Let's hear them. Vancouver Anywhere in California Colorado Anywhere around the Great Lakes (Michigan, Ontario, Chicago) Chicago
Vegas, a quick 3-5 day vacation is all u need there NY, love visiting there, have family I can crash at and just roam around the city on my own
Kaslo Jazz Etc. Summer Music Festival Welcome to the 23rd Annual Kaslo Jazz Etc. Summer Music Festival. Every August long weekend in Kaslo, BC stunning vistas, great acoustics and superb musicians combine to create the Kaslo Jazz Etc. Summer Music Festival. The unique floating stage rests just offshore a little, sandy beach on Kootenay Lake. http://www.kaslojazzfest.com/v3/ "10 great places to get in tune, be outdoors! ... the vibe of Kaslo is intimately amazing ... with pristine wilderness as a backdrop, the musicians are perched on the edge of Kootenay Lake while onlookers swim around the stage, dance in the sand or recline on blankets laid in a natural, green amphitheater ...” - USA TODAY, July 6, 2007 Cleapflights.com calls the Kaslo Jazz Etc. Festival one - "one of the Top 10 places to enjoy outdoor summer music." (REUTERS- July 20, 2013) Spoiler This was the brainchild of a very old friend of mine, a native Texan who's lived in Canada since sometime in the 1970's, having gone up to Kaslo and falling in love with both the place and a series of Canadian chicks. He's now a dual citizen, has a couple of kids who have to be in their 20's by now, and I don't think he's currently married (I really need to give him a call). I plug this every year and I can't tell you just how incredibly beautiful it is, or just how great the music is. Folks have to experience it for themselves. The town is small, and the festival usually sells out, since they have to limit the tickets. Yes, that's a floating stage up there, an idea of his (he built it). The musicians hang out in a houseboat before performing, linked to the stage with a wooden plank (unless they've changed the setup. it's gotten bigger). It's not just all kinds of jazz. There's great blues, world music, folk music, all sorts of stuff. It happens during the three day Canadian Labor Day holiday, which is the first weekend of August. It's been several years since I've been to Kaslo, but the last time I was there, a town councilman lent us his boat (he had a red beard and long red hair going down his back, a righteous fellow... it's that kind of place) and we looked at Native American symbols carved and painted into a cliff that drops straight down to the water. I'm not sure how they managed it! There are hot springs in the area, some public that you pay a small fee to use, and some you just have to know about. Waterfalls. Bears. Spectacular scenery. It's great! Spoiler That's the people who put it on. My friend's there, trying to hang out of his shorts. Man, this thing has grown. If anyone goes, be sure to find the party that happens after the curtain goes down for the last night. Trust me, it's going on somewhere. The beer served at the party and the festival is brewed in Nelson by a craft brewer, and it's wonderful. Nelson is a college town (actually a small city) that's pretty cool. Art galleries and other groovy things. I still have something hanging in my living room that I bought from a Nelson gallery. You drive through it to get to Kaslo, which is north from there. An image of one of the earlier festivals.
Downtown Chicago is fun to visit for a weekend get away during the summer... Just avoid the bad parts... The boring suburbs.. The winter and expect to spend more than you want. Tennessee is nice in the summer, avoid Memphis but hit Nashville. San Francisco is always nice... Vancouver too.
Here's a better image of the town and the setting: The festival is at the bottom of that small bay. My friend has a house a little outside of town.
In the summer, my favorites are: Mackinac Island, Michigan (Upper Peninsula) Hawaii (on the Big Island, you'll find me camping on top of Mauna Loa and/or Kea) Naples
We generally just go to Colorado - house we can use - but when the kids are older definitely want to diversify. Great suggestions here! I've also done Jackson, WY in the summer. Also Carmel is nice. Did a late spring trip to seattle once and it was glorious! I'd also love to do a couple of summer weeks in coastal Maine. That's got to be great... Water, lobster rolls, hiking, etc. I'm not a huge Miami or Vegas type guy. Have done both... But I do t think summer is anything super special about those places. You can do Vegas basically any time if year. Also I always come back from Vegas exhausted ... Not exactly the summer refresher trip I have in mind.
This looks awesome! Just Google mapped Kaslo, it's quite a trek from both Vancouver and Calgary! How did you get there?
Never been, but I've heard good things about Montauk, NY during the summertime. Also, Key West is great anytime of the year.
