CERCA CALENDAR

In blazing midsummer, restless rounders can still find a party in the higher and more northerly reaches of Cerca Country. Do any of these events seem cool to you?

Through Aug. 11, Cedar City, Utah: The Neil Simon Festival. This season's works are "The Odd Couple," "The Prisoner of Second Avenue" and "Plaza Suite." Dark Sundays and Mondays. Cedar City Heritage Theater. (435) 327-8673, www. scenicsouthernutah.com.

Through Sept. 1, Cedar City, Utah: Utah Shakespearean Festival. Plays this season are "Twelfth Night," "King Lear," Coriolanus," "Candida," "Lend me a Tenor: The Musical" and "The Matchmaker." Matinee and evening performances. Backstage tours, green show, seminars and play orientations. (800) 752-9849, www.bard.org.

Friday and Saturday, Cove Fort, Utah: Cove Fort Days. Living history demonstrations, entertainment, tours and wagon rides, hot dogs and beverages. Cove Fort Historic Site. (435) 438-5547, www.placestovisit.lds.org.

Saturday and Aug. 5, Flagstaff, Ariz.: Navajo Festival of Arts and Culture. At 58, this is the oldest Navajo art show in the world. Visit more than 50 booths set up to display and sell art; watch artists demonstrate jewelry, painting, beading and pottery techniques. Museum of Northern Arizona, (928) 774-5213, www.musnaz.org.

Aug. 5, Flagstaff, Ariz.: Dog Days Star Fest. Featured speaker Sasha Karcz, will give an indoor presentation, "The Most Famous Physics Equation in the World: An Introduction to Special Relativity." Numerous telescopes will also be set up for viewing throughout the campus. Lowell Observatory, (928) 233-3235, www.lowell.edu.

Aug. 5-12, Reno and Sparks: Hot August Nights. Relive the '50s and '60s when thousands of classic cars descend on Reno and Sparks for street cruising, poker runs, car auctions, parades, drag races and vintage music. More than 700,000 people are expected. (775) 356-1956, www.hotaugustnights.net.

Aug. 10-11, Lake Tahoe: Wooden Boat Week and Concours d'Elegance. This two-day competitive and educational event features a gathering of some of the most elegant antique wooden boats in the nation. (530) 581-4700, www.tahoeyc.com.

Aug. 11, Cedar Breaks National Monument, Utah: The Geology of Cedar Breaks. Learn about the complicated geologic past of the monument. Zion Canyon Field Institute. Reservations needed, (435) 772-3264, www.zionpark.org.

Aug. 18, Cathedral Gorge State Park: Varmints. Learn about predatory animals such as coyotes, bobcat and mountain lions. Campground Amphitheater. (775) 728-4460, www.parks.nv.gov.

Aug. 22-26, Reno: Nevada State Fair features exhibits, entertainment, children's rides, carnival and games. Livestock Events Center. (775) 688-5767, www.nvstatefair.com.

Aug. 23-26, Battle Mountain: Pony Express 130. The longest open-road race in the U.S. starts at Mile Marker 116 on State Highway 305 in Battle Mountain, travels 83 miles to Austin, then returns to the rest area at "Pay Phone Ranch" for a total of 130 miles. (702) 614-6108, www.openroadracing.com.

Aug. 23-25, Kanab, Utah: Western Legends Roundup and Film Festival. This celebration of the Old West includes cowboy poetry, fiddle contest, tent revival, Dutch oven cook-off, Indian dancing, quilt show and a quick-draw contest. Street fair with art and food, parade and live cowboy music. (435) 644-3444, www.westernlegends roundup.com.

Aug. 25, Bryce Canyon, Utah: Bryce Canyon Rim Run and Walk. One of Utah's most scenic races as the five-mile course follows the canyon rim and forests of ponderosa pines. (866) 866-6616, www.rubysinn.com.

Aug. 25, Washoe Valley: Bower's Mansion Bluegrass Festival. In its 22nd year, its headliners are the Stairwell Sisters and Mountain Laurel. Workshops and musical instruction. Bower's Mansion County Park. (775) 747-4830, www.bowersbluegrassfestival.org.

Aug. 26, Reno: Duck Race. This annual event features adopted rubber ducks racing down the Truckee River to benefit the Make-A-Wish Foundation of Northern Nevada. (775) 826-8008, www.nevadawish.org.

Aug. 27-Sept. 3, Black Rock City: Burning Man. This annual counterculture event is partly an art festival and partly an experiment in temporary community, all dedicated to radical self-expression and self-reliance. This year's theme will be "Hope and Fear: The Future." www.burningman.com.

Aug. 28, Flagstaff, Ariz.: Bats World Wide. This workshop teaches you about some of the nearly 1,000 species of bats around the world. Learn how critical bats are to our ecosystems and how they save foresters and farmers millions of dollars annually. (928) 774-1442, www.thearb.org.

Sept. 2, Beaver Dam State Park: Sunday Morning Walk. Join a park ranger to learn about the history, geology and flora and fauna of the park. (775) 728-4460, www.parks.nv.gov.