Destination Driftless: Pig Races, Fireworks and 100 Degrees: Riverfest 2012

The 30th annual Riverfest Celebration in La Crosse, WI opened to stifling temperatures and the shared goal of trying to stay cool. With the Mississippi River flowing by all of the festival events, there are scenic views from every vantage point.

With boaters and barges floating by and sprinklers and lemonade to cool us down, we fested.

E. flips and somersaults her way through the bungee jump. This would have been fun

30 years ago. It makes me dizzy just to watch it now.

The kiddos were completely into this inflatable game where they try and knock each other off of these bean bags.

We took a ride on the Mississippi Explorer which rides through the backwaters of the Upper Mississippi's wildlife refuge. Our guide did a great job of sharing facts about the river and wildlife but also left time for a quiet ride along the river.

E. and K. on the Explorer. It's pretty relaxing.

Eagles are a pretty common sight along the 261-mile Mississippi wildlife refuge. The Explorer is a great way to see parts of the river you might not otherwise see. They have ports in La Crosse, Lansing, Prairie du Chien and Galena.

Back on land and time to cool down with a gallon glass of fresh lemonade.

Swifty Swines Racing Pigs

These pig races feature these cute little pot-bellied pigs based out of Van, Texas. Apparently these pigs travel from coast to coast doing these races. They complete a 150-yard loop and then go for a swim.

The fountain turned into a swimming pool.

Riverfest goes for 5 days and they try to appeal to all different ages and interests. For the very motivated there is the Chileda Classic, a 5k/10k run or the Walk a Mile in Her Shoes to promote domestic violence awareness. For the spontaneous Riverfest attendees, like us, there are a bunch of food booths, rides, live music, a beer tent and fireworks.