Guerneville's Upcoming River Splash Weekend Brings Bay Area Bears out of Hibernation

The Woods Resort is one of the main hosts of the Russian River's upcoming River Splash Weekend. Photo by Andrew Collins.

Bears, cubs, and their admirers are gearing up for a different kind of bear-nation celebration in the Russian River this year, as River Splash Weekend kicks off Thursday, August 26, and last through Monday, August 30. This is particularly good news for devotees of the Russian River’s wildly popular Lazy Bear Weekend, which after nearly 15 years took a hiatus in 2010. The organizers, Castrobear, decided to cancel the early August party and fundraiser this year in part out of deference to the many California’s who’d made plans to travel to Germany to attend the Gay Games in Cologne this year, but they’ve already announced that Lazy Bear Weekend will be back on, better than ever, in early August 2011 (from Aug. 3 through Aug. 8).

If you’ve attended any of the Lazy Bear events in the past, the parties and events surrounding River Splash should seem happily familiar: think splashy pool parties at the Triple R and Woods resorts, cruise-y socials at downtown Guerneville’s beloved Rainbow Cattle Company, entertainment from top DJs as well as the Golden Girls drag troupe, a late-night Bearaoke party, and a festive Sunday Furry Sunday fete. The finale is a Monday Night Movie at the Triple R. The Castrobear events are friendly, inclusive, and fun, although obviously catering primarily to guys who consider themselves to be bears to one degree or another.