Crawdad festival, destruction derby on weekend lineup

The expression "Fais do-do," means only one thing in Colusa: time for an Lousiana-style hoe-down.

Saturday's annual crawdad festival at the Colusa County Fairgrounds is expected to draw hundreds of people looking for a Cajun-style good time, great Zydeco music and plenty of activities, said John Rogers, co-chairman for the Knights of Columbus.

For the first time, the event will be held the same day as the Colusa Firefighters Destruction Derby.

"It's going to be a great activity weekend for the city and the entire county," Rogers said. "Hopefully we can both draw off each other's events."

The fifth annual Crawdad festival, sponsored by the Knights of Columbus Council No. 2145, will be well underway by the time the destruction derby gets started.

Three Cajun and Zydeco bands will begin playing at 1 p.m., performing continuously until 10 p.m.

But it's not just the sound of music that attracts people to the festival, but the aroma and cuisine.

Traditional delicacies, including crawfish etouffee, potatoes and corn with red beans and rice and jambalaya will be the main fare for the event.

"We have gumbo to die for," Rogers said.

And if you don't like Cajun cooking, there will still be plenty to eat.

Carnitas tacos, spicy links and hot dogs and ice cream will also be served. Beer, wine and soda will be available.

"We're hoping for 1,000 people to attend," Rogers said. "It's out on the radio and flyers are everywhere."

In addition to the food, various venders items will be available , including yard art, Cajun salsa, home crafts, sorbet dessert, and pecan pralines.

Activities for children will also be available.

The Knights of Columbus sponsors the festival each year to raise money for the church, parish school and charitable events within the community.

"It all goes to charity," Rogers said.

The same evening, the Colusa Firefighters Association will get the derby underway with multiple explosive heats.

That event also raises raise money for charitable causes, including Santa-on-Wheels and the smoke-detector program.