By Kat Bryant
Grays Harbor News Group
Ocean Shores and the North Beach will play host to three major annual events this weekend: the AAOS Arts & Crafts Festival, Paddle the Shores and Kelpers Weekend.
AAOS Arts & Crafts Festival
Friday-Sunday
Associated Arts of Ocean Shores is hosting the annual Arts & Crafts Festival all weekend at the Convention Center.
More than 100 vendors will be set up inside and outside the facility. Artisans of all kinds will be selling their wares, and food will range from barbecue to crepes.
The Pirate’s Cove will operate a beer and wine garden outside, and local musical acts including the Bruce Hughes Band will perform outdoors.
Admission is free. Festival hours are noon to 5 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday.
Paddle the Shores
Saturday
If you hear loud booms Saturday, don’t worry: It’s just pirate cannons.
The Ocean Shores Pirates will be adding some color and volume to this year’s Paddle the Shores event. One of their duties for the day will be firing a very large starting gun (or a very small cannon) to launch each of the various races taking place along the city’s canals.
Bruce Malloy, president of the Ocean Shores Fresh Waterways Corp., said this event is a natural fit for his organization to run.
“We’re an all-volunteer nonprofit, and our charter is to keep the 23 miles of fresh waterways in Ocean Shores as pristine as possible,” he said. “We monitor the water quality, we remove navigation hazards, we remove weeds — anything to do with the waterways.”
Registration will begin at 9 a.m. Saturday at 120 Marine View Drive — the docks across from Oyhut Bay Resort. Individuals and teams can sign up to race a variety of human-powered vessels on a long or short course. The 6-mile race starts at 10 a.m.; the 2-mile race, at 1 p.m.
There’s also a stand-up paddleboard race at 11 a.m., the popular Poker Paddle at noon and, of course, the cardboard boat race. For that one, construction begins at 2:30 p.m. and the race starts at 3:30.
“Each team of four people gets two sheets of 4-by-8 cardboard, a couple rolls of wide packing tape and a box-cutter,” said Malloy. “They craft the best boat they can in one hour with those 4-by-8 sheets and wrap it all in tape.”
After that, the team chooses one member to get into their boat and paddle it to a marker about 50 feet out and back — or as far as they can get. “Whoever lasts the longest before the boat sinks wins,” said Malloy. “It’s hilarious.”
Meanwhile, on shore, a dunk tank featuring local police and celebrities will raise funds for North Beach Medical Equipment. Local band Unexpected Soul will provide live music, and various food and craft vendors will be there.
Race registration is $15 per person, or $30 for those who want the commemorative T-shirt. Teams entering the cardboard boat event pay only $15 (for the person who’ll actually race) plus $10 for the building materials. Life jackets and whistles are required for racers in all events.
Advance registration is available online through Brown Paper Tickets.
Kelpers Weekend
Saturday-Monday
The various elements of the Kelpers Parade and Shake Rat Rendezvous are handled by so many individuals and organizations, it can be tough to keep track of what’s happening where.
“The Kelpers Weekend is officially unofficially organized,” laughs Stephanie Allestad, a volunteer with the nonprofit North Beach Events who put together the weekend calendar. “You have different groups of people that just do things.”
The festivities starts with the Firemen’s Breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m. Saturday at the North Beach Community Center, 4576 State Route 109 in Pacific Beach. It’s all-you-can-eat pancakes, sausage, scrambled eggs, juice and coffee. Donations will be accepted for the Grays Harbor Fire District 8 Firefighters Association.
There will be vendors all day Saturday and Sunday on Main Street in Pacific Beach. There also will be vendors, crafters and more at the Seabrook Saturday market from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The Kiddie Parade will head down Main Street at noon Saturday. Then, at 1 p.m., the annual Pacific Beach vs. Moclips tug-of-war will be held at the Second Street beach approach in Moclips.
Live entertainment starts Saturday night at the Main Street Stage next to the Wacky Warehouse on Main Street in Pacific Beach. “The radio station used to do the street dance, but that’s organized by a deejay now,” said Allestad. Saturday performances will include Dean Weaver at 4 p.m., Piranha Joe at 5, Rebel Skum at 6 and Jay Jaye at 7.
In Seabrook, interactive band Hit Machine will play from 7 to 9 p.m. at Market and Meriweather streets.
On Sunday, the Kelpers Parade starts “around noonish” on Main Street. Anyone can participate; folks are invited to “decorate your vehicles, bikes, horses or even yourself” in accordance with the theme.
“Nobody organizes that at all,” said Allestad. “There’s a group in Moclips that decides who the royalty is, and then that person or couple chooses the theme.”
This year’s Queen of Clams, Carri Ruby, chose “Under the Sea.”
Participants stage at the Second Street approach in Moclips, proceeding on State Route 109 to First Street North and ending on Main Street in Pacific Beach.
There will be contests and prizes after the parade Sunday during the Shake Rat Rendezvous, next to the Wacky Warehouse in Pacific Beach.
Scott D. Johnston | For Grays Harbor News Group Ed Schroll of Ocean Shores delighted patrons with his bubble art during last year’s AAOS Arts Crafts Festival.
Scott D. Johnston | For Grays Harbor News Group Ed Schroll of Ocean Shores delighted patrons with his bubble art during last year’s AAOS Arts Crafts Festival.
Scott D. Johnston | For Grays Harbor News Group Ed Schroll of Ocean Shores delighted patrons with his bubble art during last year’s AAOS Arts Crafts Festival.
