Irrigation Festival comes ‘Sequimming along’
Published 1:30 am Wednesday, April 29, 2026
As May approaches so do two consecutive weekends of family fun with the Sequim Irrigation Festival.
For its 131st year, with the theme “Let’s go Sequimming,” mainstay events return with the Grand Parade, Family Fun Days, and more from May 1-10.
“I’m feeling really good about the festival,” said Executive Director Michelle Rhodes.
She 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 Friday, May 1-Sunday, May 3, followed by the Grand Finale Weekend Thursday, May 7-Sunday, May 10.
For more details about events, volunteering and dignitaries, visit irrigationfestival.com.
According to organizers, the Sequim 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.
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 new and ahead
This year, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Olympic Peninsula Golf Tournament, an affiliate event of the festival, shifts to Crazy Callen Weekend with a 1 p.m. start time Friday, May 1 at The Cedars at Dungeness. With questions, email Janet Gray at jgray@bgc-op.org.
Organizers have also opted not to hold a community concert/dance on Saturday night to focus more on the Trashion Show starting at 5:30 p.m. May 2 in the Guy Cole Event Center.
“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.”
The Trashion Show features outfits created using at least 75% recycled materials.
Creative rebrand
The Innovative Arts and Crafts Show held in Carrie Blake Community Park Saturday and Sunday was rebranded as the Creative Collective.
Rhodes said this allows the event to expand its types of vendors they bring in, 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 will also be 10 food vendors this year, Rhodes said.
Family Fun Days
Family Fun Days features 25 free activity booths and touch-a-trucks on Saturday from 9 a.m.-5 p.m., and five booths and Strait Up Foam Fun and laser tag on Sunday from 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
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 with the event is to connect with community members and inspire new generations with their love for robotics.
Another booth on Saturday features Sequim High School’s GSA (Gender Sexuality Alliance) Club making key chains with beads, charms, and other materials with the goal to provide a fun, creative experience while making something participants can use every day.
As one of the many fun features, Dungeness Kids Co. will release butterflies at 1 pm. Saturday in cooperation with the Sequim Botanical Garden.
Kids Parade
The Kids Parade for children 12 and under will line up at 11:45 a.m. in the southwest corner of the Albert Haller Playfields with a start time of noon on Saturday.
Prizes will be given to the best storybook character, best pet, best “All about Sequim,” best festival theme, and best overall, who is invited to ride in the Grand Parade the following weekend.
Crazy Daze
The Crazy Daze Breakfast Murder Mystery begins at 9 a.m. Sunday, May 3 in the Guy Cole Event Center. Organizers said the event is appropriate for all ages, and tickets are available at the festival’s website, with some limited tickets available the morning of the breakfast.
Black Bear Diner will be providing the breakfast and organizers anticipate it selling out.
Music throughout
Artists and performers are set to perform 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m.-3 p.m. Sunday with the Sequim City Band performing at 3:30 p.m. Sunday all at the James Center for Performing Arts Center’s bandshell.
Other events
Sequim High School’s annual operetta “The Wizard of Oz” runs two weekends with shows at 7 p.m. Friday-Saturday, May 1-2, 8-9, and 2 p.m. Sundays May 3 and 10. Purchase tickets at the door or at sequimschools.org.
The First Friday Art Walk also runs as an affiliate event to the festival from 5-8 p.m. May 1 in and around downtown Sequim.
Looking ahead
Rhodes said volunteers are still needed for set up on May 1 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, sign-ups remain open for the festival’s Run Series on May 9. The 2K run/walk goes 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.”
For more information about the festival, visit https://irrigationfestival.com.
2026 Crazy Callen Weekend May 1-3
Friday, May 1
• Boys & Girls Club Golf Tournament, 1 p.m. The Cedars at Dungeness
• First Friday Art Walk, 5-8 p.m. downtown Sequim
• Sequim High School Operetta “The Wizard of Oz” 7 p.m. Sequim High School
Saturday, May 2
• Family Fun Days, 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Carrie Blake Community Park
• Creative Collective (formerly Innovative Arts & Crafts Fair), 9 a.m.-5 p.m. park
• Entertainment, 9:00 a.m.-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. SHS
Sunday, May 3
• Crazy Daze Breakfast Murder Mystery, 9 a.m. Guy Cole Event Center
• Family Fun Day, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. Carrie Blake Community Park
• Creative Collective, 11 a.m.-5 p.m. park
• Entertainment 11 a.m.-3 p.m. bandshell
• “The Wizard of Oz,” 2 p.m. SHS
• Sequim City Band, 3:30 p.m. bandshell
For a full schedule, registration, and more about the festival, visit irrigationfestival.com.
