The Crosslake Days schedule features a chili cook-off, a raffle, a street dance, and a loon-calling contest at venues around town. Read from start to finish, it offers a guide to the businesses and organizations hosting this year's events.
Crosslake Days runs September 24 through 26, 2026, with events scheduled throughout the weekend.
Local Hosts Throughout the Weekend
Crosslake Days features activities hosted at local venues. Andy's Bar & Grill runs its own raffle. Crosslake Ace Hardware hosts the street dance in its own parking lot. Moonlite Bay Family Restaurant & Bar hosts the late-night DJs on its own patio, the same patio it has run since 1933. The Crosslake Historical Society Museum runs its own candlelight tour through its own building.
If you want to plan stops around town, the schedule shows where events are taking place.
The Weekend, Stop by Stop
The three-day hunt for the Lost Chili Pepper kicks off Thursday, September 24, with a new clue released each morning through Saturday. Saturday, September 26 belongs to the Outdoor Arts & Crafts Fair at The Log Church, running 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. with more than 80 vendors selling hand-crafted pieces, a single-day event that doesn't repeat anywhere else on the calendar.
Sandwiched between those two dates is the single busiest stretch of the weekend, when the schedule runs from midday straight past midnight:
| Time | Event | Host / Location |
|---|---|---|
| 12–3 p.m. | Chili Cook-off, served at locations across town, vote by 3 p.m. via the Crosslake App | Multiple Crosslake businesses |
| 12–3 p.m. | Bonfire & s'mores, water safety trinkets, meet Bobber the Water Safety Dog | Crosslake Dam Recreation Area, 35507 CR 66 |
| Afternoon | Loon Calling Contest, under-12 and over-12 divisions | The National Loon Center Nest, 14303 Gould St |
| 4:30–6 p.m. | Surf 'N Turf Raffle | Andy's Bar & Grill, 35453 CR 3 |
| 5–9 p.m. | Street dance with live music from the T.C. Jammers and a Maucieri's food truck | Crosslake Ace Hardware, 35592 Pioneer Dr |
| Evening | Cider and Candlelight Tour | Crosslake Historical Society Museum, 35404 CR 3 |
| 10 p.m.–close | Lakes Area's Best DJs | Moonlite Bay Family Restaurant & Bar, 37627 CR 66 |
The schedule includes several locations around town. If you're planning your own route through the weekend, that clustering is worth noticing: the Dam Recreation Area, Andy's, and the Historical Society sit close enough together that you can walk the afternoon into the early evening before driving over to the Ace Hardware lot for the street dance, then finishing at Moonlite Bay once the DJs take over.
A Long-Running Crosslake Tradition
Crosslake's Chili Cook-off has run for more than 36 years. The winning business takes home the "Golden Ladle" each year, a tradition that reflects the event's long history.
The Loon Calling Contest is hosted this year at the National Loon Center Nest, a temporary space while the organization's permanent building is under construction and not expected to open until 2027. The schedule includes this contest alongside Crosslake's long-running chili tradition.
Together, these events show the range of traditions and venues represented during Crosslake Days, from the long-running chili cook-off to the Loon Calling Contest at a temporary site.
The National Loon Center at Crosslake Days
The contest's temporary venue is one of several stops on the schedule, so visitors can plan it alongside other activities around town.
A few practical notes if you're mapping out your own route:
- The Crosslake Days VIP Badge, sold in a limited 2026 edition, gets you savings at Crosslake Chamber member businesses through the weekend, worth grabbing early if you plan to hit more than two or three stops.
- Chili Cook-off voting closes at 3 p.m. sharp through the Crosslake App, so taste-test earlier in the day rather than after the street dance.
- The Outdoor Arts & Crafts Fair is the one event with a fixed single-day window, Saturday only, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., so build your Saturday morning around The Log Church before anything else claims the day.
Residents and visitors can enjoy Crosslake Days’ local activities at venues around town throughout the weekend.
A Local Guide to the Weekend
Visitors and residents can use the schedule to explore Crosslake Days' mix of events and the businesses and organizations taking part this year.
For residents, the schedule connects the weekend's events with familiar names on storefronts, dock signs, and community boards throughout the year. Crosslake Days is the weekend those businesses and organizations bring their activities together.
Have questions about a specific corner of Crosslake, the Whitefish Chain, or what a particular property near this year's festival route might be worth? The Pederson Team knows this town well beyond one weekend in September. Reach out to schedule a lakeside consultation whenever you're ready to talk through what's next.
