Labor Day weekend will see the return of the annual Marshall County Blueberry Festival to Plymouth. A full weekend of food, entertainment, crafts, carnival rides, fireworks and more has been planned.

Of course, blueberries will be the centerpiece of the festival. Festival-goers should expect blueberry pies (and pie-eating contest), cakes, donuts ice cream – blueberry flavored foods of all kinds. More than 100 food booths are set to offer blueberry treats of all kinds.

Country Music legends Montgomery Gentry will be playing in Centennial Park on Friday night. Up-and-comer Frankie Ballard will be opening. Gates open at 6 p.m., show starts at 8 p.m.

Live music will be going on throughout the weekend. Gospel at the Ampitheatre will host gospel music during the afternoons of Saturday, Sunday and Monday. At Jefferson Elementary, acts like Brett Wiscons and the Elwood Splinters Blues Band will be playing on the school’s stage.

Over on Michigan Street, acts like Silly Safari, Mike Beach, Daphne’s Dolls and more will be playing. The full entertainment schedule can be seen here.

The Blueberry Festival parade is on Monday, Sept. 1, starting at 9:30 a.m. More than 100 units, including floats, emergency vehicles, classic cars and antique tractors, will parade through Plymouth. Area high school marching bands will be providing the soundtrack. The theme for this year’s parade is Red, White and Blue-berries.

For those who might want to burn off some of those delicious blueberry treats, there are a number of athletic activities are planned. On Labor Day there will be a one mile Fun Run, 5K, 15K and a 15K wheelchair race. The Fun Run starts at 8:30 a.m. The wheelchair race starts at 9 a.m., with the 5K and 15K starting just after.

Throughout the festival there will be several athletic tournaments. An arm wrestling tournament is scheduled. There will also be a co-ed volleyball tournament, a tennis tournament and girl’s fast-pitch softball tourney.

Anyone wanting to get a workout and see the sights in Marshall County may want to check out one of the bicycle cruises. Pedal past sights like Lake Maxinkuckee, Culver Academies, Ancilla College, Twin Lakes and more. Register for tours on Saturday morning and spend the afternoon biking Marshall County.

It wouldn’t be a festival without a pageant. The Little Miss and Mister Blueberry contest is at 5:30 p.m. on Friday. And there’s the 42nd Annual Hoosier Old Wheels Car Show and Swap Meet slated for Sunday, Aug. 31.

There’s way too much going on to list it all here, but a full schedule of events can be found at www.blueberryfestival.org. Festivities start at 3 p.m. on Friday, and admission is free.