Summer of 2016 brings record high temperatures to Quad cities along with annual events. Music, art, fair, carnivals, festivals, and so on make QC the greatest place to spend the summer again! Here are my top picks for summer 2016.
Rock Island County Fair – July 19 to 23: Enjoy the unlimited rides and don’t miss the fair food and the demolition derby on Friday and Little Monster trucks on Saturday! See the farm animals and feed them.
MVValley Fair – Aug 2 to 7: Take the fun stands pass to enjoy the entry for five days including the grand stands! Rascal Flatts and Alabama are in the line up this year
Tug Fest – Aug 11 to 13: Don’t miss the fireworks on Friday and the great tug on Saturday. Cheer for your local teams and enjoy the action! Signup your kids for the kids tug to make it more interesting
River Roots Live – Aug 26 to 27: If you like loud music and street food, this is the place for you. Bring a lawn chair and enjoy the music! Visit the many stages and enjoy all kinds of music
Quad city balloon festival – Sep 23 to 27: Enjoy the hot air balloon ride over the QC and fly in the colorful balloons. Donate a canned or packed food item for free entry
Do visit the Putnam museum and Figge art museum during to check out their special exhibits. Say hello to the mummy in the museum and create art at the Figge art museum. Ride the channel cat water taxi to cross the river. Ride the river cruises and dinner cruises on the famous Celebration Belle. Go to the movie in the park or the movie marathon in the theaters early shows.
If you want to venture out new adventures in the Quad cities, try out the Scuba Adventures and get certified in the live water swimming. Don’t miss the Slide the city on August 6th which is sure a fun to do and watch as well. A must visit is the Bust out live escape rooms in Bettendorf which is a perfect team building activity for family, friends, or office. the Quad city sky diving is open for season and test your luck out there as well. 🙂
Participate in the marathons, races, triatholons, RAGBRAI, and so on in 2016. Or just enjoy the river walk. Let me know what you did this summer in the Quad cities! 🙂
Summer events are plenty in Quad Cities which let us enjoy the best outdoors. With the mighty Mississippi by our side, we get to explore the nature and create beautiful memories. With thousands of people attending, these events make living in the Quad Cities interesting.
Summer Events in Quad Cities
Here are some quad cities events which are my favorites:
Rock Island County Fair: The 146th annual Rock Island County Fair is from July 11th to July 19th at 4200, Archer Drive
in East Moline. Most of the grandstand acts are from July 15th to July 18th that is, Thursday through Saturday. Admission fee is $2 for adults, unlimited wristband for $20 which covers all the rides. If you want to get tipsy you can either get on the rides or the beer tent nearby. The fair food is mouth watering such as the curly fries, funnel cakes, french fries, hot dogs, nachos cheese, cotton candy, and of course the Lemonades!!
The grandstand acts include popular artists such as Charlie Worsham on Saturday and Clayton Anderson and Keith Anderson on Friday. This year the Demolition Derby is on Thursday 7pm unlike last year when they had it scheduled for Saturday evening. Get your spirits high for the racing and dashing. Further, check their schedule for more information and do not forget there is free pizza by Dominoes on Wednesday and Thursday from 10.30 am to 1pm.
Mississippi Valley Fair: The 96th annual Mississippi Valley Fair is from August 4th to August 9th at 2815, West Locust St in Davenport. The fair is one of the largest fair in Iowa which costs $10 for the general admission and $45 for fun cards. The fun card lets you in for all the five days including the grand stand acts. Kids 12 and under have free admission on Wednesday Aug 5th. This year the grand stand line up includes Kip Moore, Reba, The Marshall Tucker Band, Styx, The Band Perry, and Big & Rich.
You can visit the Mississippi Valley Fair for the fair food especially the corn and baked potatoes. The rides are $20 from 11 am to 5pm and they have a zip line too. There is also the beer tent and free music. There are some free acts throughout the day which include the alligator show, Dallas the Fire Guy, and Team Rock Karate Show among others.
Tug Fest: The 29th annual Tug Fest is from August 13th to August 15th in Port Byron, Illinois or Le Claire, Iowa. Illinois has the most wins 17 over Iowa. You can choose the side depending on which side of the river you are. Thursday night is the family night and is free admission to all. Friday and Saturday admission is $3 per person. Don’t miss Friday night Rumble on the River fireworks over the river at 9pm. The kids tug is at 11 am on Saturday. The actual tug is from 12 to 3pm at the tug site.
Tug fest is a tug of war competition over the Mississippi river between two states Iowa and Illinois. The 2400 feet rope is pulled by tug teams across the river and the state with most points win. Local businesses form teams to compete in the tug. Tug fest is possible with the help of local sponsors and hard working volunteers. Also, the bands are amazing at the Gazebo. I like the music, fireworks,the river, and of course the actual tug. Combine your tug fest visit with the annual Floatzilla on August 15th to make it even more fun.
River Roots Live: The 11th annual River Roots Live is on August 28th and August 29th at 400 W Biederbecke Dr, Davenport in the LeClaire Park. I like their new website though developed by Nerdwerx! The admission is free before 3pm on both days. Gate admission is $15. River Roots Liveis clubbed with the rib fest. The ribs are open at 11 am on both days. Music starts at 5pm on Friday and runs all day on Saturday.
This year’s line up includes artists such as Kacey Musgraves at Saturday 8.45 pm and Hello Goodbye at Friday 10.15 pm. Visit the River Roots Live for lots of ear popping and heart throbbing music. The Junior Jam for children is sponsored by West Music and RME. There are bouncy house for kids and also a video game tent sponsored by Video Game Etc. Check out all the free stuff given away by local businesses apart from the fair food.
You can also hop on the channel cat taxi and Celebration Belle cruises or checkout the Backwater Gamblers in Rock Island. Attend these events and let me know which one you like the most and share if you find any more interesting.:)
This Saturday, the fifteenth of September Figge Art Museum is hosting a free family day. The special exhibits include the Exploring NASA and Blast off events. The timings are from 11 am to 2pm.
Figge Art Museum is hosting a family event on this Saturday, for which there is no admission fees. The special programs include Star Lab, Astronomy talks, fun activites for kids, and so on. Visit the studios from 11 am to 2pm for a family fun. Local sponsors such as John Deere are sponsoring this free event.
The Figge is also part of the East West River Fest and has art galleries in european, Afreican-American, American, and ancient art. There additional collections include Asian and Mexican Colonial arts. It is a good opportunity to visit the Figge Art museum during the NASA days.
The first month of the year is packed with events which are getting pretty difficult to manage. With first snow (and storm), January is getting busier. Here are some of the events in the area.
Bettendorf family museum is offering free evening admission on January 16th from 5pm to 8pm on Martin Luther King Jr.’s day. Enjoy the exhibits and explore nature wonders at the museum.
Moline library is offering a range of free programs including Messy Monday on January 16th, Lego club on January 19th, and Contented canines on January 25th. Registration may be required for some programs. Check the timings before going.
Rock Island Center for Math and Science is offering a free STEM program on January 24th 5pm to 7pm in coordination with IMSA. Children can do variety of science experiments and win prizes!
iwireless center is hosting the World’s toughest rodeo show on January 27th and January 28th at 7.30 pm. Admission is from $18 to $35 and a special goody bag for $55 seat tickets.
Moline public library is giving Putnam museum passes this month for free. The pass is good for a week for a family of four per visit. Also, get passes for free admission to the Mississippi Valley Fair Grounds this Sunday and get a free book.
Free Programs
The local library is a great source for books and other programs which are available mostly free of charge. Some of the interesting activities for children in this month include:
Pre-school story time
Book Bunch Club
Reader’s Theater
Anime Club
Teen Club
Lego Club
The Putnam Museum pass is good for one week and is not valid for the IMAX theater. You can register through phone 309-524-2480or through the moline public library website.
At the children’s desk pick up a book mark that is also a free pass to the Reading Adventures event scheduled this Sunday from noon to 5 pm at the Mississippi Valley Fair Grounds. Every child under 12 years receive a free book. Area authors will read out stories at 2 pm to the children. Inflatables, rides, and other crafts will engage children for the entire afternoon.
Located in the downtown of Davenport in Iowa, the museum has some of the unique paintings. The free family event let the visitors get a glimpse of the museum’s possessions apart from fun activities for children.
Figge Art Museum
The Figge Art Museum in Davenport is a prime venue for collecting and exhibiting art. Started in 1925, the museum has over 3000 collections of art, sculpture, and paintings. The museum moved to the current building in 2005 with glass walls to reflect the nature.
The collection includes Asian, America, Haitian, Mexican, African, and European some of which are dated back to the Colonial period. Figge Art museum has different exhibitions going on including the railroads, water views, vehicles, automobiles, and school paintings.
The museum has partnerships with local schools and colleges and displays the art exhibits from the students. The museum has classes and workshops for school children, young adults, college students, and researchers.
The art museum is open all days except for few holidays. The admission costs $7 for adults and $4 for children. Plan your visit on special events and exhibitions so that you can see more. You can obtain the membership and avail special benefits in all their events.
Free Family Event
The museum lets visitors enter the facility for free in partnership with the John Deere. Numerous activities for children and adults are arranged for families. Special videos are showcased depending upon the theme of the day. Some of the galleries and exhibits are open all day. You can visit the museum store to buy special collections from around the world.
The free family event is a best time to attain a glimpse of the museum and revisit if you are further interested. It is astonishing to see some of the arts by young children and students. 🙂
The second annual Quad city kite festival was a hit on Sunday due to the perfect weather for kite flying. The sponsors along with the IPTV guys made the show a big hit this year. 🙂
Quad City Kite Festival
Quad City Kite Festival is an annual kite festival hosted by the Quad City Kite Club. The kite club along with the local sponsors such as the IPTV, Happy Joes, Davenport Fire Department, Bettendorf family museum and others hosted this year’s event on last Saturday and Sunday at the Centennial Park, Davenport.
Owing to the weather the festival was good on Sunday. Many local residents visited the park for the kite flying fun. Professional kite fliers performed kite stunts which had amazing synchronization. Betendorf family museum stall had some activities to make their own rockets, parachutes, pin wheels and kites. Davenport fire department allowed kids and families to get in to the fire truck and experience the kite festival from inside the truck and at an elevated height. Visitors could buy kites, or supplies, and T-shirts at the stalls.
The riverside park along with the beautiful view of the Mississipi river and the Centennial bridge was good. Centennial park had ample parking space, play areas and open spaces for the visitors.
Overall, the event is perfect for a get-together or picnic along with the kite flying!! I took a picture with IPTV’s Dan Wardell. Our kite was the highest in the sky, though it took a lot of time in pulling it down. 🙂
Do not the miss the family free day at the Figge Art museum, Davenport this Saturday from 1-3pm in the afternoon. Sponsored by John Deere the event is free for all to enjoy the displays and shows.
Fall Harvest Family Free Day is on September 18th, Saturday 1 pm to 3pm. Story time, art search, 3-D Harvest Collage, pumpkin coloring and other events are planned for the entire family.
For Quad city residents, August is packed with full of local events which are not to be missed. The Mississippi Valley Fair, River Roots Live Music Festival, Tug Fest are the major annual events apart from the movie in the park. These events make summer a little more exciting and worth celebrating!
Mississippi Valley Fair, 2010
The 91st annual Mississippi Valley Fair is being held at Davenport, Iowa from August 3rd to August 8th. If you have visited the Rock Island County Fair in July, you can expect this fair to be much bigger and with more events.
The Mississippi Valley Fair has a line up of celebrity artists from across the country performing live daily. Apart from the grand stand events, the fair is packed with shows from across the country. The animal show, carnival rides, fire guy show, diamonds show, Stiltwalker Todd Lageisse show, sculptors are some of the amazing shows in the fair.
The fair is held at 2815 West Locust street Davenport, Iowa 52804. They can be reached on (563) 326-5338. The entry fee is $10 per head and $40 for all days with admission to the grand stand.
Tug Fest, 2010
The 24th annual Tug Fest is held across the Mississippi river between Le Claire, Iowa and Port Byron, Illinois. The tug-of-war across the river is held annually along with the Bike show and fire works. The show and events can be seen both the cities and are a ton of fun. Don’t forget to bring your lawn chairs and water bottles.
The festival is held on August 12th to 14th and the entry is free. 🙂 Do not miss the annual show with lots of events for children as well as adults. The tug fest for children and the Prince/Princess contests are held for children. For adults, the parade contests, bike contests, Running, Golf tournament are the planned events. The fireworks on Friday, August 13th are a feast and a must see!
River Roots Live Music Festival, 2010
The sixth annual River Roots Live Music Festival has artists from across the country performing for entertaining the visitors. The festival is a feast for all music lovers with a line-up of popular artists and fun.
The festival will be held in Davenport Downtown on August 20th and August 21st. The timings are from 11am till midnight. Entry is free 🙂 and the shows are held in multiple stages. The music festival is packed with rib fest for you to enjoy mouth-watering ribs. Bring your lawn chairs and water bottles.
Movie in the Park, Moline
Every Friday night in August, Moline Parks department shows a free movie in the park at Riverside Park. Bring your lawn chairs, blankets and water bottles to enjoy the cool summer and a free movie. Concessions are available at the park at an extra charge.
So, finally there are many events in August before school starts and fall begins. Enjoy to your maximum potential and let me know how it went. 🙂
The recent get together with friends and family at the West Lake Park in Davenport, Iowa was tons of fun. The park facilities and the beach offer a unique fun experience for adults and children.
West Lake Park
West Lake Park is located by the lake. Its facilities include picnic areas, barbecues, children’s play area, rest rooms, and the beach of course! The park has all the facilities and is perfect for family get-together or birthday parties or casual picnics.
The Beach
The beach is a small area retained for children and adults to enter and play in the water. The lake water may look brown but kids will enjoy anyways. The sand by the lake allow the children to experience a beach environment right in the Quad cities. 🙂 The life guard will be watching the kids to ensure safety. Further, the younger kids get to play in a separate play area with all their personal swim toys and accessories.
Note that they charge $3 for adults and $2 for kids to enter the beach.
The Paddle Boating
This was the first time I paddled a boat. so, it was funny. My son paddled the boat too. Though it all resulted in lot of leg pain the next day, it was a good view of the trees and the lake from the boat. 🙂 The charges include $7 for half an hour and $10 for one hour. They with hold your driving licence and return when you are back.
The annual Quad City Air Show is a must watch for the locals. It features top class air planes and amazing feats by the pilots.
The jets and super sonics make a colorful patterns and arrangements in the air. The bomber aircrafts fire the bombs and demonstrate their capabilities. The multiple jet synchronization and the feats are superb.
The aeroplanes twist and drop at a ninety degree angle from top to bottom and bottom to top. the expertise and skill of the pilots is commendable. I wonder how the pilots risk their lives just for the entertainment of the people.
The air show team recreate the Pearl Harbor attack which took place in 1941. In addition, the show features the American Navy Blues Angles. The dedicated top performers entertain and honor the veterans and engage the audience.
Good music and commentary along with food and drinks make a perfect afternoon for kids as well as adults. It costs $15 per head or you can just sit by the green grass by the road side and watch the aero-show.
The air show is conducted annually at the Davenport Municipal airport on the last Sunday in June. It is located at 9010 Harrison Street, Davenport, IA 52806. You can call 563-285-7469 for more information.
Quad cities is home to many popular attractions. Backwater Gamblers is one more must-seeing show for quad city residents and visitors. While I liked the ski show at Wisconsin dells at the Tommy Bartlett show, I am sure people will like the Backwater Gamblers show within the Quad cities itself.
What: Non-proft ski show team Cost: Absolutely free. Requires your time and presence. That’s it 🙂 Where: 44th Street, Rock Island, IL (309-786-8987) When: Sundays and Wednesdays 6.30 pm
The Backwater Gamblers are a team of professionals right in the heart of quad cities just for your family entertainment. The team members are volunteers and accept donations. The show lasts for over one hour with ten minutes break in between. I am sure children will like it anyways, but adults will be jumping too. 🙂
