SAN ANTONIO – The summer heat is upon us Texans, but there are some ways to have some fun outside.
And you can thank small Texas towns for that because they have some of the coolest food festivals and rodeos coming up.
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For example, there are three watermelon festivals in Central Texas, and they include fun festivities like seed-spitting and melon-eating contests.
Of course, the quirkiness doesn’t stop there. There’s also corn chucking in Holland, tomato peeling in Jacksonville, and wild cow milking in Pecos.
So don’t let the heat stop you; take some summer road trips at these festivals around the Lone Star State.
- Aransas Pass Shrimporee: The Shrimporee will take place on June 10-12 this year and will feature live music from Ramon Ayala and Pat Greene. The Texas Showdown Dance Competition will take place on the last day of the festival. For more information, click here.
- Blanco Lavender Festival: On June 10-12, the festival will have a market, live music and access to Texas’ first commercial lavender farm. There will also be regional wines and local beer available. For more information, click here.
- Fredericksburg Crawfish Festival: The Fredericksburg Jaycees will hold the festival on Memorial Day weekend. Besides crawfish, the festival is about live music, arts and crafts. It’ll take place on May 27-29 and will feature Josh Ward and Kyle Park. For more information, click here.
- Luling Watermelon Thump: This year marks the 69th Watermelon Thump in Luling, a city about 20 minutes northeast of Seguin. It will be held on June 23-26 and includes a parade, car show, carnival and vendors. Like in the name, watermelons are the main focus here: activities include seed-spitting competitions, melon eating contests and melon judging. The entertainers this year include Wade Bowen and La Energia Nortena. For more information, click here.
- Holland Corn Festival: The 48th annual Holland Corn Festival is taking place June 16-18. It includes a 5K, corn hole tournament, and corn shucking, eating and bobbing contests. There’s also a corn seed-spitting contest. Holland is located just south of Temple. For more information, click here.
- Jacksonville Tomato Festival: The Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce will host the 38th annual Tomato Fest on June 11. It will include eating, peeling and packing contests, as well as a talent show. For more information, click here.
- McDade Watermelon Festival: The 73rd Watermelon Festival will take place on July 9. It includes a parade, arts and crafts, a pageant, a 5K, a melon auction and a melon eating contest. There’s also a riding mower rodeo. For more information, click here.
- Pasadena Strawberry Festival: If you missed the Poteet Strawberry Festival, there’s another berry fest in Texas to visit this month. The Pasadena Strawberry Festival is taking place May 20-22. Casey Donahew and Tracy Byrd will perform, and it also includes a car show, carnival, pageant, mud volleyball and mutton bustin’. For more information, click here.
- Parker County Peach Festival: The next peach festival is planned for July 9. It will include live music, children’s activities, a Peach Pedal Bike Rodeo and a domino tournament. For more information, click here.
- Stockdale Watermelon Jubilee: Established in 1937, the Stockdale Watermelon Jubilee is always on the third weekend of June. So this year’s festival will be June 16-18. It includes a rodeo, parade, car show, concerts and other activities. The performers for this year include Shenandoah, Kolby Cooper and the Chad Cooke Band. For more information, click here.
- Stonewall Peach JAMboree: The 61st annual Stonewall Peach JAMboree will take place on June 16-18. It includes baking, preserves and salsa contests, plus peach eating and peach pit spitting competitions. There’s also a rodeo, pageant and mutton bustin’ that’ll take place over the weekend. For more information, click here.
- West of the Pecos Rodeo: Dubbed as “home of the world’s first rodeo,” the rodeo in Pecos will take place June 21-25. Besides the typical events like steer wrestling and bull riding, the rodeo also includes a hide race, wild cow milking and boot scramble. The hide race includes a rider on a horse pulling someone on a hide. The rider then races to the finish line, and whoever has the fastest time wins. For more information, click here.