2022: East Texas weekend events: Spring flowers, music and murder mystery

Published 5:45 am Thursday, March 24, 2022

Still not sure what to do this weekend? Check out these events happening in the Tyler area.

Azalea season activities: With the azaleas beginning to bloom, there are numerous activities to usher in the annual Azalea and Spring Flower Trail.

Take a driving or walking tour of the 10-mile Azalea Trail that spans through Tyler neighborhoods beginning Friday. Azaleas tend to bloom for about three weeks, so the trail will be officially open from March 25 to April 10. To see a map of the trail and track the blooming of the azaleas, visit www.TylerAzaleaTrail.com

Participate in the Tyler Azalea Run on Saturday. Beginning at 8 a.m. is the children’s race, at 8:10 a.m. the 10K and at 8:30 a.m. the 5K. This race will take runners through the Azalea Trails. For more information and to register visit https://www.tylerazalearun.com/

Shop with over 70 local artisans at the Azalea Arts and Crafts Fair from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and from aa a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. There will be live entertainment both days of the event. For more information visit https://bit.ly/AzaleaArtsCraftsFair2022.

Dogwood Days Tour: Take a walking or driving tour to see all of the Dogwoods in bloom beginning this Saturday at the Tyler State Park, 789 Park Rd. You can also enjoy all of the other blooming spring flowers and try some outdoor activities while exploring the park. The park is open from 8:20 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information about the Dogwood Days Tour visit https://tpwd.texas.gov/state-parks/tyler

Risk It For the Brisket event: Head to Gilmer for the Risk It For the Brisket barbecue cookoff event from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday at the Gilmer square, 109 Henderson St., Gilmer. Teams will be competing for a prize purse of $10,000. Categories will be beef brisket, pork spareribs, and chicken. All meats will be prepared onsite. There will be live bands and vendors during this event as well. Saturday’s festivities will feature a free concert at 6 p.m. with headliner Josh Weathers Band and opener Luke LaPrade Band. For more details, visit LiveGilmer.com.

Tyler Quilt Show Red Ruby Celebration: Come out to the 40th annual Tyler Quilt Show from 9:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the First Christian Church, 4202 S. Broadway Ave., in Tyler. This show is put on each year by the Quilters’ Guild of East Texas in conjunction with the Azalea and Spring Flower Trail. Come and see how quilts are placed in the show, participate in a silent auction, have a chance of winning two quilts, shop at vendors and more. Entry for this event is $8.

UT Tyler Murder Mystery event: Collect and analyze evidence to solve a murder at the University of Texas at Tyler’s Murder Mystery event from noon to 5 p.m. Saturday at UT Tyler campus (Old Glory Parkway) in Parking Lot 14. This event hosted by the UT Tyler Criminal Justice program will allow participants to collect and analyze evidence at the crime lab and interview witnesses. Tickets for this are $5. There will also be an activity booth open to the public with no tickets required. This booth will have fingerprint analysis, impairment simulations, bloodstain analysis and more. For more information and to purchase tickets visit uttylercriminaljustice.totalcamps.com .