Authentic handmade Appalachian crafts and good ol’ Bluegrass music will highlight the annual Wilderness Road State Park.
The event is sponsored by the Friends of Wilderness Road State Park.
Shadow Ridge performing at the 2012 Heritage Festival
The perennial highlight of the Heritage Festival is the soulful bluegrass music performed on theKarlan Mansion lawn by various local musicians and bands. These sounds fill the autumn air, taking many back in time where they can truly reflect on their heritage. Last year’s event featured a popular slate of musicians and coordinator Frances Inwood expects this year’s list of performers to be just as entertaining.
The music schedule is as follows:
- 11 a.m. to 11:45 am – Town Branch
- 11:50 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. – Ken Wilson
- 12:35 p.m. to 1:20 p.m. – Town Branch
- 1:25 p.m. to 2:10 p.m. – C. F. Bailey and Shadow Ridge
- 2:15 p.m. to 3 p.m. – Ken Wilson and Larry Goodwin
- 3:05 p.m. to 3:50 p.m. – Larry Goodwin
- 3:55 p.m. to 4:40 p.m. – C. F. Bailey and Shadow Ridge
The Karlan Mansion offers an awesome backdrop for the Bluegrass performances.
The Children’s Festival continues to be a very popular part of the Heritage Festival with activities and entertainment provided throughout the day. This year, the Children’s Festival will feature a clown, whose shenanigans include face painting, games, crafts and more. Games and prizes have been added to this year’s slate, featuring a country fair theme with apple toss, rubber duck game and more!
A clown entertains the children with crafts, face-painting, games and more!
As part of the Heritage Festival weekend, the park will also host the Martin’s Station Fall Encampment:
The event offers visitors a glimpse into the fall season along the Wilderness Road in 1875 as settlers prepared for the long winter ahead. It also marked a time for the frontiersmen to relax and enjoy their gardens’ bounty, usually through a harvest festival.
The three day Fall Encampment events will educate area students on Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with Saturday’s activities scheduled from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday’s hours are 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Soap making, 18th century music, a Longhunter’s camp, artillery firing, Cherokee warrior’s camp, open hearth cooking, textile dyeing, militia drills, blacksmithing and an 18th century market highlight the activities and demonstrations scheduled for the Fall Encampment.
Fall at Martin's Station along the Wilderness Road.
Admission is $5 per adult, $1 per child (ages 6-12) and children 5 –under are admitted free. Local crafters and vendors are encouraged to set up, show off their art and sell their creations. If you are a crafter or would like to set up to sell food at the event, or need more information, please contact the park office at 276-445-3065.
For more information, please contact the park by phone: 276-445-3065, via email: website here.
For more information about Virginia State Parks’ activities and amenities or to make reservations in one of the more than 1,800 campsites or 300 climate-controlled cabins, call the Virginia State Parks Reservation Center at 800-933-PARK or click here.
Wilderness Road State Park is located in Ewing, Virginia: