Fun-Seeking Crowds Fill Festivals, Freeways : Events: Garden Grove’s celebration of strawberries is expected to draw 250,000. Beaches and the Scottish fair also prove popular.

Marsha and Gary Yoshiba had a ready explanation for why they zipped down from their home in Los Angeles County to attend this city’s 33rd annual Strawberry Festival.

Their 3-year-old son, Lauren, loves the berries.

It didn’t take any coaxing to prove it. No sooner had the toddler finished his first-ever ride on the festival’s Ferris wheel than he began gobbling a bowl of strawberry shortcake held by his smiling father.

“He likes strawberries, that’s why we came,” Gary Yoshiba said. “And he’ll probably have some more.”

The Yoshibas were among thousands of people who flocked to the festival Saturday to celebrate the strawberry, enjoy carnival rides and gorge themselves on a variety of food. Among the special events was a 1 1/2-mile parade featuring toothy crooner Pat Boone as grand marshal and other celebrities, local dignitaries, colorful floats and high school bands.

But the festival, which is expected to draw up to 250,000 people by its end Monday, was just one of a plethora of doings that caught the fancy of county residents as the long Memorial Day weekend began.

At the Orange County Fairgrounds, people enjoyed the culture of Scotland as they watched bagpipers, marching bands, dancers and athletic competitions at the 59th annual Scottish Festival. The bagpipe-playing Royal Scots Dragoon Guards--who recently returned from military duty in the Persian Gulf--performed in concert in their ceremonial uniforms.

Dancers dressed in colorful kilts performed the Highland fling and other folk dances, while athletes competed in the caber toss, the hammer throw, the weight toss, soccer and rugby. Other events included border collies herding sheep and ducks, clan tents and a darts tournament. The festival, open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., concludes today.

About 100,000 people flocked to the county’s beaches, but the crowds were kept from getting bigger by patchy clouds that remained over some stretches until well into the afternoon, lifeguards said.

“It’s not a hot, hot day, but it’s a real nice day,” said Chris Brown, a Laguna Beach lifeguard. “There’s some surf, and everyone’s having a nice time.”

But most of those who planted themselves in the sand stayed well away from the water, which was a chilly 59 degrees off most beaches.

The California Highway Patrol reported a steady surge of traffic headed south on Interstate 5 toward San Diego throughout the day.

Other freeways were having few problems, although officials warned motorists to prepare for the usual onslaught of congestion late Monday as Memorial Day celebrators begin returning home.

In the meantime, the weather should do a pretty good job of cooperating with any outdoor activity. Forecasts call for the usual spring conditions for Southern California--a mix of early-morning and late-night clouds that will break by noon in most spots.

But a weak cold front that is expected to sweep across eastern California should cool things off slightly today and Monday and produce some winds today, with gusts of 15 to 25 m.p.h., said Steve Burback, a meteorologist with WeatherData Inc., which provides forecasts for The Times.

Temperatures in the middle to upper 60s are expected along the coast today, with the thermometer climbing to 80 degrees in the county’s inland reaches, Burback said. On Monday, it should cool a few degrees. Lows in the 50s are expected both days.

The clouds were lingering just a bit as the Strawberry Festival Parade began Saturday morning, led off appropriately enough by a giant, strawberry-shaped balloon that floated along the route, tethered to a pair of handlers.

Boone and other dignitaries--including Assemblyman Tom Umberg (D-Garden Grove) and actor Billy Barty--waved tiny U.S. flags at the crowd as a symbol of support for the troops who fought in the Gulf War. Several floats were stocked with beauty pageant participants from various cities.

Elsewhere, some festival-goers were escaping the crush of people along the parade route Saturday morning and taking advantage of the short lines on the carnival rides.

Other activities running throughout the festival include carnival games, an arts and crafts show and more than 100 exhibit booths displaying novelty items, crafts, home-improvement items, civic displays and industrial products. The festival is at Village Green Park, 12862 Euclid Ave. and is open from noon to 11:30 p.m. today and from 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. Monday.