Salmon Days and a family dance
Salmon Days fills downtown Saturday and Sunday. The hatchery is the reason to go, and a free family dance follows Sunday afternoon at Pickering Barn.
Salmon Days
Salmon Days Festival
Sat Oct 3 and Sun Oct 4 · 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.
Historic downtown Issaquah
57th festival, hosted by the Greater Issaquah Chamber. The chamber’s 2026 vendor guide lists festival hours as 10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m. both days. Artisan booths, food, and the Field of Fun sit around Front Street and Sunset Way. The star stop is the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery at 125 W Sunset Way, where you can watch fish that made it back. The same guide points to the Kiwanis salmon bake on the south side of the hatchery grounds.
There is no Saturday farmers market this week. The barn season ended Sep 26.
Salmon Days · City calendar · Hours in the vendor guide
Grande Parade
Sat Oct 3 · 10:00 a.m.
Starts at Confluence Park
The chamber lists a 10:00 a.m. start. Road closures begin at 9:00 a.m. The route leaves Confluence Park, goes down Rainier Blvd N, turns onto NW Dogwood St, heads north on Front St, then turns onto NE Gilman Blvd toward the dispersal area by Boehm’s Candies. Roads reopen after the last entry passes. The 2026 theme on the parade page is “Stars, Stripes & Salmon.”
Parade details · Downtown notes
Main stage
Sat Oct 3 and Sun Oct 4, from noon
Downtown festival stage
The chamber’s entertainment page lists:
Saturday: The True Romans at noon, Roemen and the Whereabouts at 1:30 p.m., Foot Stompers at 3:00 p.m., Rumble Underground at 4:30 p.m.
Sunday: Elizabeth Better at noon, Brian Nay Band at 1:30 p.m., The Nines at 3:00 p.m., a Madonna tribute at 4:30 p.m.
The same page also lists a long run of youth and local bands, including School of Rock Issaquah. It does not label which day that second list belongs to, so check the page before you promise a kid a specific set.
Entertainment
The city also lists a bike valet at Rainier Blvd N and NW Dogwood St, staffed with Cascade Bicycle Club.
City calendar
Sunday away from the booths
Family Dance Party
Sun Oct 4 · 3:00–6:00 p.m.
Pickering Barn, 1730 10th Ave NW
Free Hispanic Heritage Month dance with The Circle and the city. Music from Spanish-speaking countries, dance lessons, and snacks. Open to everyone. It overlaps the last hours of Salmon Days, and it is at the barn, not on Front Street. Downtown in the morning, Pickering in the afternoon, works. RSVP is on The Circle’s page.
City calendar · The Circle
Library bookends
Snuggle Up Story Time
Tue Sep 29 · 6:30–7:00 p.m.
Issaquah Library, 10 W Sunset Way
Stories, music, movement, and rhymes for newborns to 5 years, with an adult. Up to 30 minutes of play time follows. No registration. Space is limited. Miss Mack hosts.
KCLS event
Rise & Shine Story Time
Thu Oct 1 · 10:30–11:00 a.m.
Issaquah Library, 10 W Sunset Way
Same age range and the same shape: stories, music, play time after. No registration. Space is limited. A calm morning before the festival weekend.
KCLS event
Story Stroll: Watercress
Through Sat Oct 3
Starts at Issaquah Library, then downtown
The Downtown Issaquah Association lists the stroll through Oct 3, so the pages are up on the first morning of Salmon Days. It is an easy add if you are already walking Front Street. The KCLS description says the route starts at the library.
KCLS event · Downtown calendar
On stage, around the festival
Ragtime
Tue Sep 29–Fri Oct 2 · 7:30 p.m., Sat Oct 3 · 2:00 and 7:30 p.m., Sun Oct 4 · 2:00 p.m.
Francis J. Gaudette Theatre, 303 Front St N
The theatre is inside the festival neighborhood. Saturday’s 2:00 p.m. show sits in the middle of Salmon Days (10:00 a.m.–6:00 p.m.). The 7:30 p.m. show starts after the booths close. Sunday’s 2:00 p.m. show overlaps both the festival and the start of the family dance at 3:00 p.m.
TeenTix lists an ASL-interpreted performance at Sat Oct 3, 2:00 p.m., and pay-what-you-can seats at Sat Oct 3, 7:30 p.m., among other dates. Confirm with the box office. Visit Issaquah notes language and brief violence, and a run time of about 2 hours 50 minutes with intermission. May not suit young children. The Issaquah run continues through Oct 18.
Ragtime · TeenTix · Audience note
After this week
The Fall Farm Fresh Market, with Ayala Farms, starts Saturday Oct 10 and runs through Dec 5, 9:00 a.m.–2:00 p.m. at the Historic Shell Station, 232 Front St N. Live music is listed from 11:00 a.m.–1:00 p.m. It is not open during Salmon Days.
Downtown Issaquah Association