Oregon Festivals. John Shewey

always check with the festival itself with questions about specific policies. Many events offer FAQ pages on their websites; for those that don’t, a quick phone call or short email will usually garner the answers you need.

      A few basics: in most cases, pets are not allowed at festivals, but certainly not all cases. In fact, quite a few events welcome well-behaved dogs on leash, and two festivals are actually dedicated to dogs: Dog Days of Summer Oregon Coast Brew Fest (see page 150) by Rogue Ales & Spirits, and Dogtoberfest (see page 50), a collaboration between Lucky Lab Brew Pub and DoveLewis Emergency Animal Hospital. If you bring your dog, be sure to have handy poop bags, water, and a small water dish of some kind. But be mindful of the time of year—hot weather during summer can be hard on Fido, so that’s a good time to leave the pup at home or with good dogsitting.

      Children are welcome at many, but not all, Oregon festivals. Many events are either geared heavily toward kids or include ample kid-friendly components. Even some beer festivals allow children to attend when accompanied by a parent, and some provide activities for kids, but be sure to check ahead before you pack the kids in the car; moreover, be sure to consider whether you want to attend a beer fest or similar event with the children in tow. Obviously only attendees 21 years old and over can legally sample and drink any alcoholic beverage in Oregon in compliance with Oregon Liquor Control Commission regulations, and all attendees who wish to imbibe at beer, wine, cider, spirits, and saké fests must present legal identification upon request. Many festivals dedicated to Oregon’s wealth of alcoholic options offer special ticket prices and other incentives for nondrinking designated driver attendees, which recalls an important point: be sure to arrange safe transportation any time you intend to imbibe at one of these events.

      And speaking of transportation, parking can be a real drag at many festivals, especially large events. But in virtually all cases, the festival itself is your best resource for parking information—typically the organizers put substantial effort into making parking as easy and convenient as possible. Most events reserve parking lots for attendees; in urban areas, such as Downtown Portland, public transportation is a great option, allowing you to park well away from the event, then use public transport to get there and back with little fuss. Whether in a big city or a tiny town far from urban centers, be courteous about parking along neighborhood streets, and when in doubt about parking in such places, ask a festival official or even a local resident. Always be aware of parade routes and vendor rows along community streets, which are generally signed against parking leading up to the events.

      Travel times vary considerably in Oregon, but always give yourself some margin for error by anticipating extra traffic, time spent parking, time spent walking, and even road construction en route (especially during summer). Otherwise, driving to a festival ranges from mundane to major adventure—a road trip to some far-flung corner of the state for a festival you’ve never attended is great fun. And be sure to make lodging reservations well ahead of time, whether you intend to reserve a hotel room or a campsite—they all fill up fast and early in advance of popular events, and even small-town festivals out in the hinterlands can fill the limited number of rooms and campgrounds in and near small communities.

       PORTLAND AREA FESTIVALS

PORTLAND AREA FESTIVALS

      More than half of Oregon’s population of just over 4 million people lives in the Portland metropolitan area—nearly 2.4 million residents. So it stands to reason that Portland and its conjoined satellite communities host about half of the state’s festival events. They run the gamut from the benign to the bizarre and many of them center on beer; after all, Portland ranks number one on just about everybody’s top beer cities in America list. The fact that you can buy a local ale at just about any cultural affair in Portland only adds to the city’s reputation as one of the West’s best metropolises for food, fun, and finery.

      The many different kinds of festivals held annually in and around Oregon’s largest city—from superb performing arts and film festivals to renowned ethnic festivals to simple, joyous neighborhood street fairs—certainly reflects the cultural diversity of Portland and its suburbs. The city hosts some astonishingly massive humdingers. The Waterfront Blues Festival, for example, draws well over 100,000 people to listen to some 150 stage acts each year. Portland also offers unique events, such as the Northwest’s only saké festival, a fruit beer festival, and a variety of other intriguing festivals.

      Portland and its surrounding communities can be rather daunting for festival goers in one respect: parking can range from challenging to downright frustrating, depending on the location, and popular events, naturally, compound the problem. Many metro-area festivals recommend public transport—TriMet buses and MAX light rail. Most buses have bicycle racks, and Portland is a bike-friendly city—many festivals provide bicycle corrals. Festivals held in the suburbs tend to suffer fewer parking problems.

      As might be deduced by the numerous ethnic events held in Portland, the local culinary scene includes every worldwide cuisine, as well as many eateries with a Northwest flair. Whether you’re visiting the Portland area for one of its many festivals or taking in a festival while there for other reasons, take time to explore. Information for visitors is available from Travel Portland, [phone], www.travelportland.com. Portlanders are known for their friendliness and enthusiasm—conversations with locals can easily lead to great tips on under-the-radar places to eat, imbibe, and visit.

       NW COFFEE BEER INVITATIONAL

      Portland

      Goose Hollow Inn, 1927 SW Jefferson Street

      Late January

       www.facebook.com/coffee.beer.378/

      Home of the “best Reuben on the planet,” historic Goose Hollow Inn—a Portland landmark—is also headquarters for the NW Coffee Beer Invitational, a unique craft brew festival in which more than a dozen regional breweries are tasked with creating a freshly brewed beer with locally roasted coffee—the perfect convergence of two of Oregon’s most obvious addictions.

      It’s the only beer festival of its kind and a must-do event for Northwesterners who love exploring the delights of the region’s countless beer styles—and best of all, these coffee-inspired beers are one-of-a-kind creations, concocted just for this festival; you won’t find them on the shelves of your local market. This competitive but congenial event pits some of the most creative brewing minds in the business against one another, with expert judges ultimately determining the winner, who is announced in the late afternoon. Throughout the day, attendees can taste all of the coffee beers, and even ciders. This lively beer fest, which runs from noon to 7 pm on a Saturday, occurs in the big, cozy outdoor tent at Goose Hollow Inn, with live music provided by local artists. Attendees can order food from the impressive Goose Hollow Inn menu (and yes, the Reuben really is that good, as are the other handcrafted sandwiches). A modest entry fee to the Invitational includes a festival logo glass and eight tasting tickets (ticket sales at the door only).

      NW Coffee Beer Invitational features one-of-kind ales brewed with locally roasted coffees.

      Significantly, Goose Hollow Inn was launched in 1967 by iconic Portlander Bud Clark, best remembered for being the two-term mayor of the city, from 1985 through 1992. He was also a neighborhood activist, an early advocate of neighborhood associations, and co-founder of the Neighbor newspaper, which became the Northwest Examiner. To this day, Goose Hollow Inn is still owned and operated by the Clark family and is widely lauded as a classic, comfortable, inviting neighborhood pub.

       SABERTOOTH PSYCHEDELIC STONER ROCK MICRO FEST