Irrigation Festival to begin this weekend

Published 1:30 am Thursday, April 30, 2026

SEQUIM — The Sequim Irrigation Festival will kick off two weekends of events starting Friday.

For its 131st year, mainstay events return with the Grand Parade, Family Fun Days and more through May 10.

“I’m feeling really good about the festival,” Executive Director Michelle Rhodes said.

Rhodes and a team of about 30 volunteers run the annual event that remains Washington’s longest running festival.

Up first will be Crazy Callen Weekend from Friday through Sunday, followed by the Grand Finale Weekend from May 7-10.

For more details about events, volunteering and dignitaries, visit irrigation festival.com.

The Irrigation Festival celebrates the work that D.R. “Crazy” Callen and his partners did to design and develop Sequim’s irrigation ditches that brought water from the Dungeness River to the parched prairie, according to event organizers.

The Dungeness River’s first headgate was lifted on May 1, 1895, and one year later, the first festival was held on Callen’s farm.

What’s ahead

This year, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula Golf Tournament, an affiliate event, will shift to Crazy Callen Weekend with a 1 p.m. start time Friday at The Cedars at Dungeness. Those who have questions can email Janet Gray at jgray@bgc-op.org.

Organizers opted not to hold a community concert and dance on Saturday night to focus on the Trashion Show, which will start at 5:30 p.m. Saturday at the Guy Cole Event Center.

The Trashion Show features outfits created with at least 75 percent recycled materials.

“It had a tremendous turnout last year and ended up being standing room only,” Rhodes said.

“We feel there’s a real interest in that, and we don’t want to take away from that.”

Creative rebrand

The Innovative Arts and Crafts Show held in Carrie Blake Community Park Saturday and Sunday has been rebranded as the Creative Collective.

Rhodes said that will allow the event to expand its types of vendors, such as food items. She said vendor totals for the two-day event have expanded from about 30 in recent years to 40 in 2026.

There also will be 10 food vendors this year, Rhodes said.

Family Fun Days

Family Fun Days features 25 free activity booths and touch a trucks from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday, and five booths and Strait Up Foam Fun and laser tag from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

One of the booths includes the Sequim Robotics Federation with its bot Juggle Jaws that tosses balls that can be thrown back into its hoop collector and launched again.

Students said their mission is to connect with community members and inspire new generations with their love for robotics.

Another booth on Saturday will feature Sequim High School’s Gender Sexuality Alliance Club, which will make key chains with beads, charms and other materials with a goal to provide a fun, creative experience.

As one of the many features, Dungeness Kids Co. will release butterflies at 1 p.m. Saturday in cooperation with the Sequim Botanical Garden.

Kids Parade

The Kids Parade for children 12 and younger will line up at 11:45 a.m. Saturday in the southwest corner of the Albert Haller Playfields with a start time at noon.

Prizes will be given to the best storybook character, best pet, best “All about Sequim,” best festival theme and best overall, who will be invited to ride in the Grand Parade the following weekend.

Crazy Daze

The Crazy Daze Breakfast Murder Mystery will begin at 9 a.m. Sunday at the Guy Cole Event Center. Organizers said the event is appropriate for all ages. Tickets are available at the festival’s website. Limited tickets may be available the morning of the breakfast.

Black Bear Diner will provide the breakfast, and organizers anticipate it selling out.

Music throughout

Artists and performers are set to perform from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Sunday with the Sequim City Band performing at 3:30 p.m. Sunday. All performances will be at the James Center for Performing Arts Center’s bandshell.

Other events

Sequim High School’s annual operetta, “The Wizard of Oz,” will run two weekends with shows at 7 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays and 2 p.m. on Sundays. Tickets can be purchased at the door or at sequimschools.org.

The First Friday Art Walk also will run as an affiliate event to the festival from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. Friday in and around downtown Sequim.

Looking ahead

Rhodes said volunteers are still needed for setup on Friday and with parking throughout both weekends. A “volunteer” button can be found on the festival’s website.

She said one of the festival’s key volunteer groups is the Sequim Sunrise Rotary, which helps organize the Grand Parade.

While entries are closed for the parade, signups remain open for the festival’s Run Series on May 9. The 2K run/walk will go from the Shipley Center’s new location, 651 W. Washington St., to Pioneer Park and back. Strait Up Foam Fun will be at the end of the event for the “Bubble Run.”

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Matthew Nash is a reporter with the Olympic Peninsula News Group, which is composed of Sound Publishing newspapers Peninsula Daily News, Sequim Gazette and Forks Forum. He can be reached by email at matthew.nash@sequimgazette.com. Nash has family employed by and enrolled in Sequim School District.

Crazy Callen Weekend

Friday

• Boys & Girls Club golf tournament, 1 p.m., The Cedars at Dungeness

• First Friday Art Walk, 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., downtown Sequim

• Sequim High School Operetta “The Wizard of Oz,” 7 p.m. Friday, Sequim High School

Saturday

• Family Fun Days, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Carrie Blake Park

• Creative Collective, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Carrie Blake Park

• Entertainment, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., bandshell

• Kids Parade, 11:45 a.m. lineup, noon start near bandshell

• Trashion Show, 5:30 p.m., Guy Cole Event Center

• “The Wizard of Oz,” 7 p.m., Sequim High School

Sunday

• Crazy Daze Breakfast Murder Mystery, 9 a.m., Guy Cole Event Center

• Family Fun Day, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Carrie Blake Park

• Creative Collective, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., Carrie Blake Park

• Entertainment, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., bandshell

• “The Wizard of Oz,” 2 p.m., Sequim High School

• Sequim City Band, 3:30 p.m., bandshell

For a full schedule, registration or more about the festival, visit irrigationfestival.com.