Our area’s big kickoff to the upcoming season — warm weather, hikes, swimming, camping — is about to kickoff with the our big annual festival. It’s Colorama time next week, when the carnival comes to town, runners lace up those shoes, cowboys ride into town and people line the streets of Grand Coulee for the parade.

Here’s a quick rundown of what to expect. We’ll get into more detail with a special section in next week’s Star.

Rainier Amusements will again bring in the carnival, as they did last year, beginning Thursday, May 9, at 4 p.m.

Presale tickets are still available for less money than you’ll pay at the carnival.

The Colorama Color Run is set for 9-11 a.m. Saturday, May 11, at North Dam Park. You can register online or in person for the 5K event that gives you the option of adding a whole lot of bright color to your outfit before heading to the big Colorama Parade.

That starts at 11 a.m., but a lot of people find their parking spots the night before all along the route, which winds down Federal Avenue and turns onto Midway in front of The Star.

That morning, the Grand Coulee Dam Senior Center offer their Cowboy Breakfast from 7-11 a.m. to give you enough fuel to get to the day’s events.

Those can also include the arts and crafts fair at North Dam Park, an event so successful the last few years that the chamber has turned away some aspiring vendors.

The Ridge Riders’ Pro-West Rodeo starts Friday night at 6 p.m., then again on Saturday at 4 p.m. with kids’ stick-horse racing and “mutton bustin’” prior to each event.

All through the festival, helicopter rides will be offered from the upper ball field at North Dam Park.

And the chamber will again offer a Beer Garden at the park, which has become an annual meeting place for friends old and new.

For more information on events and times, check the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce website.