Pear it all

There are many relatively new food festivals in Sacramento celebrating one specific type of food: Bacon Fest Sacramento, the Sacratomato Festival and the Sacramento Burger Battle, to name a few. Sure, they're all great events, but few match the sheer pageantry and old-school quaintness of the Courtland Pear Fair (www.pearfair.com). Now in its 42nd year, the festival celebrates the Bartlett pear harvest with food, drinks and entertainment—plus a “Royal Court,” a parade and a 5- and 10-mile run through scenic pear orchards and vineyards. Arts and crafts vendors, fine art, a pancake breakfast, wine tasting, a history exhibition and a duck calling contest round out the rural small-Delta-town fair. There will be pear pies for sale starting at 9 a.m., so make sure to get one early before they sell out. In fact, everything but the run starts at 9 a.m. at 180 Primasing Avenue in Courtland, about a 20 minute drive from Sacramento.