Annual Coulee Fest set for Saturday

By Lethbridge Herald on September 11, 2025.

Nathan Reiter
Lethbridge Herald
Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The grounds of Lethbridge Polytechnic will once again be a hive of activity this weekend as Coulee Fest on Saturday afternoon.

Coulee Fest began in 2017 as a way for Lethbridge Polytechnic to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the institution. Since then, the event has added more every year.

Stephanie Savage, the manager of alumni and engagement for Lethbridge Polytechnic, says the event is scheduled around the same time every year to allow students to settle into their schedule and unwind a little bit.

“We strategically pick this time of year for Coulee Fest because we want to be able to have our new students welcomed in a cool, low stress way. The first couple weeks of school are always this mad dash of learning where your classes are, meeting friends, finding out where your favorite grocery stores are located, and putting it through Coulee Fest in this second week of school gave our students the first week to kind of settle in and this week to kind of just relax.”

According to the Weather Network, the forecast for Saturday is partly cloudy with a high of 25 degrees. 

While it’s not the main reason for the timing of Coulee Fest, Savage says the weather is typically a plus. 

“There’s so much activity that happens around Lethbridge, which we are so thankful to be part of. This kind of fits into a nice gap within community programming. We’ve always worked really well with our community partners to make sure that like events are not on the same day. That’s why we choose this time of year, plus the weather of Lethbridge is always hit and miss. This seems to fit in an okay timeline where we’re hopefully not going to have snow.”

Coulee Fest features a music stage that will play host to a lot of local talent. The headlining band is Ten02, an alternative band based out of Red Deer. Ten02 recently performed at the Labour Day rematch between the CFL’s Calgary Stampeders and Edmonton Elks at Commonwealth Stadium.

Some other events taking place at Coulee Fest include arts and crafts, a marketplace and beer gardens. 

Savage says the event appeals to more than just the college student population.

“We try to plan something for everyone. There’s lots of activities for children and families. We have bouncy castles, we have our youth and STEM zones, which is really cool because our youth initiatives team is able to kind of demonstrate what they do with kids that are interested in learning about trades. 

“We’re going to have some henna that’s being done by our international students. We have a marketplace that’s run by an alumni who oversees Hey Dough cookies. We have 18 food trucks. We have a big truck zone so that people can check out all sorts of different equipment that makes our city run. We have monster truck rides, which are free for everyone.”

There is no charge to attend Coulee Fest. The event begins at 11 a.m.