In Flagstaff, the annual Festival of Science is a big event! This year’s Festival kicks off on Friday evening with a keynote address by DNA expert Paul Keim, setting the tone for the festival’s “Grand Adventure.” Keim chases down some of the world’s tiniest and mightiest bad guys: vicious germs, including the plague, anthrax and cholera. Hear about Dr. Paul Keim’s role in protecting global human health. Find out how the study of genetics is improving our lives! It’s free at NAU’s Ardrey Auditorium on Friday evening, with entertainment preceding the lecture at 7:00 p.m. It’s just the beginning of a 10-day science extravaganza at venues all over time. Download the entire schedule of events.
Every Friday and Saturday in September, Flagstaff’s Pioneer Museum (2340 N. Fort Valley Road) offers Chuck Wagon Cooking Demonstrations. Learn about Dutch oven cooking, using the chuck wagon as an outdoor kitchen, with biscuits and beans galore! Demonstrations at 11:00 a.m., 1:00 and 3:00 p.m. Included in price of museum admission: Adults $6, seniors $5, youth 7-18 $3, 6 and under are free. (Weather permitting)
Also on Friday evening, Greenhouse Productions and the Flagstaff Arts Council presents Sean Hayes with special guest Eric & Erica at the Coconino Center for the Arts. A tangled criss-crossing of backroads and blue highways denoting place, influence, and trajectory, you can hear it all in the deep-roots syncopation, in the dusty folk-stomp and in the biorhythmic pulse that ebbs and thumps throughout Hayes’ soul-tinged songs. Tickets are $20 presale and $22 day of show. 7:30 p.m.
Known as “the coolest marathon in Arizona,” the Flagstaff Marathon is Saturday, hosted by Flagstaff Nordic Center and benefits the Angel Fund at North Country HealthCare. The Flagstaff Marathon is 100% off-road with varying (single-track, cross-country, dirt roads) terrain. Elevation gains are only 2200 feet for the full marathon, 1100 feet for the half-marathon, and 450 feet for the 10K loop. The course ranges from 8000 feet to 8600 feet above sea level. The marathon has been described as the most scenic and difficult marathon in the Southwest. Full Marathon $105, Half Marathon $80, 10K $60, and Kids Kilo is free. Start times: Full at 8:00 a.m., Half at 9:00 a.m., 10K at 9:30 a.m. The Flagstaff Nordic Center is 15 miles northwest of Flagstaff on US Hwy 89.
Country music fans have waited all summer for the Mountain Country Music Festival, to be held on Saturday at the Continental Driving Range (5000 Old Walnut Canyon Road). The music starts at 11:30 a.m. with both local and national talent in an outdoor setting with beer and arts & crafts vendors. There will also be food vendors and a Kids’ Korral. The festival benefits the Military Order of the Purple Heart, assisting all veterans, not just those who were wounded, and their dependents, widows and orphans. Admission is $20; 12 and under are free.
The Lumberyard Brewing Company hosts Okto”Beer”Fest on Saturday (5 S. San Francisco St.) with beer provided by Northern Arizona Breweries. 100% of the proceeds will benefit Second Chance Animal Shelter. Enjoy contests, dancing, games and music. $5 donation for entry. 12:30 – 6:00 p.m.
A part of the 10-day Flagstaff Festival of Science, adventurers of all ages are invited to explore alternative energy sources, the magic of bubbles, the formation of comets (and make one yourself!), the agility of robots, the nature of the mind, the chemistry of explosions, unbelievable physics phenomena and much more during NAU’s Science & Engineering Day on Saturday at NAU’s High Country Conference Center, 1:00 – 4:00 p.m. Chemistry Magic Show at 2:30 p.m. and Physics Magic Show at 1:30 and 3:30 p.m.
Living Traditions Presentations hosts Beoga on Sunday at 7:00 p.m. at the Coconino Center for the Arts. Gaelic for “lively,” Beoga’s unique sound features the twin dueling accordions of Damian McKee and multi-instrumentalist Seán Óg Graham, pianist Liam Bradley, and four times All-Ireland bodhrán champion Eamon Murray. $18 – $20.
Celebrate International Peace Day at Heritage Square on Sunday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. with doves, drumming and dancing, organized by peacemakers of Flagstaff. Family entertainment and information on preserving peace at home, in your community, and across the earth will be available. Be part of the biggest call for peace the world has ever seen. Free!
On Sunday afternoon, High Altitude Roller Derby presents Roller Derby Slam Jam at Mount Elden Middle School, with two bouts, one at 2:00 p.m. and one at 4:00 p.m. First up will be the HARD Dark Sky Starlets taking on the Tucson Roller Derby (TRD) Furious Truckstop Waitresses (FTW). This is an AZ State Flat Track Roller Derby Conference bout guaranteed to be packed with big hits! The second bout of the night will be the HARD Supernovas battling it out against Arizona Roller Derby’s (AZRD) The B-Team. $8 in advance, $10 at the door. Ages 7 – 12 $5; kids 6 and under are free.
It’s stacking up to be a great weekend in Flagstaff, weather-wise. And there is always plenty to do outside in our mountain town, surrounded by forests and national monuments. When you’re ready to live in Flagstaff, start with our outstanding Flagstaff real estate website.
