VIOLA, Minn. – As much as most Minnesotans refuse to hibernate, and countless masses of us bundle up, go outside and enjoy the colder months, there is nothing like summer in the North Country. When the lakes open (although they barely closed during the “winter that was not” in 2023-24) and the flowers bloom and the trees turn green and the mosquitoes return annually from some mystical and evil place, it triggers months of recreation and outdoor celebrations throughout the state.
Between Memorial Day (May 27) and the final burst of fireworks over the state fairgrounds on Labor Day (September 2), a person could, in theory, spend 14 enjoyable weeks visiting a different community and a different celebration almost every day of the summer of 2024. .
On that note, we’ve put together a list of nine of the most unique, vibrant, historic, and just plain cool annual community celebrations across Minnesota. They’re not necessarily the largest gatherings and who’s to say which is the best, but each has an army of organizers and fans who travel from near and far each year to put on sunscreen and bug spray, grab a lawn chair and Grab a drink and revel in the fun of another Minnesota summer.
In chronological order, we hope you can get out and enjoy:
The annual Count Gopher Celebration in tiny Viola, Minnesota, began in 1874 and will celebrate 150 years in June 2024.
Count of Gophers, Viola, June 19 and 20
You may be surprised to learn that to early European settlers in Minnesota plowing the land and trying to survive through agriculture, gophers were not a beloved group of Minneapolis college athletes, but rather a despised pest worth more dead. that I live In 2024, little Viola will celebrate 150 years of the annual gathering where people would count the number of dead gophers they had accumulated and claim a reward for the rodents. Considered Minnesota’s oldest community celebration, this rare weekday gathering includes the coronation of royalty, a grand parade, live music and fireworks.
Jamie Cook of Finland waves to spectators as he tours Silver Bay on his ATV on June 13, 2009. That day, the group of ATV drivers were attempting to break the world record for the longest ATV parade.
2009 Archive / News Tribune
Water Tower Festival, Pipestone, June 28-30
Amid the rolling hills and wind turbines of southwestern Minnesota, Pipestone has always been a gem of a community, filled with history and fantastic architecture, like the Calumet Inn in the center of town and the instantly recognizable water tower of community. The latter provides not only water pressure, but also a gathering point for the annual Pipestone community celebration, which takes place the last weekend in June each summer. In 2024, the three-day gathering will include a children’s parade and burger meal to begin on Friday, a parade, art fair, car show and street dance on Saturday, and a community worship service to close out. of the week on Sunday morning. And a stop at nearby Pipestone National Monument is a must when visitors come to town.
A large cast of characters performs with the Eveleth Clown Band along Broadway Street during the Gilbert July 3rd Parade on Monday evening, July 3, 2023.
Jed Carlson/Top Telegram
July 4th, Eveleth, July 3rd and 4th
It has been said that if you have never seen Elvis, the Pope and Ronald McDonald playing an instrumental version of “Beer Barrel Polka” together, then you have clearly never seen the Eveleth Clown Band. Formed in the years after World War II by Iron Range veterans who gathered to play music periodically, the Clown Band is the centerpiece of one of Minnesota’s large Independence Day parades. More than 50 amateur musicians travel to Eveleth from across the state and country each year to march in an astonishing array of colorful costumes while belting out some of their favorite fantastical tunes to the masses that line the streets of this historic Mining town.
A full schedule of community celebration events is included for the 59th annual Wrong Days in Wright, Minnesota, taking place in July 2024.
Contributed / Wrong days
Wrong Days, Wright, July 19-21
Since the turn of the century, Wright’s population has nearly doubled and is now well over 150 according to the 2020 census. But for two days in July each year, this dot on the map on the highway between Brainerd and Duluth swells thanks to to the celebration that we believe has the best name of all. Four years ago, when much of the state and nation was shut down due to the pandemic, Wrong Days continued as planned, with the official slogan: “We’re still wrong in Wright, in a world gone wrong.” Highlights include a parade, softball and volleyball tournaments, a medallion hunt, and a chance to win big at OGNIB (which is bingo, with the letters, appropriately, in the wrong order).
An appearance by legendary tree cutter Paul Bunyan and a chance to take a selfie is a popular attraction at the annual Lumberjack Days celebration in Stillwater, Minnesota.
Contributed / Days of the Lumberjack
Lumberjack Days, Stillwater, July 19-21
A century ago, Bemidji and Grand Rapids certainly weren’t the only places where tired men, covered in sawdust, streamed into town from remote logging camps. Stillwater’s strategic location on St. Croix meant that Minnesota’s most picturesque river town was an epicenter for the logging industry as loggers cut down the nearby forests of Minnesota and Wisconsin for building materials. They celebrate that history each summer with a community celebration that includes a parade, a pickleball tournament, a stunt show, outdoor yoga on the riverfront, and live music from one of the region’s favorite Prince tribute bands.
Cast members Michael Fitzpatrick, Ashley Bowen, Eliana Rowe and Emily Fury Daly in a performance of “As You Like It” from the 2023 Great River Shakespeare Festival in Winona, Minnesota.
Dan Norman / Dan Norman Photography
Great River Shakespeare Festival, Winona, July 27-28
The river bluffs surrounding Winona and the endless bays and coves of the Mississippi River have attracted visitors for centuries. It probably doesn’t date back to the 17th century, but they still pay tribute to the most famous playwright of that era every summer in Winona. As they have for more than two decades, the performing arts center on the Winona State University campus will host a celebration of Shakespeare, with performances of some of his legendary works (“Much Ado About Nothing” and “Hamlet” are in the program). 2024 playbill) along with conversations about the Bard’s works, ice cream socials, and other community fine arts celebrations.
The HydraHeads cross the finish line in the championship race on Saturday, August 6, 2022, during the 16th Annual Lake Bemidji Dragon Boat Festival.
Madelyn Haasken / Bemidji Pioneer
Lake Bemidji Dragon Boat Festival, Bemidji, July 31-Aug. 31. 3
For a few days every summer, the bustling port of Hong Kong and the pristine lakes of Beltrami County, literally on the other side of the world, have something in common. In a popular summer tradition, hundreds of spectators line the shore of Lake Bemidji, not far from the iconic statues of Paul Bunyan and Babe the Blue Ox, to watch colorfully painted human-powered wooden boats make a lake of Minnesota its race track. Each of the traditional Chinese boats has a crew of 22 people, with 20 rowers, one person to steer and another who beats a drum to maintain the constant rhythm of navigation. In addition to two days of racing, there’s a food court, parades, live music and other offerings on dry land.
A saltie passes backstage as Kenny Neal and Billy Branch perform during the 2007 Bayfront Blues Festival.
Archive / News Tribune
Bayfront Blues Festival, Duluth, August 9-11
From Bayfront Festival Park, which is one of Minnesota’s best outdoor music venues, visitors have a view not only of the iconic Duluth Skylift and the bustling Inner Harbor. At a concert there in the summer of 1999, American music legend Bob Dylan pointed out the small house in the city’s Central Hillside neighborhood where he was born in 1941 and lived until his family moved to Hibbing. The link between music and the Twin Ports is decades old, as is Bayfront Blues, which began more than 30 years ago and has featured some of the legends of the genre, including Buddy Guy, Jonny Lang, Little Richard, Delbert McClinton, Robert Cray, Wilson Picket. , Blues Traveler and Solomon Burke.
While no detailed records are available, the winner who emerges each year from the mashed potato wrestling contest at Potato Days in Barnesville, Minnesota, can probably claim to be the best in the world at this unique variation of the sport.
Forum archive photo
Potato Days, Barnesville, August 23-24
Just a few miles from this farm town on I-94, in Moorhead, the high school teams are known as the Spuds. But the love for America’s favorite legume is strong throughout the region, as evidenced by Barnesville’s annual community gathering celebrating agricultural heritage and the many, many ways potatoes are a part of Minnesota life. In addition to standard fare like a parade and live music, Potato Days includes pick-and-peel contests, a Miss Tator Tot contest, and a contest where the winner is honored for the best sculpture made of mashed potatoes. And the region’s Scandinavian roots are also celebrated, with a hotly contested left-wing cooking competition.
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