Fairs and festivals are in constant supply in the New River Gorge region. Here's a growing list of some of the best around which to plan your vacation.
April 22 -- West Virginia Ramp Festival -- Richwood (http://www.richwooders.com/ramp/ramps.htm)
This annual spring feast celebrates the ramp, or wild leek, a native Appalachian vegetable which supplemented the diet of mountain families. The festival at Richwood, an hour north of the Garvey House, is among the largest of hundreds of similar feasts celebrated throughout central Appalachia.
May 1-7 -- New River Birding & Nature Festival -- Fayetteville (www.birding-wv.com)
One of the best spring festivals for Appalachian birding, this weeklong event features five full days of birding in the field followed by an evening lecture series. Highlights include birding by raft through the gorge.
May 20-21 -- Battle of Lewisburg Reenactment -- Lewisburg (www.battleoflewisburg.org)
The annual reenactment of the 1862 skirmish fought for control of Lewisburg includes camps, a ladies' tea, lantern tours, a camp dance, and a reenactment of the skirmish at 2 p.m. Sunday, May 21. It's a great time to visit this incredible town less than an hour's drive from our door.
June 10 -- Captain Thurmond's Challenge Triathlon -- Thurmond (www.captainthurmondstriathlon.com)
World-famous celebration of athletics includes a 5K run, a 5K walk, children's events, and high-endurance race through the gorge covering a 12-mile bike route, an eight-mile stretch of whitewater river, and a seven-mile ascent from the depths of the gorge to the finish in Fayetteville.
June 10-Aug. 29 -- "Hatfields & McCoys" and "Honey in the Rock" -- Grandview (http://www.newriverwv.com/Arts_Outdoor_Dramas.php )
For more than 40 years the outdoor dramas "Hatfields & McCoys" and "Honey in the Rock" have entertained audiences under the night's sky in the National Park Service's Cliffside Amphitheatre at Grandview, a 45-minute drive south of the Garvey House. Performed in repertoir nightly (except Mondays).
June27-July 4 -- New River Gorge Heritage Festival -- Fayetteville (www.visitfayettevillewv.com)
Street fair in nearby Fayetteville culminates in a Fourth of July fireworks display (also visible from the spectacular cliffs at nearby Beauty Mountain ). Festival highlights include live music, a parade, buggy rides, and a carnival.
June 20-22 -- Hometown Mountain Heritage Festival -- Ansted
Celebrate West Virginia's birthday during a weekend-long street fair in this historical town and at adjacent Hawks Nest State Park, both about a 15-minute drive from the Garvey House. Festival highlights include live music, food and crafts vendors, a 5K run, and an interpretive walk on the Hawks Nest Trail.
July 30-August 3 Appalachian Stringband Music Festival -- Camp Washington-Carver (www.wvculture.org)
Every summer West Virginia masters are presented to an audience of more than 3,000 musicians and string-band music lovers from around the world at this camp fewer than five miles from the Garvey House. The gathering includes contests, concerts, workshops, square dances, camping, and a hymn-sing. (World-renown musicians are known to regularly attend this festival incognito!)
August 8-16 -- West Virginia State Fair -- Lewisburg (http://www.newriverrez.com/West_Virginia_State_Fair.php)
An hour's drive from the Garvey House, the fair celebrates West Virginia's agricultural heritage with crafts, food, and livestock competitions and exhibits. The fair concert series welcomes Foreigner, Trace Adkins, Marty Stuart, Big & Rich, The Seldom Scene, Carrie Underwood.
September12-13 Summersville Potato Festival - Summersville (http://www.summersvillecvb.com) Celebrating cash crop of days gone by. Arts, crafts, 5K run/walk, parade, music, potato judging and auctions, car show, pageant, food.
October 18 -- Bridge Day Festival -- Fayetteville
(http://www.wvbridgeday.com)
This once-a-year opportunity to walk across the New River Gorge Bridge attracts more than 200,000 visitors to the area annually. Professional jumpers from across the world parachute off the span. Events of all kinds fill the week prior to the festival. Whitewater rafting companies offer special packages during the weekend.
For more festivals around the area log into wvtourism.com or give us a call.
