The 62nd Highland County Maple Festival
Regarding live entertainment, five performances will also be held at The Highland Center. The Little Switzerland Cloggers kick off the shows with a free performance at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, March 14th. Then, award-winning banjoist and dancer, Tyler Hughes, presents old time music at 3:00 p.m. To round out the night, Bill Jenkins and the Virginia Mountain Boys perform folk music of the Appalachian Mountains at 7:00 p.m. The Highland Center in Monterey will have an expanded presence at the festival this year, hosting the Highland County Visitor Center for festival information, children’s activities, vendors, and a “Maple Taproom,” featuring a place to sit down and enjoy an adult beverage, including the 2020 Daylight Cravings: Maple Bacon Breakfast Stout from Brothers Craft Brewing. On Saturday, March 21st, John Bullard plays classical banjo at 3:00 p.m., followed by the all-female trio, The official maple festival of Virginia returns with new experiences After Jack, with their popular “hot folk” performance. Admission to the Saturday 3:00 p.m. shows is $3, or a maple leaf keychain, and the Saturday 7:00 p.m. shows is $10. These four performances are brought to the public by the Highland County Arts Council and are made possible in part by funding from the Virginia Commission for the Arts, the National Endowment for the Arts, and the Community Foundation of the Central Blue Ridge. In addition, Hull’s Hideaway Restaurant and Tavern in Monterey will host the acoustic blues trio, Delta Junction, in a 21+ show on Saturday, March 21st at 9:00 p.m. for $10. The tradition of the annual Highland County Maple Festival returns March 14-15 and 21-22, 2020. Since 1958, visitors have been drawn to Highland County to tour real maple sugar camps for a cultural and culinary adventure. All-you-can-eat pancake and buckwheat cake meals, over 100 arts & crafts vendors, and live entertainment make this county-wide event a fun outing with lasting memories for the entire family. Many additional activities can be found on stops while driving around the countryside that features expansive scenic views. These activities include feeding of live fish at the Virginia Trout Company north of Monterey, reliving history with a Highland Museum exhibit at The Mansion House in McDowell, viewing additional vendors at The Church at the Old Oak in Meadowdale, experiencing a local restaurant or store, or enjoying hard craft cider at Big Fish Cider Co. in downtown Monterey. Local civic clubs and organizations feature delicious food, including those famous fresh maple doughnuts, pancake and buckwheat meals with sausage and gravy, trout sandwiches, pork rinds and just about anything maple-flavored! Additional food vendors on Water Street in Monterey offer treats like maple-bacon cupcakes, maple fudge, maple-bacon dates and brewery crafted nachos with maple. Traditional hours of the festival include Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and Sundays from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., though visitors can get a jumpstart to the day with an all-you-can-eat pancake meal as early as 7:00 a.m. More details on all the festival happenings can be found at www.highlandcounty.org/events/maple-festival or www.facebook.com/HighlandCounty.