Music and More | Bear Shadow Music Festival

Written By: Marlene Osteen | Issue: March 2023

The Bear Shadow Music Festival which launched in 2021, and has ever since been energizing this mountain community, will remerge the weekend of April 28-30.  

At the idyllic Winfield Farms in Scaly Mountain, the audience, smaller than is usual at festivals of this caliber, enjoys a rare connection with the performing artists.  Once again, this year’s festival brings together a roster of dazzling talent and renowned artists. 

Highlighting the three-day event are superstars Spoon, The Head and the Heart, Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit.  Equally talented and appearing at Winfield Farms, otherwise known as Base Camp, are Fruit Bats, Lissie, Neal Francis, Myron Elkins, Amythyst Kiah, and Woody Platt & Shannon Whitworth.

Amid all the excitement about the performances at Base Camp, it would be easy, though regrettable, to overlook the plucky charm and novel energy of the smaller events offered over the weekend. Linking them all together is a shared current of excitement, an enthusiasm for a more intimate and organic experience.  Events, listed below, are worthy of your attention:

Summit & Sound

Summit & Sound

Explore the forests, trails, woodlands, and vistas that only Highlands can offer on a one-to-two-mile trek that culminates in a performance by one of the festival artists.  Hikes are described as “moderate to strenuous,” and participants are urged to come prepared for and dress appropriately for the weather and conditions.  The festival will once again partner with the Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust to lead hikes on Satulah Mountain and Brushy Creek Preserve. Saturday’s event is sold out, but there are a few Friday tickets remaining.  Cost is $70.

Live Stream

Live Stream

For many an angler, Highlands is one of their favorite places to fly fish.  This is not surprising given the area’s intoxicating natural beauty – clear waters, waterfalls, lively rapids and deep pools. Which is to say that the Plateau regularly draws anglers whose hearts quicken at the thought of local rivers filled with trout jumping between fern-covered rock, alongside blossoming mountain laurel and mountain backdrops. Offered on Saturday, April 29 is an exclusive half-day flyfishing experience on private waters, guided by Brookings Fly Shop, in the company of musician and angler Woody Platt of the Steep Canyon Rangers.  Cost is $500.

Bearfoot in the Park

Bearfoot in the Park

A morning fitness experience at Kelsey Hutchinson Park.  Sara Fricke, owner of The Works Charleston’s Sweat Studio will lead yoga fans in a one-hour flow.   The class is complimentary, but students must reserve at the ticket link on the festival website. Saturday and Sunday, April 29 and 30: 9:00 to 10:00 A.M.