MPLS.TV presents 78.5 ways to make the best of Minneapolis’s most precious resource: Summer! 
We've curated 78.5 events, festivals, ideas & secrets to help you enjoy every last summer day & night. Use the the #mplssummer hashtag to share your experiences on Twitter, Instagram, & Flickr all summer long.

1. 78.5
mpls.tv PRESENTS
78.5
w ys to make the best of
a
minneapolis’s most precious
resource: SUmmer

2. Don’t waste your summer.
MPLS.TV has curated 78.5 events, festivals, ideas & secrets to help
you enjoy every last summer day & night. Use the the
#mplssummer hashtag to share your experiences on Twitter,
=
Instagram, & Flickr all summer long.
78.5 average dail
temperature
y
in Minneapolis
from June to
September

3. 1
Visit
Minnehaha
Falls
Home to numerous
concerts, weddings,
and many a picnic,
Minnehaha Park offers
a disc golf course, river
views, limestone bluffs
and trails. As if that
isn’t enough to warrant
a visit, how about a 53-
foot waterfall?
78.5

4. 78.5
2
Como Zoofor donations when you visit,
This zoo quietly asks
which means that its FREE if you’re cheap! Check out
some exotic tigers and maybe some sloths while
stopping to smell the roses in one of Como’s parks.

5. 78.5
3
BYOB Show debuts and ends
Art Show
The Bring Your Own Beamer Art
on June 25. Artists show up with their own projectors to
display their work in a temporary pop-up exhibit in the
Thorp Building in Northeast Minneapolis.

6. 78.5
4 TWIN
CITIES
IMPROV
FESTIVNow AL
I’m a crocodile!
I’m a rabbi! And you
stole my bicycle!
Take a workshop or
see a show at the
HUGE Improv
Theater from June
23-26.

7. 5Minneapolis
Pride
Parade
The largest parade in
Minnesota and the Upper
Midwest drew 125,000
spectators last year. Snag
a spot along Hennepin
Avenue on June 26 for a
front-row seat to the lights,
glitter and spectacle of the
Minneapolis Pride Parade.
78.5

8. 6 Cinema and
Civics
Labyrinth and Mystery
Science Theater 3000?
This summer film series
has more to offer than
just cinema gold: locally
relevant social
discussions, short local
films, and musical
guests. Bring a blanket
and some snacks to
Steven’s Square Park on
Wednesdays in June and
78.5
July for socially-
conscious entertainment.

9. 7 78.5
Buy
Illegal
Fireworks
from
Wisconsin
Everyone has a little
pyro in them. Pick up
something Captain
Buzzkill Minnesota
would disapprove of.
Just don’t get caught by
the cops...

10. Under
wear
8 78.5
Bike Ride
Get naked; or, as
naked as legally
acceptable. The
skin-bearing bikers
leave the Soap
Factory at 6 p.m.
on the Fourth of
July. Ah, sweet
freedom.

11. 9 Diamond
Dog Eating
Contest
Diamond Dog: meat
wrapped in meat; or, a hot
dog wrapped in bacon.
Watch contestants inhale
as many of these bad boys
as they can at First
Avenue on the Fourth of
July to win tickets and gift
cards for upcoming shows.
78.5

12. 78.5
10
Ten Second Film Festiv al
Head over to the Soap Factory right after the St.
Anthony Main fireworks on the Fourth of July to catch
100 films, each 10 seconds long. Enjoy a cold beer and
celebrate our right produce and watch silly, raunchy,
awesome films.

13. 78.5
Pla bean bags
y
atdown the Xbox controller and
Summer means putting
the Herkimer
heading outdoors for some classic hand-eye coordination.
Prove that CoD hasn’t killed your motor skills by joining a
bean bag toss game at The Herkimer in Uptown.
11

14. 78.5
12
Sommerfest
Minnesota Orchestra is stewarding “Three Weeks of
Music Aplenty” from July 8 to 23. On their Peavey
Plaza, the music is free before all Sommerfest
concerts and after Friday and Saturday evening
shows.

15. 78.5
13
Mill City on its 8th
Live
The Mill City Museum is putting
outdoor concert series in an effort to represent
five decades of Minneapolis music history. The
shows are spread out on seven Thursdays in July
and August, each for only 5 bucks.

16. 78.5
Gastro Non
14
Grata
Latin...what? Gastro Non
Grata means unwelcome
gastronomy. Gastro Non
Grata seeks to exclude
unworthy food, drink and
music by hosting events
with real music, real beer,
and a really good food from
Grand Cafe and Haute Dish.
Hit up First Avenue on July 9
for a reason to end your
microwave dependency.

17. 78.5
15
ADAM GARCIa: Trust Me!
An exhibition based on trust and deception...
Garcia takes images his fellow artists have
donated and stealthily reworks them in private in
an interesting take on collaboration and the
process of creation. The exhibition opens on July 9
and runs through August 6 at CO Exhibitions.

19. 78.5 Play
BOcce At
Nomad
Need a little more
stress relief than
just a beer at happy
hour? Hone your
throwing and rolling
skills at Nomad for
the chance to win
the Gonad Cup.
17

20. 18
Bastille
Da y
Block
Party
Celebrate the French
by heading to
Barbette’s party at
Irving & Lagoon on
Sunday, July 18 for
bière, pommes frites
et musique including
78.5 Brass Messengers
and The Magnolias.

21. 78.5
19
Dakota Street Festivflute al
Get jazzy. You’ve seen Ron Burgundy’s jazz
solo. Now wander over to Nicollet Mall on July 16
for some real, fire-free jazz and local music along
with food, drink and kids’ activities.

22. 78.5
20
MILK CARTON RACES
Instead of putting kids’ faces on the back of the
milk carton, Kemps is putting actual KIDS on the
back of the milk carton. Check out these floating
sculptures race on July 17 at the Aquatennial.

23. 78.5
21
PALMFEST live music and brews at
Palmfest revolves around
Palmer’s on July 23 from noon to 2am.The annual
shindig finishes off the West Bank Blues Festival
and once again showcases the past and present
of the West Bank music scene.

24. 22
Bearded Lady
Motorcycle Show
Let your freak flag fly! Hit up the 5th annual Bearded
Lady on July 23: enter your bike or just admire the
cycles while listening to live music and revving your
engine at the burlesque.
78.5

25. 78.5
23
Highpoint Free Ink without Day
Get some homemade (well, self-made) art
elbowing people at art fairs. Highpoint Center for
Printmaking and Open Eye Figure Theatre are
teaming up on July 23 to offer free screen printing
and a Puerto Rican themed puppet show.

26. 24
Caffetto Craft Fair
Who needs Etsy when you an go outside and
buy goods from local artists? Check out
Caffetto Cafe on July 24 for their annual craft
fair. Be on the lookout for cat towers and coin
purses.
78.5

27. Bicycle
Film 78.5
Festival
Do you love your
bike? Make it feel
special by taking it
on a romantic date
to the Bicycle Film
Festival to see its
kind honored
through music, art
and on the big
screen from July
25
21-24.

28. 78.5
26
Art Car throws candy? A
Parade
What’s better than a parade that
parade that throws crazy art into your eye sockets.
Watch cars and bikes, ahem, mobile art, cruise
around Lake Harriet on July 23.

29. 78.5
Spend the Da y
at HIdden woods to find
Take the adventure through the
Beach
Cedar Lake’s hidden beach. Take a dip in the
famous mud pit or play a game of rock golf with
the self-proclaimed Beach Commander. 27

30. Red Stag
Block
28 party
Eat and drink until
you’re fat and happy at
Red Stag Supper Club
on July 31. Oh, and
watch some cool street
performances by the
North Star Roller Girls,
dance groups and
musicians outside at
78.5
the block party.

31. 78.5
29
See some Hottea
Minneapolis’s hottest street artist is a duo that
has been working with thread and fiber to create
interesting and imaginative works across the city.
Keep your eyes peeled for pink letters.

32. 78.5
30
LARP AT THE SOAP
FACTORY Role Play. Get practicing!
LARP: Live Action
The Soap Factory and the Walker Art Museum are
hosting a weekend LARP event July 29 to 31. Sew
your outfit, dig out your rubber elf ears and LEVEL UP!

33. 78.5
31
RED HOT ART
Art doesn’t have to be fancy schmancy:
Red Hot Art is a grass roots art festival out to prove
that art should be and is accessible to everyone.
Steven’s Square Park is taken over by emerging
artists and musicians on July 30 and 31.

34. 78.5
32
MusicCenter offers free music followed by
and Movies
Walker Art
free movies in Loring Park on Monday nights
starting August 1. Grab your blanket and sneak
some wine in for cheap entertainment.

35. 33
Pizza farm
It’s really, really, REALLY good
pizza. Otherwise its devotees
wouldn’t drive two hours to an
unmarked farm in Stockholm,
Wisconsin. The farm grows all
of its ingredients on-site, from
wheat to tomatoes. They only
dish out pizza on Tuesday
nights, so bring a blanket,
utensils and drinks because
you won’t find any at the farm.
78.5

36. Avoid the
Uptown
Art Fair
Traffic. Steep
prices. Congestion.
A million cars
circling a one-
square mile area for
parking. Traffic.
Clustercuss. Get as
far from Uptown as
you can from
August 5 to 7.
34
Why don’t
you do one
of the other
77.5 things
on this list? 78.5

37. 78.5
35
Fringe Festiv from August 4 to 14.
al
11 days. 15 venues. 160+ shows
50,000+ tickets issued. Be in one of those seats and
see uncensored, lottery-chosen artists on the
“fringe” of performing arts tradition. Also, make sure
to use your Fringe button for discounts all over town.

38. Manifest
Destiny
Do you have anything
better to do with your
time than compete in a
western-themed
bicycle scavenger hunt
on August 6? OF
COURSE YOU DON’T.
You just don’t think
you can win. We’ll see
you at Loring Park at 5
p.m. Giddy up!
78.5 36

39. 78.5
37 Eat from a out when there’s snow on
Food trucks don’t come
foodtruck
the ground. Hop on this limited-time culinary
scavenger hunt for the few months its available!

40. 38
PaddleBoat Lake
Calhoun
The biggest puddle in the Chain of Lakes is just
begging to be explored on foot-powered plastic.
Think of it like a bike on water, or an homage to
Fred Flinstone.
78.5

41. 39 See a
Twins
Game
You can’t win them
all, but everyone’s a
winner at Target
Field. Killer views of
the city, peanuts and
improved seating
make watching the
78.5
Twinkies oh-so-
enjoyable.

42. 78.5
40
Powderhorn 24
Based on the popular Milwaukee race Riverwest
24, Powderhorn 24 is the first 24 hour bike race in
Minneapolis. Find a team and whip yourselves in
to shape for cruising all around South Minneapolis
from August 12 to 13.

43. Pizza
Luce
Block
Party
Hang out in the sun
and await this year’s
headliners: P.O.S. and
Communist Daughter.
Nosh on some delicious
pizza and enjoy a few
beers in Uptown on
August 13.
41 78.5

44. 42
Sneak Into a
Swimming aPooloasis from the
It’s hot out. Pools are heavenly
suffocating humidity. Problem: all you have is a
deflated kiddie pool and it’s 2 am. Solution: find a
big blue rectangle and get at it.
78.5

45. Ride the
78.5 Harriet
Streetcar
Although it lacks a flux
capacitor, you can still
travel back to the
beginning of the 20th
century in the
Minnesota Streetcar
Museum’s 15-minute
ride between Lake
Calhoun and Lake
Harriet.
43

46. 44
SEA SALT as delicious and
EATERY
Seafood has a special double duty
a reminder that some bodies of water don’t
freeze over. This seasonal restaurant is only open
for a limited time each year. Don’t miss it!
78.5

47. 78.5
45
Japanese
Lantern
LIghting
Learn about Japan at
Como Zoo on August 16
at a festival that
involves music from
Japanese sitar and
bamboo flutes, martial
arts and flower
arranging. Find your
inner peace...

48. 78.5
Soundtown
The Somerset Amphitheater in Wisconsin is
reopening its doors under new management with a
46
two-day indie rock festival August 19 and 20
featuring The Flaming Lips, The New Pornographers,
Doug E. Fresh and a handful of local bands. Camp
overnight and tube down the Apple River.

49. 47
Give & Take
Give & Take thrives as an
open forum for a wide
range of insightful
discussions. It's the kind
of setting that combines
the academic with the
practical; a bit high brow,
a touch punk rock and
universally rewarding.
This is what high school
SHOULD have been like. 78.5

50. 78.5
48
Eat Ice Creamery or a
Cream
Sebastian Joes, Pumphouse
McDonald’s cone? Doesn’t matter. Ice cream is
the ultimate reward for surviving a hot day, and
hot days in Minneapolis don’t grow on trees.

51. 78.5
49
Jim Lupient W that. Park ater Who knew
Water Park of America? Forget
that Northeast Minneapolis was hiding a water
park with four water slides, log water walk and
water volleyball? You! Now go cool off.

52. 50
State Fair
Eat . . . eat . . . EAT!
EAT! EAT! Pronto pups,
Martha’s cookies, fresh
lemonade and most
importantly, cheese curds.
Get your nom on from August
25 to Labor Day at the
fairgrounds. If you get full,
you can also get on a ride in
the Midway, check out some
farm animals or see Def
Leppard in the Grandstand. 78.5

53. 78.5
Critical Mass ride the last
51
Stick it to the man. Join a ginormous
Friday of each month at 5 p.m. in Loring Park to
send a street-clogging message to drivers and
demonstrate the joys of a pollution-free mode of
transportation.

54. 78.5
Vali-Hi Drive In
SaAAAaaAAAnnnndy, SaaaAAAAndy!
The Vali-Hi Drive In shows three movies in a row
for just $8. If you can, throw an old sofa into the
bed of your pick up truck. Insta-cozy. Just don’t
mess it up like Danny Zuko did.
52

55. 53
Take a Segw y Tour a reason to
Ghost tours, history tours, city tours...any
get on a motorized roller, put on a bright helmet and
stalk around the city in a pack is a good reason.
78.5

56. 78.5
Canterbury Canterbury
Live horse racing and poker make
Park
Park a gambler’s dream. For the not-so-wild
betters, machines make it easy to place bets as
small as $2 on your favorite horse. The park also
occasionally races ostriches and camels.
54

57. 78.5
55
get youranother man’s treasure. on
yard sale
One man’s trash is
Nothing proves that conventional wisdom like
wandering the haphazard piles of yard sales and
bargaining for your prize.

58. 56 Rent a
Camper
Cabin
Get away to the
beautiful Minnesota
wilderness, wooden
bunk beds and a
pyro-ready fire pit
for the low price of
$50 a night. Make
78.5 reservations with
the DNR.

59. 57
Bird Sanctuary
Stop by the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden and
Bird Sanctuary in Theodore Wirth Regional Park to
enjoy peaceful, mostly quiet (damn birds)
beautiful scenes of nature.
78.5

60. 78.5
58 Tin FIsh pavilion over
Fresh fish tacos + a picture-perfect
Lake Calhoun = trouble finding a reason to leave.

61. Lawn
Bowling at
Brits Pub
Join a league or show up
to Brit’s Pub on the
weekend to play a game
of no-skill-required lawn
bowling on the roof. Just
make sure you roll, not
toss, the ball, or it’ll
burst into flames and
tell everyone your
biggest secrets.
78.5 59

62. 60
Babes In
Bikeland
Biking and racing
aren’t just for
testosterone-filled
fellas. Babes in
Bikeland is an
informal race of lady
cyclists on September
10 leaving from the
Soap Factory. And no,
they won’t be riding
side-saddle. 78.5

63. 78.5
61
$99 Soap Factory Sale
Hundreds of artists donate 5x7” works of art up for
sale at the Soap Factory on September 9. It’s sort of
like art Russian roulette: the artists only sign the back
of the piece, so you won’t know if you’re buying the
work of a renowned artist or a newcomer.

64. 78.5
62
RENT A
CANOE
Explore the river like
Lewis and Clark with a
canoe rental. It’s also
a subtle way to give
your date two tickets
to the gun show.
Especially if you
paddle into the wind.

65. 63
78.5
Valleyfair
No summer is complete
without multiple rides on
the Wild Thing perfecting
your clever souvenir
picture. If you can’t get it
right on the Wild Thing,
you can always try the
Corkscrew or Renegade.
We suggest getting to the
park after 5pm for a
sweet starlight discount.

66. 78.5
64
Take a Pedicab
Maybe you had too much to drink. Maybe you
have a debilitating injury in your lower
extremities. Maybe you crashed your bike.
Maybe you are a kept man with a superiority
complex. All roads lead to pedicabs.

67. 78.5
65
Uptown Market
Sundays in Uptown brings in local farmers, food
vendors, craftspeople and artisans. In case Whole
Foods just isn’t organic enough for you, you can do
your grocery shopping for some locally-grown
produce from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

68. 78.5
66 Renaissance Festiv 2, al
Starting August 20 and running through October
you can watch live armored jousting while eating
a giant turkey leg. Wenches, knights and fairies
really round out the raunchy yet whimsical
Middle Ages.

69. 67
Lyndale
Park
Rose
Garden
The Lyndale Park
Rose Garden
showcases over 3,000
plants in 100 diverse
varieties. Try a
relaxing stroll or a
picnic amongst the
beauty and fragrance. 78.5

70. Psycho Suzi’s
68
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks, but you can
give an old favorite a new location with a sweet
patio. It’s still tacky. It’s still delicious. Now with
closer proximity to an actual body of water in
order to legitimize your ‘tropical’ drink.
78.5

71. Pla Disc
y
Golf 78.5
Love the strategy of
golf but hate dragging
around those
dumbbell-like clubs
and wearing argyle?
Make the transition
into disc golf, since
Minneapolis has one
of the highest
concentrations of disc
golf courses in the
69
country.

72. 70
Take a and Monday, you can
Dam Tour
If it’s between Thursday
take a dam tour leaving from the dam Upper
Saint Anthony Falls Visitor Office. While you’re at
the dam office, take in a beautiful dam view and
read some dam information.
78.5

73. 78.5
71
Fosha Observ
y ation Deck
For almost 50 years, the Foshay Tower was the
tallest building in Minneaoplis. Now it’s a museum
with a killer view from the top deck. CHALLENGE:
Can you count all of the water towers and lakes?

74. 72
See a movie
78.5
at Trylon
Cinema
Catch a classic film this
summer at the Trylon, a
microcinema with only
fifty seats.
Series this summer
include Pirates!,
Homicide, Sound
Unseen, and The
Defenders.

75. 73
Bicycle
Polo
Who needs a horse
when you have a
bike? Minneapolis is
home to an active
bicycle polo league.
Check out
@pickuppolo on
Twitter to find a
78.5 game.

76. 78.5
FarmersaMarket
74
With one market seven days week in Lyndale
from 6 a.m. to 1 p.m. and all day on Thursdays at
Nicollet Mall and over a dozen more neighborhood
markets, there is no excuse to buy produce from
anything other than a farmer in a tent.

77. 78.5
Broken Crow
Muralduo who are
Broken Crow is a street art
Tour
trying to reintroduce wildlife back into urban
spaces by painting crazy-colored, crazy-huge
murals wherever possible. Bike around and
admire them for yourself.
75

78. 76
Rooftop
Dining
78.5
Maybe UV rays are
cosmic seasoning or tree
pollen is the new salt
because food always
tastes better when
eaten in the great
outdoors. And rooftops
are just outdoors
enough for it to kick in.
May we suggest Crave
or Joe’s Garage?

79. 78.5
77
Grill Outis a big roaring fire. Tame
Nature’s microwave
that fire with some coals, a grate and a sturdy
grill. Then throw something meaty and bad for
you on it.

80. 78.5
78
Guthrie’s
Endlessso it’s a bit of a
Bridge
You can’t keep walking forever,
misnomer. The folks at Guthrie are too proud of
their architecturally magical cantilevered lobby to
change it. Still, it makes a perfectly magical place
to watch the summer wind down.

81. 78.5
78.5
Land a hotGame
ynx dog at the
Enjoy a beer
Target Center while watching
Minneapolis’s lovely lady Lynx hit
some baskets.

82. would
78.5 like to
thank
the following flickr members
for sharing their photos
1. netmonkey 8. Thirteen of Clubs 15. Trust Me! website
2. digidave 9. Diamond Dog 16. smcgee
3. BYOB 10. Soap Factory 17. Nomad
4. ryanharo+365days 11. Herkimer 18. erlin1
5. urbanfoodie33 12. zanzibar 19. Dakota Jazz Club
6. massdistraction 13. gomattolson 20. ehavir
7. newneonunion 14. smcgee 21. 10nl

83. 22. ninahale
23. Minneapolis Institute of Arts
24. Opheliac9
42. p.a.j.a.
43. jpellgen
44. Bill Roehl
78.5
25. Minneapolis Institute of Arts 45. gomattolson
26. massdistraction 46. .reid.
27. bryankennedy 47. worksprogress
28. erlin1 48. mobil’homme
29. unurth.com 49. Jim Lupient Water Park
30. Soap Factory 50. Ryan Bickett
31. curiousdanielson 51. waiting line (Ren)
32. gomattolson 52. fanpop.com
33. massdistraction 53. Simonds
34. Marcus Metropolis 54. Tucker, actually
35. massdistraction 55. Marcus Metropolis
36. Manifest Destiny 56. cFranklinPhotos
37. chadeng 57. dwallick
38. bikini sleepshirt 58. amee@work
39. markwhitt 59. gomattolson
40. Danny Guy 60. Thirteen of Clubs
41. Marcus Metropolis 61. Soap Factory

84. 62. rengber
63. Jon Roost
64. Pedicab
78.5
65. urbanfoodie33
66. The Real Estreya
67. Doug Wallick
68. the queen of subtle
69. life is good (Pete)
70. m_e_mccarron
71. [clint]
72. Trylon Cinema
73. kev_walsh
74. dane brian
75. Broken Crow
76. meghantosh
77. madmodule
59. gomattolson
60. Thirteen of Clubs
61. interplanetary shoes