The Nordic Museum and Ballard Alliance are teaming up this year to make Friday, July 13 though Sunday, July 15 the ultimate weekend in Ballard, with a nod to the neighborhood’s past and a celebration of food, crafts, live music and craft beer in the present.
Two iconic events in Ballard will now coincide. The 44th annual Ballard SeafoodFest takes place over three days—from 5 p.m. to 11 p.m. on Friday, July 13, 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. on Saturday, July 14 and 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday, July 15. Festivities take place throughout the neighborhood’s main business district.
The Nordic Museum has moved its Viking Days to the same weekend. The 35th annual festival will be held from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, July 14 and Sunday, July 15 at the museum’s new location, 2655 NW Market St.
To say there are a lot of food choices at Seafoood Fest is an understatement. Photo by Lindsay Peyton
44th annual Ballard SeafoodFest
SeafoodFest serves as a fundraiser for the nonprofit Ballard Alliance. The organization’s marketing and membership manager Anndrea Dohring said the event is the largest and longest running free festival in the city.
“It’s become a bit iconic in this neighborhood,” she said. “People come from all over to go.”
Dohring explained that the event began in the 1970s, when leaders from Ballard’s industrial and fishing community joined forces with the Ballard Elks to host a two-hour barbeque. Money raised from the event went to support the then financially strapped Chamber of Commerce.
“It started out just as a salmon bake, a neighborhood picnic,” she said. “Each year, it’s grown.”
By 1978, the festival expanded into a daylong event held in Bergen Place Park. The following year, the event was moved from September to July and branded as a tribute to the Washington State Fishing Industry, as well as a celebration of the Scandinavian heritage of northwest Seattle.
The event continued to change over the next couple of decades, as more festival elements were added, including popular local bands, a beer garden and arts and crafts vendors. What started as a two-hour neighborhood gathering now draws more than 60,000 people to Ballard.
Dohring said a number of guests come for the music alone. “Our line-up just keeps getting and better each year,” she said.
The bands this year include headliners Blitzen Trapper and All Them Witches, as well as the Dead South, Whiskey Shivers, Smokey Brights and the Grizzled Mighty. They will also be joined on stage by ‘80s cover band Nite Wave, Purple Mane, Gypsy Temple, Acid Tongue, Lanford Black, Whitney Monge, #All4Doras and School of Rock.
For guests 21 years and older, the SeafoodFest Beer Garden opens on Friday evening. Food trucks will dish up delights for all ages that evening, including Paella House, Where Ya At Matt, Nosh and Off the Rez.
The fun continues on Saturday and Sunday when seafood takes center stage. In addition to the countless food vendors, the Trident Seafoods alder-smoked salmon dinner is a festival tradition. From 11 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, guests will dine on salmon, garlic bread and coleslaw.
Or diners may head to the Trident Seafoods Crab Shack for crab legs, barbecue oysters and mussels in a wine broth.
A number of local brewers and distillers will be featured in the Beer and Cocktail Garden, located conveniently in front of the Gravity Payments MainStage.
Shoppers will enjoy perusing the more than 60 arts and crafts vendors, all featuring handmade goods.
Game Plank! is a free area from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday for corn hole, ladder ball, giant Jenga and a doggy splash pool. The spot will also be a stage for aerial performances by Arcadia—the Cabiri.
All weekend long, young festival-goers can head to the Kid’s Deck for balloons, art projects, hula hoops, music, bubbles and sidewalk chalk. There will be special performances, dance parties, pirate yoga, face-painting, bounce houses and the popular big purple slide.
SeafoodFest also includes an all-ages skate competition on Saturday called “Fest-Bowl” at Ballard Commons Park. The event will be followed by several weeks of skateboarding workshops.
“It draws a lot of folks, and it’s a lot of fun,” Dohring said.
The Lutefisk Eating Competition is another festival favorite. The traditional dish of Nordic origin has a love-hate relationship with foodies.
Dohring said that individuals of all ages and all interests come to the festival to enjoy the culture of the neighborhood.
“It’s a great opportunity for everyone to show off what we have in Ballard,” she said. “It’s free, and there’s a lot of variety for folks to enjoy. That’s what’s really cool about it.”
Running like a Viking! Photo by Lindsay Peyton
35th annual Viking Days
In the past, the Viking Days festival was held in August, Jan Woldseth Colbrese, deputy director of external affairs for the Nordic Museum, explained.
When the museum opened its new home on Market St, the opportunity to work alongside Ballard Alliance and become a part of the SeafoodFest weekend became apparent.
A large number of people are heading to Ballard for the occasion, Woldseth Colbrese explained. Why not take advantage of the timing—and offer educational opportunities tied to the neighborhood’s Nordic heritage?
“Multiple phone calls and multiple meetings later, we came to an understanding and we’re really excited about it,” Woldseth Colbrese said.
Each festival has its niche. The SeafoodFest offers up amazing seafood dishes and live popular music, while Viking Days serves up traditional Swedish food, historic reenactments and demonstrations of traditional crafts.
The event kicks off with “Run Like a Viking” at 9 a.m. on Saturday. The 5K race begins and ends at the new Nordic Museum.
Runners are encouraged to don their Norse seafaring attire. They will be chip-timed.
“We welcome well-behaved, four-legged friends,” Woldseth Colbrese said. “People also dress their dogs up.”
Prizes will be awarded on race day for best costume, overall winners and top age-group winner for both male and female runners.
“We’re still accepting registrations for the race,” Woldseth Colbrese said. “We’d like to see a whole bunch of people taking over the streets.”
A Swedish pancake breakfast will be served at the museum from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.
“What’s better after a run that Swedish pancakes, aebleskiver or a cold beer,” Woldseth Colbrese said with a laugh.
“Aebleskiver,” a traditional Dutch pancake, is one of her favorite treats during the festival.
The Valhalla Beer Garden will also be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, and Viking Days vendors will be selling their wares during the same time slot.
Guests may also wander the Viking encampment, enjoy traditional music, purchase a ticket to peruse the museum galleries, bid on Nordic goods during the silent auction and by tickets for the summer raffle.
The winner of the summer raffle will be announced at 5 p.m. on Aug. 31. The grand prize is a 15-day Viking Cruise. Also on the list of items are a 14K Ben Bridge exclusive necklace, lunch for two at Freya, tickets to a Scandinavian genealogy research class and family membership to the museum.
Woldseth Colbrese explained that proceeds from Viking Days support the museum’s programming and operations.
She hopes guests will visit the festival and check out the museum’s new location. “Everything we do this inaugural year is really a celebration of our new capabilities to deliver programs at a higher level,” she said.
The museum’s CEO Eric Nelson said Viking Days fits perfectly with its general mission to celebrate and share Nordic culture with the community.
“We’ve been able to introduce Nordic food, crafts and culture to literally thousands of people through our yearly summer celebration,” he said. “People come for lots of reasons–to see the Viking encampment, to see the performances, to sample the food and drink–and they come away with a deeper appreciation for our region’s Nordic heritage and a desire to learn more.”
He is looking forward to bringing the festival to the museum’s new home.
“Our new performance hall is an incredible showcase for singing, music and dancing, and the Museum’s East Garden is the perfect place for the beer garden, rain or shine,” he said. “If you’ve been thinking about checking out the new Nordic Museum, Viking Days weekend is a great time to do it, because all the outdoor activities and entertainment are free.”
For more information about Viking Days and the Nordic Museum, visit http://nordicmuseum.org.
