School’s out for summer and the kids are looking for something fun to do. Check out these 20 family friendly summer activities in the Yakima Valley!
1. Farm Fruit Festivals!
Have some farm-fresh fun picking your own fresh fruit and enjoy a day packed with family activities and tasty treats. Barrett Orchards’ Cherry Festival runs from June 22 through July 6, for u-pick cherries in their orchards. Visit their Peach Days from August 5 through September 2 for free samples of fresh peach smoothies, fresh picked peaches and nectarines, homemade peach ice cream and a peach milkshake. Bills Berry Farm Cherry & Berry Days starts Saturday, June 22 and lasts 4 Saturdays and the 4th of July. Sweet as Peach Days are July 27 and Aug 3 and 10. Enjoy family farm fun with two big playgrounds, hayrides, an animal farm, barnyard train, apple slingshots and doughnuts, and u-pick and they pick cherries and blueberries.
2. Attend a Rodeo!
Watch the buckin’ broncs and wear your cowboy hat! The Toppenish Rodeo is July 5 and 6,with a large parade on Saturday, a nightly rodeo, Native American food, stick games and art and crafts booths! The Yakima Valley Fair & Rodeo is August 7 through 10.
3. Bring Your 3-on-3 Game.
Sign the kids up for Hot Shots 3-on-3 Basketball Tourney! Check out new dates and location this year! The tournament takes place June 22 and 23 at Sozo Sports Complex. All grades from 1st to 12th are welcome. Bring your game to the streets of Yakima and prove that you have what it takes to become a Hot Shots Champion!
4. Camp on the Water.
Get away for lakeside camping at Silver Beach Resort! Camp in the beautiful campground on Lake Rimrock or stay at the motel. What a fun way to spend a few days! The gorgeous lake is ideal for boating, paddling and stand-up-paddle-boarding. Detour to nearby White Pass Ski Area for scenic hiking. Don’t forget the s’mores!
5. Have Some Fair Fun!
Attend the State Fair Park 4th of July celebration. Celebrate the 4th with traditional food vendors, Apple Jam live music and fireworks!
6. Take a Color Run!
Register the whole family for the Dye Hard 5k Color Run July 13, 2019. The Dye Hard 5K is an untimed nighttime running event for having fun with friends and family while getting covered in fluorescent colored powder in the dark, under the glow of black lights. Don’t forget about the post-event party with music, dancing and even more powder! Ages 6 and up.
7. Catch an Outdoor Show.
Check out the free Outdoor Summer Cinema Series, offering Sunday evening movies in Chesterly Park. Movies start at 8:30 pm. Here’s the lineup:
- July 14: Incredibles 2 (PG)
- July 21: Beethoven (PG)
- July 28: Kung Fu Panda (PG)
- August 4: Finding Nemo (PG)
- August 11: Ralph Breaks the Internet (PG),
- August 18: Shazam (PG)
8. Float the Yakima River.
Rill Adventures will set your family up with everything you need for a scenic float through the Yakima River Canyon. They’ll provide rafts, tubes, single and double kayaks, life jackets, ice chests, dry bags and even picnic lunches. They require a minimum age of 5 years with swim skills.
9. Hike Through a Cave!
Take the short hike, easy hike for the whole family to explore the natural wonders of Boulder Cave on Highway 410. Boulder cave formed more than 10 million years ago. Over centuries, Devil Creek eroded the sediment from a series of lava flows, causing them to collapse and form the caves. Today, it’s a wonderful, quick adventure just a short drive from Yakima.
10. Peddle Along the River.
Take a bike ride along the 20-mile Yakima Greenway Pathway that runs from Union Gap to Naches, WA. The Greenway path follows the Yakima river for much of the ride. Stop and play awhile at the McGuire Playground and then have a farm-fresh snack at the McIlrath farm stand as you enter Naches.
11. Make Time to Play.
Visit the Valley Mall Kids Club every Wednesday, June 19 through August 14. Kids Club will feature a different, fun kid-friendly theme from 12 pm to 2 pm. June 19 is Circus, June 26 is Princesses & Pirates, July 3 is Legos, July 10 is Sports Day, July 17 is Cowboys & Cowgirls, July 24 is Outer Space, July 31 is Jungle, August 7 is Toy Clinic and August 14 is Superheroes.
12. Take a Swim!
Cool off on the Yakima Valley’s sunny days at one of the local pools or splash parks. Check out the aquatics schedule at Lions Pool and Franklin Pool in Yakima. The NEW Selah Aquatic Center opens in July. In the lower Yakima Valley, visit the Sunnyside Pool or the Prosser Aquatic Center. Visit the Yakima spray parks to cool off at Martin Luther King Park at or Miller Park.
13. Go For a Trail Ride.
The wonderful folks at Red Mountain Trails offers a 1 hour horseback rides. The cost is $70.00 for adults and $50.00 for children 16 and under. Children must be 6 or older. They also offer wagon rides.
14. Cool Off and Jump!
To hot to play outside? Visit Get Air to burn off summertime energy at the indoor trampoline park with foam pits, dodgeball, kid’s zone, free jump trampolines and dunk hoop. Get Air is open during the summer from 10 am to 10 pm Sunday through Thursday, and 10 am to 12 am Friday and Saturday.
15. Learn to Fly Fish!
Red’s Fly Shop offers a 101 level fly fishing class. Learn about entomology by searching for, and identifying live bait along the river banks and the Red’s fly selection. Enjoy instruction about fly rod casting, fishing on rivers vs. lakes, where trout live in the Yakima River and more. Visit their website and call for details.
16. Explore Living History.
Attend Union Gap Old Town Days June 14 through16. Learn about the Civil War at the living history war camps and education stations for all kinds of facts about life during the Civil War. Enjoy a scavenger hunt with prizes, live music, two days of civil war reenactment battles, kiddie train rides and selfie stations.
17. Take Ride in an Historic Trolley.
Enjoy the ride from Yakima to Selah, traveling over the Naches River. Listen to the conductor tell about Trolley travel in yesteryear.
18. Learn to “Fly.”
Come try your hand at flying at the McAllister Museum of Aviation. Take the computer flight simulator and fulfill the need for speed with rapid forward movement at an altitude of 35,000 feet! No parachute required.
19. See History Through Art.
Take a narrated tour on a wagon ride to view the Toppenish Murals. More than 75 murals on the sides of the buildings tell the history of the Yakama Nation Native Americans and the city of Toppenish.
20. Visit Fort Simcoe.
Look back in time with an afternoon at an actual pre-Civil War Fort with officer’s quarters, a guardhouse, barracks and cannon.
Categorized in: Family Fun, Farm Fresh Fun, History and Culture, Outdoor Recreation
