COVINGTON, Ky. - The Ohio River’s banks will explode with thundering booms and an aerial spectacle this weekend, with the annual Western & Southern/WEBN Fireworks and Riverfest.

 

But that’s not - as they say - the only game in town. There’s plenty else to do in #LoveTheCov, whether you like literature, local art, Russian symphony music, jazz and R&B, or mountain biking.

 

As usual, the Riverfest fireworks will fly shortly after 9 p.m. Sunday from barges on the Ohio River, and there are plenty of viewing spots in Covington.

 

However, you should be aware of safety and traffic restrictions in certain areas of the City, which can be read HERE.

 

While there’s no Riverfest event in Covington per se, there are many local businesses with specials, including special hours at The Gruff, HERE ... and The Brewgrass Beer Festival on the plaza outside RiverCenter, HERE.

 

For general Riverfest information, start HERE.

 

If you like music - and we mean anything and everything from Latin Dance to Gospel, jazz, R&B and Hip-hop - then head to B.F. Howard Park (in the median on E. 11^th Street) on Saturday for the Eastside Music & Soul Food Festival.

 

Other attractions, naturally, include food, activities for kids, and lots of resource information.

 

Info, HERE.

 

Covington’s only indie bookstore is having another “reading” this Saturday evening.

 

Thomas More University artist/writer-in-residence Richard Hague will read from his poetry (and prose) “about weather, gardening, passion, and other hots” at Roebling Point Books & Coffee in an event being billed as “A Hot August Reading.”

 

Hague is a National Book Award nominee and winner of the Appalachian Writers Association “Poetry Book of the Year.”

 

Btw, RoBoPoCo says the event is “for mature audiences.”

 

Must be some pretty “hot” type indeed. Info, HERE.

 

A few blocks south on Greenup, another fabulous and unique Covington coffee shop is having its own book-related event on Saturday, as The Book Bus visits Left Bank Coffeehouse.

 

The Cincinnati-based mobile book store - think 1962 VW Transporter truck - sells new and gently used books, with part of the profits used to buy books for children and classrooms in low-income areas.

 

As Left Bank says, “books and coffee are the perfect duo” - and we certainly agree.

 

Info, HERE.

 

Want to own some local art?

 

Get your bids in early on more than 40 items - including oil, watercolor and acrylic paintings; hand-crafted jewelry; ceramics; photography; mosaic; glass art; and furniture - at the opening of the annual silentART auction Saturday at Behringer-Crawford Museum.

 

The free event - which kicks off with an artists’ reception - is a precursor to the freshART gala in two weeks.

 

Also on display - for judging, not selling - will be artwork created by local high school students.

 

Info, HERE and HERE.

 

Forget the Russian collusion.

 

The Kentucky Symphony Orchestra is bragging about its “Russian Allusion.”

 

Noting that “a sizeable portion of the world’s most frequently performed orchestral repertoire hails from Russia,” the KSO cherry-picked some popular Russian classics (like the Masquerade Suite, Polovtsian Dances and Scheherazade) and will perform them Saturday evening at the Devou Park Bandshell.

 

It’s free, though a $5 donation would be nice. Info, HERE.

 

Know the basics about mountain biking and trail-riding but want to get better?

 

There’s a Level 2 skills clinic in Covington’s Devou Park on Saturday morning that will help you learn to navigate logs, rocks, roots, drops, cornering, and switchbacks using techniques like ratcheting and the pedal punch.

 

You need to register, HERE.

 

What can you get at the Covington Farmers Market?

 

“Meats and eggs, soaps and natural body products, sugar scrubs, fresh bread and baked goods, cold-pressed juices, unique spice blends and rubs, seasonal produce, prepared foods like soup, hummus, salads and Buddha bowls, plant starts, flowers, farm crafts, and more.”

 

Check it all out - plus live music and Covington Farmers Market swag - 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on Third Street. Info, HERE.

 

And then there’s ... the Covington Brunch “Cruise” on Saturday and Sunday, HERE ... Totter’s Toys Grand Opening Celebration on Saturday, HERE ... “The Office” trivia night Friday at Keystone Bar & Grill, HERE ... Scorpion Mounting Workshop on Friday at Hail Dark Aesthetics, HERE ... Yoga Fit with Sage Yoga on Saturday morning at the Devou Park Bandshell, HERE ... the Holtman’s Popup Donut Shop on Friday at Braxton Brewing, HERE ... the Madison Avenue Sunday morning Food & Culture Tour, HERE ... and the Cincinnati Aruna Run on Monday (through parts of Covington), HERE.

 

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