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Blowing Rock North Carolina
and the surrounding area is home to many festivals and special events throughout the year. For those seeking a cultural experience, visit the town of Boone, the home of the Appalachian State University. Here you can enjoy a summer-long program of music, dance, lectures, workshops and art. The University also offers concerts all summer long by the North Carolina Symphony, including an outdoor show at Chetola Lake in Blowing Rock. The village of Blowing Rock also offers free concerts in the park every Sunday, featuring everything from bluegrass to bagpipe music. The Blowing Rock Stage Company holds evening performances and Sunday matinees, mid-June to early August at the Blowing Rock Arts Center. Many arts and crafts shows are held in the area, and Blowing Rock holds their own Art in the Park, which is a series of six juried art shows, every Saturday from May to October in the Town Park. Festivals in nearby towns include The Firefly Festival in Boone, the Woolly Worm Festival in Banner Elk, and the Grandfather Mountain Highland Games (the largest such gathering of Scottish clans in America.) And in the wintertime, area ski slopes sponsor several ski races and a special Winterfest.
The Blue Ridge Parkway rangers and volunteers present a variety of interpretive programs June through October, on weekends and occasionally on weekdays. Other special ranger led activities in the Parkway include campfire talks, music and history demonstrations, nature walks and slide presentations. Schedules are posted at various visitor centers, campground entrances and Parkway concessions. Other Blue Ridge Parkway special events include “Picking and Singing Along the Parkway,” where several places along the highway offer bluegrass and other old time music on a regular basis. Brinegar Days is an annual celebration of the Blue Ridge culture held at the old Brinegar Cabin.
The following is a list of other special events found in the communities of the Blue Ridge Mountains:
Annual Grandfather Mountain Nature Photography Weekend in June
Avery County Historical Society’s Heritage Festival in the town of Newland
The Annual “Singing on the Mountain” at Grandfather Mountain – a tradition for nearly a century, this event is free to the public and features all-day gospel singing, a church bazaar and dinner on the grounds held at MacRae Meadows.
Annual Christmas in July Festival in the town of West Jefferson.
Annual Blowing Rock Tour of Homes – usually held in July.
Annual “On-the-Square” Arts & Crafts Festival held in Newland Square.
Banner Elk’s Fine Art & Mastercrafts Festival – usually held the end of August.
Annual “Art in Your Cart” Golf Tournament on Sugar Mountain.
Octoberfest on Sugar Mountain
Halloween Festival in Blowing Rock
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