Beat the Arizona heat with these small-town Fourth of July events

If there's one thing to know about me, it's that I'm obsessed with small-town fairs, festivals and parades. Yes, I watched too much "Gilmore Girls" when I was younger.

Lucky for me: Small-town Arizona on Fourth of July weekend is pretty much the mecca of community pride events

For this week's beat-the-heat feature, I've compiled some of these events in parts of the state that also happen to have nicer summer temperatures than the Valley.

If you go: Please send us photos!

Mormon Lake Charities Parade

• Catch the parade in this town southeast of Flagstaff at 11am Saturday, followed by a BBQ and ice cream social at the Mormon Lake Fire Station.

July 2nd Independence Day Bash

• Check out local businesses, let the kids enjoy the splash pad and listen to live music at Triple Creek Kitchen & Spirits in Prescott, starting at 4pm Saturday.

42nd Annual 4th of July Arts & Crafts Festival

• The Pine-Strawberry Arts & Craft Guild will host dozens of vendors at the Pine Community Center Grounds Saturday from 8am-5pm and Sunday from 8am-4pm.

All-American 4th of July Bash

• Tombstone will host a number of events throughout the long weekend including a parade, pin-up pageant and car show.

4th of July at Watson Lake

• Spend Monday evening at this lake outside of Prescott, where there will be water slides, live music, a beer garden and fireworks. Tickets are $5.

Route 66 Parade

• Williams, just west of Flagstaff, will host a parade at 6pm and fireworks at 9pm on Monday.

Hometown Celebration

• Enjoy family-friendly games, pie-eating contests and fireworks at Green Valley Park in Payson starting at 1pm Monday.

32nd Annual Oatman Egg Fry

• Bring your best ideas to cook an egg dish using only the power of the sun on Monday from 11am-1pm in Oatman, outside Kingman.

Bisbee Fourth of July Celebration

• Head down south Monday for a parade, vintage baseball games and more. Unfortunately, the Bisbee Coaster Races have been canceled.