Summer means vacation for many of us. However, taking a vacation doesn’t have to include traveling far to get away. Take a staycation this year! Stay close to home and experience all the Monadnock Region has to offer. You’ll save money at the gas pumps. Plus, any money you do spend will recirculate in our local economy, building more community health and wealth.
Here are just a few events to add to your staycation plans this June. Also, keep reading to the end of this article to find out how to enter our Staycation Giveaway!
Gilsum will ROCK the weekend of June 25 – 26 during the Gilsum Rock Swap & Mineral Show at the Gilsum Elementary School and Community Center. Browse tables, tables, and tables of gems, jewelry, and minerals for sale or swap. Grab a meal and pan for minerals. At 1 p.m. on Saturday, Paul Brandes, the “Indiana Jones of Geology,” will share a history of mining starting 60,000 years ago.
View the full schedule
Finally, check out our Independents Month Staycation Promotion coming this summer. Enter our giveaway by signing on to our Indie Month Challenge.
Take our pre-survey now and then a post-survey (coming in late July). Complete both surveys for your chance to win our Staycation package.
The winner of our Staycation Package will receive a two-Night Stay at the Inn at Valley Farms in Walpole, a gift card to The Hungry Diner in Walpole, a gift certificate to the Farm Store at Walpole Valley Farms in Walpole, a gift certificate for two 5 x 7 photo prints from Peterborough Camera, Copies & More in Peterborough, two tubes of sunscreen from Badger in Gilsum, one yoga class from Aloha Keene, and two keychains from GeoGraphic Gems. Best of all, you can enter to win an Upper Valley of NH/VT staycation package, too. We’ll announce winners in early August.
Take the Indie Challenge!
We hope summer means staycation for you this year. Happy local travels!
PAST EVENTS
Also on June 4, downtown Keene comes alive with food, too! The Keene Young Professionals Network will host the second annual Taste of Keene Food Festival at the top of Main Street from 11:30 a.m. – 3:30 p.m. Central Square, the upper section of Main Street, and part of Roxbury Street will be closed to traffic, allowing for a fantastic pedestrian-only event.
Enjoy small bites from twenty-five local restaurants and food producers. Purchase your food tokens today and save. Watch cooking demos from local and regional chefs throughout the day.
As an added treat, The Colonial Theatre will host two live performances during the festival, the Real McCoy Show International Stunt Comedy in a Hard Hat.
Brent McCoy is the Real McCoy. “His acclaimed show features breathtaking stunts, natural charisma, and a lightning-fast wit. It’s a rocking circus and comedy experience, appropriate for all ages. This ain’t no imitation… it’s the Real McCoy,” shared The Colonial Theatre. “The show features audience participation, original comedy, diabolo, juggling (fire is optional), breakdancing, and his signature finale, ‘a boy on a board on a ball on a bench.’ Brent will meet members of the audience in The Colonial tent between performances. And it's customary to tip street performers!”
Don’t forget to visit the Taste of Keene’s local craft biergarten to sip on a selection of our region's best brews and spirits (21 and over). Please bring your ID. Beverage tokens available for sale at the event. Enjoy live music while you sip from three bands: The Evocatives, Modern Fools, and Mojohand.
BUT THAT'S NOT ALL! This just in from KeeneYPN: We're looking for ten brave souls who are looking to terrify their taste buds in a scorching hot wing eating contest at the Taste of Keene Food Festival. Contestants will be expected to eat four rounds of increasingly hot chicken wings, with short breaks between each round to let the heat...well...burn. If more than one person survives the wings, we will offer a devilish dessert as a tie-breaker. The winner will be the last one sweati--uh, standing. Each contestant will get a limited edition Taste of Keene Hot Wing t-shirt, flame sweatband, pint of Frisky Cow Gelato and pint of milk. The top three winners receive grand prizes. Please note that contestants will be required to sign a waiver prior to participating.
Enter by purchasing your ticket here ($30 entry fee). The The Few, the Brave, the SPICY!! contest will run from 3:30 to about 4:15.
Downtown storefronts will transform into art galleries during Keene ArtWalk on June 3 – 12. Stroll up and down Main Street to view the works of over sixty New Hampshire artists.
Learn More: Keene ArtWalk
On Saturday, June 4, the ArtWalk expands to Railroad Square with a day of performances and demonstrations, including ballroom dance, glass blowing, and more.
For a more nature-based staycation plan, join Monadnock Conservancy for a 20-mile mountain bike tour in Fitzwilliam on Saturday, June 18, from 9 a.m. – 1 p.m. Learn about plans to improve this section of the Cheshire Rail Trail, plus efforts to protect the Chamberlain Conservation Area and Sip Pond. Registration is required.
The Local Crowd Monadnock - Keene, NH
