The Festival for the Eno is a welcome respite from the usual July 4th activities of drinking, barbequing and setting off illegal fireworks. Now in its 25th year, the three-day event is notable for its vast array of performers, with more than 100 musicians from varying genres spread across five stages.
This year’s list of artists include the Red Clay Ramblers, Rev. Shirley Caesar & the Caesar Singers, Steep Canyon Rangers, Chatham County Line, Jonathan Byrd, Chris Stamey, Regina Hexaphone, Chinkapin Hunters, Big Fat Gap and a few score more.
The festival also features crafts from 100 of North Carolina’s finest artisans and the Bluegrass Camp for Kids, which offers beginning to advanced instruction in the banjo, guitar, bass and fiddle. For particularly ambitious folks, there’s even the 3rd annual Tour de Eno, a bike tour of the Eno River Valley that varies in length from 32 miles to 64 miles. All this, and you’re helping the environment, too–proceeds go to preserve and protect lands along the Eno River. The festival runs July 3-5 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Advance tickets are $10, with single day tickets available for $13. A special three-day pass can be purchased for $25. Children under 12 get in free. West Point on the Eno City Park, Roxboro Road, Durham. www.enoriver.org/festival
