From skunks to potatoes, these small-town festivals near Greater Akron are worth checking out

Are you tired of the same old festivals?

Really, there are only so many times a field of petting zoos, temporary carnival rides and lackluster lemonade can excite the soul. Those music festivals and county fairs just aren't cutting it anymore.

Lucky for you, there are many unusual festivals — we're talking skunk and mashed potato celebrations people — within reach of Greater Akron.

So sit down, pen in hand, and take a moment to peruse a few of the area's oddest festivals before adding them to your calendar this summer.

Twins Day, Twinsburg

It’s off to the races for Twinsburg’s 49 ^th annual Twins Days Festival.

Twins and multiples will wear garb honoring racing of any kind — involving cars, dogs, bob sleds, boats — throughout the event, which is Aug. 2-4.

Festival activities take place in various parts of Twinsburg, although most happen at or near Glen Chamberlin Park at 10260 Ravenna Road. On Saturday, the Double Take Parade comprised of parade floats and costumed twins will make its way to the park where contests, talent shows, games, rides, fireworks and more will take place.

A full itinerary of events, entertainment and pricing is available on the Twins Days website .

The general admission gate fee is $5 per person. Children 5 years old and younger get in free. Preferred parking is available at Twinsburg High School and Dodge Intermediate School for $5 per day for cars, RVs and buses.

In 2022, more than 1,600 registered twins and multiples from all over the world attended the festival, which is recorded as being the largest annual gathering of twins in the world by Guinness World Records. Last year, twins arrived from as far away as Hawaii, Iceland and Australia.

Twinsburg was founded and named after identical twin brothers Aaron and Moses Wilcox in 1818. The Twins Days Festival began as single-day event as part of the city's participation in the national bicentennial celebration. The festival, which now runs over a weekend, has an estimated annual attendance of 20,000 to 30,000.

Ravenna Balloon A-Fair, Ravenna

The 45th Ravenna Balloon A-Fair will take place Sept. 19-22 in Downtown Ravenna and Sunbeau Valley Farm.

Attendees will have the chance to see hot air balloons at full mast and speak to their pilots during the hot air blow Friday evening at Sunbeau Valley Farm.

Hot air balloon lift offs are 5:30 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at that same location. At each launch, 12 balloons will ascend into the air, while six stay grounded — some even allow children to tug the propane line to their balloons.

A couple other highlights of the jam-packed weekend include a Saturday morning parade in Downtown Ravenna as well as a Jeep show and car crush Saturday afternoon. A beer and wine garden, inflatables and vendors will be set up Saturday and Sunday at the farm.

Approximately 20,000 people attended last year’s event, and Sean Short, president of the event’s executive board, believes they are likely to exceed that number this year.

Admission into Sunbeau Valley Farm is $5 per person per day and parking is $5 per car. Children 12 years old and under are free. A full itinerary of events, entertainment and pricing is available on the Ravenna Balloon A-Fair website .

The Ravenna Balloon A-Fair was conceived by individuals who believed Ravenna should celebrate one of the city's earliest industries, which happened to be the Oak Rubber Company and the toy balloons it manufactured. These citizens organized that first celebration and what began as a few small events has swelled into a massive annual occasion.

Skunk Haven Skunk Fest, North Ridgeville

People make quite a stink about the annual Skunk Fest in North Ridgeville.

Skunk Fest is the main fundraiser for Skunk Haven, a nonprofit rescue and sanctuary that also educates the public on wild and domestic skunks through its skunk awareness programs. The event was even featured on the Travel Channel .

The 23 ^rd annual Skunk Fest will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept. 14 at South Central Park, 7565 Avon Belden Road, North Ridgeville.

The entry fee for attending is a donation, whether it is monetary or items that the shelter needs, such as paper towels, blankets, natural grain cereal and grain-free dog food. A donation is also required to have photos taken with one of the rescue’s skunks.

Skunk Fest began as a kind of meet and greet picnic in co-founder Deb Cipriani's backyard in 2001. As attendance grew, vendors and skunk shows were added. In 2009, there was a massive rainstorm, and then North Ridgeville mayor David Gillock invited them to have it at the city’s South Central Park.

With an average attendance of 2,000 people and around 25 to 70 skunks, it’s no surprise first place for the most talented skunk, best skunk detective and skunk run can be hard to come by. If those don’t pan out, there’s still a chance for an ambitious skunk to be crowned Skunk Fest king, queen, prince and princess.

Event organizers ask that attendees refrain from touching people’s pet skunks, however, they can pet the rescue’s skunks for a donation.

Valley City Frog Jump, Valley City

Each year, thousands of people descend on the small community of Valley City in Medina County to watch frogs do what frogs do best, with some encouragement from the locals of course.

Up to 300 frogs, caught just a day or two earlier, are individually placed in the center of a circular jumping ring with their jockey, who is tasked with encouraging them to jump. The distance of the frog’s first three hops is measured and recorded.

After several hundred jumps, a grand champion is named and awarded, along with winners in other jumping categories. Frog are returned to nature following the event.

This year, the 63 ^rd annual Valley City Frog Jump will start at 11 a.m. on July 21 in Mill Stream Park, 1200 Maple St., Valley City. Admission and parking are free.

The event’s registration area for frog jumping participants opens at 10 a.m. and will be located near the jumping ring. The registration fee to enter a frog is $5, and, provided you didn’t bring your own, a frog rental is an additional $5.

In addition to watching the frog jump competition, there are bounce houses, a petting zoo, games and vendors for human attendees to enjoy as well.

In 1962, a group of residents were planning the 150 ^th Celebration of Liverpool Township. They wanted to add an event for children. A man named Andy Neff explained Mark Twain's famous story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," and suggested they stage a frog jump. Another resident, Duane Naftzger, liked the idea, and so the tradition began.

Since its inception, the festival has been hosted at local farms and the Medina County fairgrounds. In fact, the frog jump wasn’t even billed as the event’s main attraction at first. The first three iterations of “Hardscrabble’s Old Time Days,” as the festival was then named, also featured a steam engine, pony pulling contest and horse pulling contest.

Mantua Potato Festival, Mantua

It’s a smashing good time when the Mantua Potato Festival is in town.

Spud lovers from far and wide come to witness mashed potato wrestling, potato sack races and many other tater-related contests. It is estimated that during the three-day festival, more than 10,000 pounds of potatoes are consumed.

The 51st Mantua Potato Festival will take place in Buchert Memorial Park, 4808 E. High St., Mantua from Sept. 6-8. No entry fee is required, although there is a small parking fee.

On Saturday morning, the festivities kick off with a One Mile Fun Run, which is then followed by a 15K Potato Stomp. The festival will have live music shows and a parade on Sunday at 1 p.m. featuring local bands, floats and performers.

One highlight of the event is its potato eating contest, which showcases the versatility of the "humble spud" along with who can consume them the fastest. Participants may devour them as mashed potatoes, French fries, tater tots and potato chips in four separate events.

“It's a fun and engaging way for both adults and children to enjoy the humble spud and compete in a friendly atmosphere,” stated Andrea Selvaggio, Chairman of the Mantua Potato Festival Association Executive Board, in an email. “The variety of potato dishes also reflects the different ways potatoes can be enjoyed, making the contest appealing to a wide range of tastes and age groups.”

Winners of potato-themed contests receive a cash prize, gift cards and festival T-shirts.

But don’t worry, those not competing are allowed to consume potatoes in a normal time frame. Vendors sell everything from traditional favorites like potato pancakes and pierogies to inventive creations such as potato candy and mashed potato sundaes.

In 1939, the first Mantua Potato Show made its debut with a focus on potato production. The event was nonexistent in the years surrounding WWII, but resumed in 1973 on Main Street. The festival moved to Buchert Park in 1985 after a significant fire damaged buildings on Main Street.

Now the focus is on the consumption of potatoes in all forms. The Mantua Potato Festival broke the world record in 1980 by making 10,028 pounds of mashed potatoes in a cement mixer, which was then used in the wrestling ring. The event also beat the record for creating the largest pierogi in both 2017 and 2018.

Akron Pickle Fest, Akron

If there’s one thing that’s a big dill in Summit County, it’s the Akron Pickle Fest.

The third annual Akron Pickle Fest is set to be held Aug. 11 at Cascade Plaza. The event will feature food vendors who have pickle-centered food items on their menus and feature some wacky pickle games and awards.

The event will run from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 1 West Mill St., at the park and surrounding parking lot at Canal Place behind Building 24. Admission is free, as is street parking in downtown Akron.

The event is being promoted as a celebration of all things pickle. Food vendors are required to have at least one, but preferably more, pickle-centric food items on their menu. A full list of vendors and food trucks is on the Oddmall website .

Pickle-themed activities will include bobbing for pickles, fishing for pickles, pickles on a string and a greased pickle toss. A car show and various vendors selling everything from succulents to rugs will also be present.

Sponsors for the event include businesses owned by local pickle guru Charly Murphy: Akron Pickle, Stray Dog Cafe and Cart & Condiments. The other host is Oddmall, which will offer art, craft, oddities and collectibles.

Got a story recommendation? Contact Beacon Journal reporter Tawney Beans at tbeans@gannett.com and on Twitter @TawneyBeans. And follow her adventures on TikTok @akronbeaconjournal.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: From skunks to potatoes, these small-town festivals near Greater Akron are worth checking out