. Had a wonderful time. Here was information we were hazy on: No clue when the show started, or how the food situation worked. Rather expected a beer garden, but no. We brought our own dinner for Friday night, not knowing there was a huge supplier-hosted feast that evening. Forewent the long lines and ate our own food that night. Assumed (incorrectly) that Saturday evening would be flush in food as well, only to find all the vendors closed down tight by about 7 pm. So, no dinner for us that evening. Breakfast was available both days, and lunch/early dinners were available while the show was going. Dog friendly, which is hard to find anymore, although they are not allowed inside the arena (for good reason). Clean and well-maintained grounds with plenty of garbage containers. No recycling, which would be a nice addition. Both indoor and portable restrooms. The purpose of this review is to let those unfamiliar with the event have a bit better heads-up than we did. Even bumbling through as we did, it was well worth the experience. I would strongly suggest updating the web site so future 'newbies' can be better prepared.

We happened upon this one-day event while camping nearby. It was a warm and sunny Saturday so the…read moreperfect day for a festival. Confession: this was my first Bigfoot Festival and, as a closet fan of everything sasquatch, I was sorta excited about it! It turns out the festival was a fundraiser for some improvements to a nearby park, more than an informational or even entertainment-oriented gathering about that mysterious, tall, hairy beast that is said to roam the nearby forests. There were a ton of really cute art booths, many featuring bigfoot-related items, as well as a coloring contest for the kids and a musical stage (although we were there for an hour and never heard a note of live music). There were a few food booths, but the lines were long so we didn't partake. We kept wandering around hoping we'd find a beer garden to help us cool off but, sadly, there wasn't a beer in sight. This might have been the first year for the festival, so maybe they'll make some improvements to make it more fun the next time around. I love a good art fair, but having more squatch-related info/entertainment, some music, and music would have made it worth returning another time.

The Maple Falls Bigfoot Festival is awesome !! I've been a vendor there for 2 years and the live…read moremusic, happy faces, engaging people and organized event keep me coming back !! So many different vendors to choose from with decent pricing !! Food trucks, shaved ice and face painting for the kiddos and much more !!

Small town American fairs are a cultural experience from the deep fried Oreos to the dog shows to…read morethe U.S. Army recruitment booths. It brings out the good (national pride) and the bad (racism) of rural America and puts it on display. The Northwest Washington Fair is no exception. Here's what you should know: 1) Price: It's expensive. You need a ticket to enter and then everything except the smaller shows (dog show, horse racing, etc) costs extra. An unlimited ride bracelet cost $42 per person, including for kids. Deep fried Snickers cost $8.50. The fair's margin is huge, making them a lot of money. Pro-tip- buy as much as you can online in advance to shave some money off the steep price tag. 2) Rides: It's no amusement park, but there are some decent rides fir the thrill seeker. The vertigo ride is fun if you don't get sick from spinning. The swings go high and fast. The Rock Star ride left your stomach at the top. The kids ride section my four-year-old daughter loved. 3) Games: Most are rigged I'm sure, but if you're playing to win a prize for your kids, okay the balloon one or the rubber duck game. You win a cheap stuffed animal every time. 4) Food: There's a lot of it throughout the park from burgers to corn dogs to Chinese food. A few favorites- roasted corn, "moowiches" (ice cream sandwiches), elephant ears and poffertjes (Dutch mini pancakes). It's all expensive, but alas. When in Rome. 5) Shows: my daughter loved seeing the dog show, horse shoe and the juggling. The Northwest Washington Fair is a cultural experience, but it's worth noting that we witnessed a number of staff treat people of color differently. On one ride, the staff member running the ride singled out a Black man for absolutely nothing. At the bar area, the bouncer made deeply racist remarks about the type of people who live in D.C. upon seeing my wife's drivers license. It exposes an issue in this community people would rather ignore.

Fantastic fair! NWW Fair has something for everyone. Music, food, animals, vendors, entertainment,…read morepolitical nonsense, etc. You really couldn't ask for more! I enjoyed the livestock most off all. Horses, goats, llamas, pigs, etc. A little bit of everything can be found at the fair. Pricing is kind of high; you get what you pay for. $14 pays for day of entertainment. I can't imagine that organizing a large fair is cheap or easy, so try not to grumble too much. Rides are not included. Parking is also not included. Gate 5 had some decent paid parking across the street.

First time checking out this festival. I enjoyed the different variety of foods. There was a…read moreBlack forest mushroom stand where they sell Alder tree logs for $45 inoculated with chestnut mushroom spores. The Lummi Nation island salmon lunch plate was $18 but it was wild salmon, pasta, bread and beans + water bottle. I like how they air grilled/smoked the fish. That line was the longest. Trident also had a stall where they were giving away shirts, key chains, fish oil, chocolate swag. The boat building offered a demo on sea urchins which i missed out on. They also had a Whatcom Maritime museum station where kids can build wooden boats. Enjoy coming to this place eventhough a bit far for us. It was nice to be by the water and free parking.

So much fun packed in two days. Today's weather was perfect for the Seafeast...sunny and hot at…read moretimes but dry the whole day. We got there around 12 and stay until 5:30pmish. Parking at that time was a bit challenging but we manage to find a free parking lot close by and walk toward the festival. Once there we saw tons of vendors with all kind of marine info and education. My girls (ages 9 & 11) found the "Passport" section where the girls get their passport stamp as they go thru and learn about each booth. I find myself learning a few things too. Food court was loaded with an abundance of sea and non-sea food options. Nice that most if not all took credit cards. My meal pick was Fish and Chips from Fork & Fin food truck. A huge portion for $12( definitely shareable.) Girls got a huge hotdog ($5) from a hotdog stand. For dessert we grab some ice cream($2) next door to the hotdog stand. Only wish there was a water station so we could re-fill our water bottles instead of having to buy the plastic water bottle. Maybe next year a water conservation vendor would sponsor that to keep us water drinker from contributing to the plastic landfill and from the ocean. We headed to the main stage with all our food goodies to eat while enjoying some live music. Definitely a fun family festival for the whole family.

For a smaller museum, taking only about 20 minutes to walk through, it is a fantastic museum,…read moreshowcasing Orcas Island history. The docent that greeted us was friendly and informative, telling us that the museum was at one time six separate one-room residences that were dismantled and rebuilt to make this current museum. Full of many early and late century household items, placard's describing the way of life on the island, and has loads of interesting artifacts, photographs, and materials showing Orcas Island early community and civilization.

There's so much to see in this little house. I'm particularly awed by the display of the submarine…read morecables which brought power to Orcas and the nearby islands. There are displays of cobblers and black smiths which are well preserved.

This historic school house is beautifully restored. The volunteers, who offer personalized tours,…read moreare so knowledgeable and friendly. You can see items donated by previous students who came to this school once upon a time, and standing inside feels like you've traveled back in time. There are also many original items such as the oil cloth lesson board, the original chalk board, wall lanterns and more. In the summer they also feature a spooky story telling. Touring the museum is a must-see if you're staying on the island!

We stopped by the Crow Valley School on orcas Island and were delighted with how well preserved the…read moreschool was with original lesson plans and account books available to peruse, a headmaster's black dress displayed, some original school desks, and several enlarged old photographs of students. We received a personal tour of the school from Rebecca and were delighted to visit this historical spot on Orcas.

The Bellingham Theatre Guild is celebrating their 90th year of showcasing talents to share with us…read moreto enjoy! This was my first time here and was a great experience. The theater is creaky and old, the seats are a bit stiff, but it is charming and is a piece of Bellingham history that is so wonderful to have. Great talent and shows and love that this theater is here to offer the arts to our community!

There are both pros and cons: Pro:…read more The amount of preparation by the actors becomes obvious as their performances are usually excellent. Cons: The new seats are designed for small people. Seats are narrow with little to no leg room. During musical performances, song lyrics often tell the story, but the live orchestra is always so loud it usually drowns out the lyrics. So, while the actors are doing their best, unfortunately, their singing simply can't be heard.