By Chris Hendrickson, Monitor
If the success of an event can be gauged by the amount of traffic congestion its attendees are willing to endure to get there, then Sultan's Summer Shindig was a grand slam this year.
Eastbound traffic on U.S. Highway 2 was backed up for miles over the weekend as folks poured into Sultan to attend the city's 30th
annual Summer Shindig Festival. The three-day celebration featured a street fair, carnival rides and games, live music, car shows, logging competitions, food and much more. The event opened on Friday afternoon and continued through Sunday, with sunshine and blue skies the entire weekend.
The street fair included items made by artists near and far; toys, clothing, jewelry, health products, and food from every possible genre. Folks could enjoy barbecue, Greek food, pizza, ice cream cones, roasted corn, teriyaki, hamburgers and hotdogs of all different sizes.
Many people chose to gather their families and eat near the gazebo where different live musical artists performed all throughout the weekend.
Mayor Carolyn Eslick's business GROW Washington was well represented at Shindig, having an information booth along with several GROW entrepreneurs having their own booths set up to better present their crafts. Monica Vickers of Green Lady Creations displayed her wide variety of aromatic handmade soaps, candles and body lotions, and Eve Daggett of Daggett Farms showed off the intricate designs she creates with plants.
People frequently stopped in at the GROW Washington store which is located near Windmill Espresso to try the handmade cannoli and other pastries made by Maggie Torza of Miss Maggie's Desserts.
Monroe-based company Hidden Health offered samples of a refreshing coffee-like beverage referred to as Choffy. Choffy is brewed in a fashion similar to coffee or tea, but is made from the cacao bean, otherwise referred to as the cocoa bean. They also sampled cookies baked with the leftover Choffy grounds.
Monroe resident Arleen Gibson was in attendance with a booth advertising her business H3 Horses Healing Heroes. Her miniature horses were a huge hit with both children and parents, and participated in many photo opportunities. The small horses, known as Dre and Arby, munched grass and patiently allowed kids to pet them.
Gibson's full size horse, Skeeter, appeared in the grand parade on Saturday morning.
Snohomish County Fire District 5, the Volunteers of America, the Sultan High School Girls' soccer team, Sultan High School's Turks football team, Everett Community College, the Sultan Sportsman's Club and many others had booths at the street fair.
The Sky Valley Community Coalition passed out informational brochures explaining their cause, to lower amount of drug and alcohol
abuse in the Sky Valley, particularly among the youth.
The carnival, put on by Davis Shows NW Inc., included rides, games, and traditional carnival food such as cotton candy, caramel apples and enormous deep-fried elephant ears. Kids and adults alike stood in line to enjoy classic rides like the Ferris wheel and other more adrenaline pumping rides like the Octopus and the Ali Baba.
Davis Shows also included a kiddie park that featured a set of rides specifically designed for young children who didn't meet the height requirement necessary to go on the adult rides.
The logging competitions began on Saturday afternoon, with the finals being held on Sunday.
Saturday night featured a fireworks show sponsored by Republic Services, and Sunday included more logging competitions, car shows, rides and live music.
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