Worth the Drive: trains, music, politics, mushrooms

Ride the rails with Thomas the Tank Engine.

A Day Out With Thomas the Tank Engine on July 22 to 24 includes a 25-minute train ride, stories, videos and crafts at Northwest Railway Museum in Snoqualmie. Sir Topham Hatt will take time away from his busy schedule as Controller of the Railway on the Island of Sodor to meet and take pictures with guests. More at www.trainmuseum.org.

Party on the hill: Capitol Hill Block Party, July 22 to 24, is three-day music festival with bands, craft booths and food trucks. It takes over six city blocks in the heart of this Seattle neighborhood, and showcases 100 local and national artists. The grounds house three indoor venues, dozens of restaurants and bars, in addition to two outdoor stages built for the event. More at capitolhillblockparty.com.

The 1964 presidential election: The play “Daisy” at ACT Theatre in Seattle is about the “daisy ad,” the political TV commercial that changed the way campaigns are run in our country. Based on fact, the play presents a political climate that bears similarity to today. More at www.acttheatre.org.

Coming up:

Shrooms galore: The Pacific Northwest Mushroom Festival is 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 30 and 31, in Lacey.

A weekend of mushrooms and more. Cooking demonstrations, mushroom farm tours, mushroom hunts, kids’ zone, wine and beer tent, music. More at www.pnwmushroomfest.org.

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