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Print40 ways to savor summer
Ideas for making the most of the season, from coffee klatches and beer cocktails to meteor showers and a twilight bike tour.
Ah, summer. Three months of glorious days filled with barbecues, flip-flops and swimming pools. How best to savor this bounty? We’ve come up with 40 possibilities to ensure your summer will be well-spent before autumn arrives to pull leaves from trees and coats from closets. (Eager for still more suggestions? You’ll find 52 additional ideas at columbusmonthly.com.)
ROMP in the dark with your dog. Metro Parks regularly unleashes Howl at the Moon, a nighttime trail hike for pooches and their humans. Sites include Highbanks, Pickerington Ponds, Prairie Oaks, Clear Creek and Three Creeks parks.
EXPAND your universe at Astro Coffee, the OSU Astronomy Department’s klatch held weekdays at 10:30 am at McPherson Laboratory. Professors and grad students sip java and chat about the latest papers on stuff like spiral galaxies, supernovae and the Spitzer Space Telescope. Bring your brain and your own mug.
FORGO DVDs or downloading—go old school and watch a flick in the gorgeously gilded Ohio Theatre during the CAPA Summer Movie Series, June 4 through July 25. The vast lineup includes Pretty Woman, The Omen, The Wolf Man and two Buster Keaton silent films.
TIPPLE among the trees during Cocktails at the Conservatory, a casual after-work get-together on Thursdays at Franklin Park Conservatory. As darkness falls, the glass walls of the historic Palm House glow with colored lights in a display designed by artist James Turrell.
LOITER in an alley and score some fresh produce at the Summer Pearl Market, held on Pearl Alley downtown every Tuesday and Friday. Baked goods, lunch stuffs and handmade items also are for sale.
HONK if you love Bill Murray. The Wexner Center for the Arts will show The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou June 17 as part of its deceptively named Wex Drive-In movie series (you drive to the university, then walk to the Wexner Center Plaza). Blankets and lawn chairs recommended.
THRASH your board at the Skate Park in Adventure Park near downtown Powell, where 17,000 square feet of dipping, curving concrete beckons thrill-seekers.
TROLL the fields and pick your own ripe, red strawberries at Circle S Farms in Grove City. Growing season ends around June 20.
CELEBRATE African-American culture at the 10th annual JuneteenthOhio Festival June 18 through 20 in Franklin Park. You’ll find lots of music, soul food, a chess tournament and other activities at this festival marking the anniversary of the end of slavery in the U.S.
IMBIBE a trendy and refreshing beer cocktail. Order a Shandy (beer and lemonade or ginger ale), Snakebite (lager and hard apple cider) or Michelada (beer, lime juice and hot sauce, served over ice in a salt-rimmed glass). Too edgy for you? Have a Bud Light, then.
CHEER on the hometown team as the Columbus Clippers play their second season in Huntington Park. Satisfy your inner carnivore with a visit during Dime-A-Dog or Buck-A-Bone night.
BE BEDAZZLED by the über-colorful Pride Parade marching through the Short North June 19 as part of the Columbus Pride weekend.
BATTLE live zombies, checkers champs and Pokémon experts June 23 through 27 at the Greater Columbus Convention Center during the 35th annual Origins Game Fair, the largest, proudest group of nerds united under one roof since Steve Jobs held his last press conference.
SCORE tickets to see the Columbus Crew, which has racked up the best regular-season record in the
FEEL GOOD with Black Joe Lewis & The Honeybears. The Texas-born band brings blues and soul—flavored with a bit of funk and punk—to the Newport Music Hall June 30. The Washington Post called them “this unhinged eight-piece from Austin.”
EXPLODE with excitement at Red, White & Boom! on the downtown riverfront July 2. Beginning at 3 pm, the Arena District hosts Taste of Boom!, a street party hopping with live music and food.
GUFFAW at the ridiculous and the sublime marching through the streets of Victorian Village during the Doo Dah Parade July 4. Look for such luminaries as the Marching Fidels, the Fishnet Mafia and Miss Ohio Roadkill.
CLAW,
WORSHIP the sun (without the burning and peeling) during Perkins Observatory’s “Celebration of the Sun” July 10, 17 and 24. Special telescopes will let you defy mom’s warnings never to stare directly at the fiery ball.
BOIL OVER at the Miami Valley Steam Show, an outdoor extravaganza of antique tractors, engines and farm equipment July 15 through 18 in Plain City. Live demonstrations of the vintage mechanical marvels run almost continually.
PEDAL behind Mike Coleman as he leads a 20-mile Mayor’s Twilight Tour through downtown Columbus July 16, starting and ending at Crew Stadium. All ages welcome. The ride kicks off the Bike Columbus Festival, running through Aug. 1.
GLIDE across the 3,300-acre Alum Creek Reservoir in a pontoon boat. They’re easy to drive, difficult to capsize and can hold at least seven people comfortably . . . kind of like a buoyant minivan, but with fewer cup holders. Rentals at Alum Creek Marina start at $110 for two hours.
SEARCH the Ohio Statehouse during the Cornerstone to Cupola Tour July 17 and 18. Peer into the dark and dusty corners of the 1861 Greek Revival building, from the underground crypt (complete with prisoner graffiti) to the lofty cupola.
CRANE your neck while marveling at aerial acrobatics at the Dayton Air Show, July 17 and 18 at Dayton International Airport. The U.S. Navy’s famed Blue Angels will be among those cruising the wild blue yonder.
PIG OUT at the Jazz & Rib Fest along the waterfront at North Bank Park by the Arena District July 23 through 25. Twenty-three rib places (from as far away as Australia) compete for public favor while jazz bands send out cool vibes.
CHEER on the Ohio Roller Girls as they challenge other pushy dames on skates. The ladies fight the Fox City Foxz July 24 and grind up the Grand Raggity Roller Girls Aug. 7 at their indoor flat track in Grandview.
CLIMB the walls—literally. Columbus Outdoor Pursuits holds sessions at its climbing wall near Granville on most Wednesday nights for just $7. Beginners welcome.
GO GREEN at Broadway Across America’s presentation of Wicked, at the Ohio Theatre July 28 through Aug. 29. Set in the mythical kingdom of Oz (before Dorothy showed up to wreak havoc), this musical gives the Wicked Witch of the West a chance to tell her side of the story.
PITCH IN with the chores at Metro Park’s Slate Run Living Historical Farm, a working 1880s farmstead complete with a Gothic Revival farmhouse, Amish-restored barn and horse-plowed fields. Kids can wash clothes by hand, feed the farm’s many animals and contemplate life before iPods.
WAKE UP in the middle of the night to witness the Perseid Meteor Shower Aug. 12 and 13. This year, the crescent moon will set in the early evening, making for particularly good viewing during the peak hours between midnight and 4 am.
PADDLE your way down the Big Darby Creek in a canoe or kayak from Trapper John’s Canoe Livery. Trips run from one to six hours; no limit on the number of times you can topple into the water.
FLING your Frisbee at the brand-new, nine-hole Simsbury Disc Golf Course in Pickerington. The pretty, partially wooded course was designed by Paul Jay, president of the Columbus Flyers Disc Golf Club.
YUK IT UP at the Shadowbox Sketch Comedy Festival Aug. 20 and 21. Comedy troupes perform routines for judges on Friday, then join forces with Shadowbox players on Saturday to present a big sketch-based show. The great Garrett Morris of SNL fame joins the judges this year.
SOAK your head (and the rest of your body) at Cedar Point’s newest attraction, Shoot the Rapids, one of the world’s tallest water rides. Expect to get wet. Very wet.
PRAISE the awesome tomato! Join in the fun at the 45th annual Reynoldsburg Tomato Festival in Huber Park Aug. 20 and 21. In addition to the usual—rides, music and food—attendees can peruse a giant tomato competition and behold the crowning of the Tomato Queen and her court.
JUMP out of an airplane and scratch one item off your bucket list. For a tandem dive at SkyDive Columbus (where you’re strapped to an experienced, nerves-of-steel instructor), all you need is 30 minutes of training and $219.
PANT your way through the 20th Annual Dog Jog and raise money for the CHA Animal Shelter Aug. 21. Canine companions on leashes are welcome to join this 5K jog/walk through downtown.
STAND BACK and watch muralists create big art at Urban Scrawl. Other distractions include break dancing, a skateboarding competition and live music Aug. 28 at Dodge Park, the city’s first skate park.
Katherine Matthews is a freelance writer in Columbus.
