The Krewe de la Dauphine hosts the first of the Island’s two colorful Mardi Gras celebrations on Saturday, February 5.

Themed “You’re Watching Channel KDLD” (Krewe De La Dauphine), the parade will feature wildly decorated floats representing classic television shows such as Gilligan’s Island, Hee Haw!, Happy Days and the Addams Family.

In addition to the rolling TV programs and traditional Mardi Gras throws for the crowd there will be more than 40 other units in the parade including the Bay City Brass Band, community groups, the Sheriff’s Posse and more.

Grand Marshall for the 90-minute spectacle will be Dauphin Island Fire Chief Brad Cox – severely injured several months ago while fighting a house fire on the Island.

The Krewe de la Dauphine parade will begin at 1 p.m. at the Dauphin Island Sea Lab, and then meander down Bienville Boulevard for three-and-a-half miles to the Little Red School House near the public beach.

Mardi Gras on the Island continues through the following weekend as the Island Mystics roll out their parade event at 1 p.m. with just as much fanfare and frivolity as the week before.

Visitors to the Island on February 12th will believe the circus has come to town as floats representing a nostalgic “Circus Big Top” make their way west along Bienville Boulevard.

Animal floats, a mobile side show complete with bearded lady and strong man, a clown float, circus railroad locomotive and more will share the parade route with two marching bands and 40 other colorful units.

The 2nd annual Dauphin Island Gumbo Cook-off is expected to draw more than 30 of the region’s top gumbo cooks to the Island on Saturday, March 26 to compete for awards and bragging rights as the “Best Gumbo on the Gulf Coast”.

Special guest, Food Network celebrity Alton Brown is scheduled for a meet-and-greet with the teams and to award the trophies. And, there will be gumbo sampling, live music and a kid’s zone of fun stuff for the little guys throughout the day.

A silent auction will also be held during the event benefiting the Dauphin Island Woman’s Club and the charitable organizations that it supports.

The event will be held at the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo site from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Visit www.dauphinislandcoc.com for information or to register a cook team.

Dauphin Island will again become an art lover’s paradise in April as artists from across the upper Gulf Coast take part in the Island’s annual springtime creative event.

Set to a backdrop of avian songs and brilliant colors, the 8th Annual Dauphin Island Arts & Crafts Show kicks off at 9 a.m. on Saturday, April 16.

The event, created to coincide with the annual birding migration on the Island, will fill the grounds of St. Francis Episcopal Church on Key Street with works by both local and regional artists and craftsmen.

A popular draw for art lovers and long-lensed birders attending the show will again be Wimberley Hory’s famous chicken salad sandwiches, and homemade gumbo and other treats made from scratch on-site during the festival.

The event benefits the Wilmer Hall Children’s Home in Mobile. For information call 251-861-2120.

The annual Dauphin Island Regatta sets sail on April 30th as hundreds of sailboats take to Mobile Bay for the 17 nautical mile course.

Beginning at approximately 9:30 a.m. the race will end near the Alabama Deep Sea Fishing Rodeo site on the Island. For information, please visit http://dirace2011.ifcyinc.org.

New events are regularly added to the Dauphin Island calendar of events, so visit www.dauphinislandcoc.com to view the most current list and make your plans to come on down throughout the year. Dauphin Island in just south of Mobile on the beautiful Gulf of Mexico at the mouth of Mobile Bay. Call 251-861-5524, toll free 1-877-532-8744.