A Tale of Two Festivals

Summer may be over, but thousands of people are still enjoying the park this fall. On Sept. 21, Lake James hosted the 16th Annual Catawba Riverfest. The weather was perfect, the food was fantastic, and over 1,500 people visited educational booths and learned all about what makes the Catawba River, its reservoirs and communities so special. Highlights of the event included the traditional kayak raffle and the release of a rehabilitated red-tailed hawk back into the wild. The immature raptor, nursed back to health by the May Wildlife Rehabilitation Center at Lees-McRae College, made quite an exit as it flew out of its travel carrier and over the crowd before resting in a nearby tree.

On Oct. 12, seventeen teams from the Carolinas competed in the 3rd annual Lake James Dragon Boat Festival. Started by Lake James’ own Healing Dragons, the event is co-sponsored by Carolina Healthcare System Blue Ridge. This year’s event drew a crowd of more than 2,500 race participants and fans. Teams came from as far away as Charleston, SC and included club teams, cancer survivor teams and community teams. The community teams did quite well, with several of them placing higher than club teams. The Dragons of Motown, a local team out of Morganton, placed first in their division while The James Gang, a community team sponsored by the Friends of Lake James State Park group and comprised of park staff and friends group members, placed second in their own division. Stay tuned for next year’s Save-the-Date because this is one event you won’t want to miss.