By Darlene Brace
The 18th Annual Jamestown Regional Celtic Festival with the Gathering of the Clans will take place at Lakeside Park in Mayville on August 22nd-23rd. The Celtic nations will be celebrating their heritage and culture with a community festival with lots of great music, food, athletic competitions, and fun. There will be over twenty clans represented, and they will each have a booth to display their own unique heritage.
Live music will be one of the key components of the festival which will take place in tents and the beer and wine garden. The festival will kick off on Friday night from 6pm-9:30pm with a performance by Tuatha Dea, a band from Gatlinburg, Tennessee that tours nationally and internationally (see feature story, page 8). They blend Celtic music with rock, Appalachian blues, Americana, and drumming to create their unique sound. Tuatha Dea, a crowd favorite, will also perform two more times on Saturday in the beer and wine garden at 3pm and again at 7pm.
On Saturday, more live music will take place in the beer and wine garden. Emerald Isle will perform from 11am-1pm and Catch and Release will play from 4pm-6:30pm. In the tent near vendor row, Celtic Creek will perform at 9:30am, Water Horse will play at 1:30pm, and Step N’ Time performs at 3:30pm. The same location will be where Irish dancers perform at 9am and 3pm as well as Scottish dancers performing at 11am and at 12:30pm.
While you soak in the lively tunes in the beer and wine garden, adults can revel in a selection of fine beverages, including the rich flavors of Guinness, the smoothness of Smithwick’s, and the crispness of Harp Lager. Local vendors will add to the mix by featuring some Southern Tier brews along with Merritt Winery’s Slush Bus, known for its tasty wine slushes.
As you immerse yourself in Celtic culture, you will have the opportunity to enjoy performances by several pipe bands that feature bagpipes and drums. This includes local groups such as the sponsor 96 Highlanders, as well as the Mackenzie Highlanders, Celtic Circle, Feadon Or, Caledonians, and Gordon’s Highlanders. There will be a Massed Band Performance at 1pm and again at 5pm, where several of the pipe bands come together to play as one.
Both men and women will participate in the Celtic Festival’s Heavy Athletics Competition. Heavy Athletics includes traditional Scottish events that require significant strength. Contestants will compete in various events, which may include the caber toss, sheaf toss, hammer throw, stone put, and others. Winners will be awarded plaques to commemorate their achievements.
For children, the Clan Hunt is a fun activity. The kids receive a map of Scotland, and as they visit the booths of different clans, they collect stamps on their map. Once they complete the Clan Hunt, they are awarded a festival medal. There is also a kid’s area with a bubble maker, cornhole, and other games.
Surely after all this fun, you and your group will have worked up an appetite. There will be food vendors such as the Haggis Hut that serves Scottish cuisine, 3’C’s Catering, Fowler’s Foods, and Mr. D’s to name a few. There will likely be kettle corn, candy apples, fried dough, and other sweet treats. In addition to the food vendors, there will be artisan vendors offering Celtic apparel and kilts, jewelry, décor, and other Celtic items as well as a variety of other vendors selling typical fair wares.
If you want more festival information and a detailed schedule of all the festival activities, go to 96thhighlanders.com. On the website you can also purchase presale tickets at a discounted rate. Please note, there is free parking available, and for your convenience, a free shuttle service will transport you back and forth between the parking area and the festival.
You are invited to join the 18th Jamestown Regional Celtic Festival, where you can enjoy lively music, watch athletes compete in Heavy Athletic events, and indulge in a wide variety of delicious food and beverages. Immerse yourself in Celtic heritage, culture, and traditions at this fun community event. Bring your friends and family to Mayville on the weekend of August 22nd-23rd to this unique cultural celebration.