Multiple events will be happening in Homer and surrounding areas throughout July, including the Highland Games, Concert on the Lawn, local art camps and the Ninilchik Rodeo.
2025 Kachemak Bay Highland Games
The 14th annual Kachemak Bay Highland Games will take place Saturday, July 5, at Karen Hornaday Park. Admission is free and the gates will open at 9 a.m. Saturday, with live, musical performances from the Harp Twins and the Volfgang Twins at noon and 3 p.m., respectively.
The event features athletic competitions, which you can register for online or the day of the event. All participants must complete a registration form and waiver. This can be downloaded, printed, completed and submitted on the day of the event when you check in, or you can email it to KBSHG@alaskanscottish.org No athlete will be allowed to participate without the waiver and registration form on file.
Kilted 5K Race
The Kilted 5K Race will take place at noon on Saturday during the Highland Games. The start will be at the Green Pavilion between the upper fields in Karen Hornaday Park. Runners will head south from the pavilion and turn east up to the campground loop.
After completing the loop, runners will head west toward W. Fairview Avenue and turn right when they get to the road. The course continues north to the Reber Trail and east up the trail to Reber Road. The course turns north on Reber to where it intersects with West Hill Road. Turning around at the intersection, runners will re-trace the route back down Road to Reber Trail, to Fairview Avenue into Karen Hornaday Park and back to the pavilion for the finish, according to the event website. Kilts are required for all participating runners. You can register online at kachemakbayscottishclub.org/kilted-mile-race.html.
Ninilchik Rodeo
The Ninilchik Rodeo will be July 5 and 6 at the Kenai Peninsula Fairgrounds in Ninilchik. The event will kick off Saturday at 11 a.m. with a “beach horse race” and regular rodeo action beginning at 2 p.m. On Sunday, the event will begin at 2 p.m. There is a competition underway for “Rodeo Queen”, “Junior Rodeo Queen” and “Little Miss Rodeo.” You can find more information about the event and participating contestants online at the Ninilchik Rodeo Facebook page.
Concert on the Lawn
On Saturday, July 12, the annual Concert on the Lawn fundraiser for public radio station KBBI will take place at Karen Hornaday Park. Musicians will include Jenny Baker, The Discopians, The Owen Duffy Band, Jim Maloney & John Cottingham, English Bay Band, and the Cosmic Creature Club. The event will begin at noon and end at 7 p.m., with an official after-party being promoted at Alice’s Champagne Palace starting at 9 p.m., featuring musicians Tyler Langham and Fiona Rose and the Show Ponies. You can purchase tickets online at kbbi.org or at the gates.
Art in the Park
Homer Council on the Arts will host a July “Art in the Park” art camp for Homer youth between 5 and 12. The camps will be held at HCOA, Bishop’s Beach and Karen Hornaday Park. Registration is open online for students 8 through 12. Registration for youth aged 5 through 8 is already full. There is a $175 event fee for the camp, which will run July 28 through Aug. 1.
Activities may include tie-dyeing T-shirts, creating nature-inspired sketches and paintings, ceramic beads pit fired at Bishop’s Beach, nature printmaking, “creature needle felting,” and games and face painting. Register online at homerart.org.
Maddie McClain tosses a sheaf over a raised crossbar during the 12th annual Kachemak Bay Scottish Highland Games on Saturday, July 6, 2024, at Karen Hornaday Park in Homer, Alaska. (Delcenia Cosman/Homer News file)
Nanwalek’s English Bay Band performs at Homer’s 2024 Concert on the Lawn at Karen Hornaday Park. (Emilie Springer/Homer News file)
