Canal Fest 2013

Canal Fest 2013: Saturday June 29th
by Joanna Wilson

There's a great deal of community excitement and anticipation for one of the first and biggest festivals of the summer season here in Akron.  This year's Canal Fest promises food, art vendors, live music, kids activities, and the duck derby.

Tickets for the 4th annual Duck Derby are still available for purchase.

This summer festival is organized by the Cascade Park Locks Association as a fundraiser for the Association and the historic Mustill Store, an important part of both Akron's historic legacy and canal history.  Though admission to the festival is free, the fundraising is done through hosting the Duck Derby.  When you purchase a ticket for the derby, you can win prizes, a 50/50 raffle, or both.  For more information on the Duck Derby, click HERE for the website details.  The Derby will take place at 1pm at Canal Fest so come on down and watch the floating duck parade!

Recognize this local landmark? It's Schumacher's Wheel--the site of CanalFest 2013, at the corner of North Street and Howard near downtown.

While you cheer on your duck to win cash or prizes, stop by the festival site to hear live music from  local bands on two stages.  On the Schumacher stage, you can hear electric/rock music by Roxxymoron, Mike Lenz, the House Popes, and the reggae band Umojah Nation.  On the Mustill Store stage, you can hear acoustic or traditional folk music by Zach, the Akron Ceili Band, and Blue Ribbon Blue Grass Band.  In addition to a variety of food vendors, there will be Hops@Locks, an opportunity to taste and enjoy ten different flavors of beer from Akron's own Thirsty Dog brewery.  There will also be a large collection of art vendors--including myself.  Stop by my booth and say 'hi.'

This family-friendly event is also host to numerous kids activities including face painting, a bounce house, balloon sculpture, coloring and chalk drawing, and a coloring contest. Click HERE for more details about the event on the Canal Fest website.

 If you're as excited as I am for this summer festival, you can start the party a day earlier on Friday June 28th from 5pm-9pm.  This is also another opportunity to get your tickets for the Duck Derby.

Canal Fest is Saturday June 29th, 11am-7pm
at the Schumacher Site, on the corner of North Street and Howard.
the Duck Derby begins at 1pm

Don't forget about the Friday Night Kick-Off Party
Friday, June 28th, 5pm-9pm
at the NoHo building, 21 North Street

Check out the following links: Canal Fest website
Canal Fest event page on facebook
Canal Fest on Twitter
Canal Fest community page on facebook