Festivals in Montana

Posted: 02/09/2007--25/11/2008 || Rate this Article: 3 || Views|| Sign In || Register ||Hello Guest

Montana is a big, beautiful state with lots of outdoor activities, gorgeous scenery, and plenty of wide open spaces for festivals. There are annual festivals in many parts of the state held in all seasons; you can go to Montana anytime and find something going on. Here are some of the most interesting festivals in Montana.

Food festivals are always fun, and Montana has a couple of unusual ones. The Chokecherry Festival in Lewistown takes place the first Saturday after Labor Day each year; a chokecherry is a wild, sour cherry that grows in Montana. The local Kiwanis Club serves a breakfast featuring pancakes and chokecherry syrup, and there are lots of crafts booths, a farmers market with local produce, several runs and walks, cooking contests, and musical entertainment. There's even a contest to see who can spit a chokecherry pit the longest distance. Most events take place around Main Street.

The Testicle Festival has been held annually for more than 20 years at the Rock Creek Lodge in Clinton. This ribald festival features "deep-fried Rocky Mountain Oysters," or bull testicles, and plenty of brews; the main dish is said to taste "just like chicken." There are wet T-shirt contests, hairy chest contests, and also a bingo contest where contestants predict where a cow will drop its first load of manure. This festival is held in September, and there are several other testicle festivals in Montana each year; others are held in Fromberg, Havre, Charlo, Ryegate, and York.

The annual Billings Wine and Food Festival are held in May. Wine tastings and gourmet feasts are the main attractions at this festival, and there are also auctions, visiting chefs, and cooking seminars. If you're craving creative meals and fine wines, this is a festival you won't want to miss; the cooking classes often sell out fast, so book early if this is something you want to do.

Butte has a festival called Evel Knievel Days each year, usually in July; Butte is Knievel's hometown and he attends this festival held in his honor. Events include a parade, fireworks, and musical entertainment, and car and motorcycle shows. Evel Knievel also has a new display each year, and he meets and greets the visitors who come to see him.

Musical festivals are great fun in Montana; most are in the spring or summer when the weather is pleasant. The Last Chance Bluegrass Festival in Helena features bluegrass bands, Ennis hosts the Madison River Music Festival in the spring, and the Breakout Bluegrass Campout takes place during June in Garrison. Hamilton hosts the Bitterroot Valley Bluegrass Festival in June, with workshops for all the different instruments used in bluegrass bands, and Kalispell has the Glacier Jazz Stampede for three days. The Buddy DeFranco Jazz Festival is held each April in Missoula, and the Rocky Mountain Accordian Celebration takes place in Phillipsburg in August.

There are many winter festivals in Montana. Big Sky has a winterfest where races are held in many different categories, including adults pulling kids in a sled, snowshoe races, and skiing. Butte celebrates with the Winternational Sports Festival, which has almost 20 events; the festival starts in February and continues for a couple of months. If you want to compete in just about any sport, this festival has an event for you, from speed skating to tennis. Many of the towns in the mountains also have summer mountainfests.

Since Montana was part of the Lewis and Clark Trail, there are many events celebrating this expedition. The Yellowstone Boat Float travels down the Yellowstone River, and festivities take place when the boats stop at Big Timber and Reed Point. There's a street dance in Reed Point, and lots of musical entertainment to celebrate their arrival in Big Timber. Big Timber also has the Crazy Mountain Museum Festival around Memorial Day, which features music, food, and the new displays at the museum. There are annual Lewis and Clark Festivals in many small towns throughout Montana; Great Falls has been hosting one for many years, and their festival features reenators dressed in historical costumes, campfire food, and demonstrations of old-time crafts, children's events, float trips, and more. Great Falls has many events throughout the year honoring the 200th anniversary of the expedition, and the Corps of Discovery Tour also visits many towns annually with reenactments and other events.

The Montana State Fair is a big event each year in July or August; it takes place at the State Fairgrounds in Great Falls and has all the things that visitors want to see at a festival. There are lots of food booths, scary carnival rides, top-name musical acts and even many free entertainers. The whole family will love the Montana State Fair; there's something there for everyone to enjoy.