Arts & Entertainment

Whether you’re looking to be entertained or enlightened, Gig Harbor Now covers fun and informational events taking place in the community.

Pierce County program brings art to local intersections

Nov 21, 2023 | By:

If you’ve been stopped at a traffic light in Pierce County, you’ve likely seen some beautiful pieces of art in unlikely places. In an effort to bring art to the community and beautify the utilitarian boxes that house traffic signal wires, the Pierce County Arts Commission in 2022 began a project to wrap signal boxes

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Gig Harbor Now and Then: If you figured out what Flamo is, you’re really cooking with gas

Nov 20, 2023 | By: Greg Spadoni

The setup to our last Gig Harbor Now and Then local history question was very simple: In 1930, Flamo arrived in Gig Harbor. It’s still there, although is now known under another name. Question: What is Flamo? Answer: propane. “Flamo” was the trade name of the Standard Oil Company of California’s propane. The first mention

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2023 LeMans race was short but sweet thanks to thick fog, still conditions

Nov 20, 2023 | By: Chapin Day

A fog-shrouded start and winds that varied from light to nary a breath foreshortened Saturday’s annual Le Mans Yacht race, but not before the nearly two dozen yachts provided a dazzling display of sails and seamanship for spectators ashore. Onlookers who tried to watch the start from Gig Harbor’s north end saw nothing but a

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Two In Tow & On The Go: Ahoy Kitsap Playland is worth the drive

Nov 17, 2023 | By:

I know of a magical place where the little kids go, but the big kids secretly love playing there too. Children can climb, and spin and meet new friends. And it doesn’t even require a jacket, even in jacket weather. This place is Ahoy Kitsap Playland, a padded indoor commercial play place that’s widely popular yet doesn’t ever seem too crowded. Yes, it’s all the way north in Bremerton. But you get to pass the big Navy ships on the way there! Our faves here are the foam circles to tip-toe across the net bridge like rocks in a creek, an epic bright yellow wave slide and various ways to swing, sway and spin.

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Harbor Happenings: Chum Fest is a Chum Walk this year

Nov 14, 2023 | By:

The Chum Walk on Saturday, Nov. 18, is not just a celebration of the annual return of salmon to Donkey Creek. It’s also is a reminder that the quality of our water, and the habitat it supports, connects us all. That’s according to Lindsey Stover, executive director of Harbor WildWatch, the event’s organizer. The Chum

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Le Mans sailboat race a well-loved and wacky local tradition

Nov 13, 2023 | By: Chapin Day

“All hands below deck!” Weather permitting, that strange command should echo around Gig Harbor next Saturday morning, Nov. 18, just five minutes before one of the world’s wackiest sailboat racing starts. Even the most committed landlubber ashore, ignorant of sail racing’s rules or which side is port and which side is starboard, can enjoy the

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Elementary students get ready to rhumba with ballroom dance lessons

Nov 08, 2023 | By:

Sultry tango music plays in a half-empty portable classroom at Voyager Elementary School. Chairs and tables have been pushed aside to create a small dance floor, where students in pairs mark the beat with their feet. Step, step, step, to-the-side and close. “T-A-N-G-O,” calls out instructor Roxanne Nielsen, helping count the rhythm. It may not

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Harbor Happenings: A salute to veterans on Nov. 11

Nov 07, 2023 | By:

The sixth annual Gig Harbor Veterans Day Celebration starts at 11:30 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 11, at the Gig Harbor Antique Aero Museum at Tacoma Narrows Airport. This year’s event will include a special ceremony commemorating veterans of the Vietnam War. United States military forces withdrew from Vietnam 50 years ago this year. The keynote speaker

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Gig Harbor Now and Then: Donkey Creek Park Douglas fir isn’t all that old … for a tree

Nov 06, 2023 | By: Greg Spadoni

Our most recent Gig Harbor Now and Then questions of local history involve Gig Harbor’s first big industry, logging. Specifically, they concern a single second-growth Douglas fir tree standing tall in the city of Gig Harbor’s Donkey Creek Park. They are: How old is the Donkey Creek Park fir tree? Answer: Between 50 and 100

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Two In Tow & On The Go: A forgotten treasure at Point Defiance

Nov 03, 2023 | By:

Today’s adventure brings us across the Tacoma Narrows Bridge and over to the wooded wonderland that is Point Defiance Park to explore yet another local playground almost hidden in plain sight.

Sandwiched between the Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium and the Marina, this playground is outdated – but also secluded and awesome. Finding it atop a narrow bluff among the trees, the kids and I felt like we stumbled upon a well-kept secret with its hand-powered scoot platform, climbers and log-style-construction.

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