The 38th annual Mountain Heritage Day saw a mild stretch of rain early in the morning but went onto see fair skies for the majority of the day. The day featured a combination of old-time mountain fair, traditional Appalachian folk showcases, and music that went on for the whole day.
The exact attendance for the day was unknown but it the WCU homepage said it was one of the largest turnouts in the past five years.
Mountain Faith, local bluegrass band based out of Sylva, started the day at 10 a.m. and played a 45 minute set featuring some old bluegrass favorites including the song “Morning’s Coming” written by Jeff and Sheri Easter. Mountain Faith’s music can be found at www.mountainfaith.bandzoogle.com/ .
John Morgan, the guitarist for Mountain Faith said the he thoroughly enjoyed playing at Mountain Heritage Day.
“I really felt like the people were dancing, tapping their feet and just remembering a lot of the songs they grew up on,” Morgan said.
Morgan also mentioned that his favorite part of the day was listening to the bluegrass favorite Balsam Range. Balsam Range played at both 10:45 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. drawing some of the biggest crowds of the day during their afternoon performance.
Ryan Grace, a senior at Western Carolina, attended the festival for several hours and enjoyed listening to gospel group The Tried Stone Gospel Choir which played on the Blue Ridge Stage.
“I’ve always loved Mountain Heritage Day. It’s a great chance to look good in my flannel, tap my feet to some bluegrass, shake my hips to some gospel, and devour some delicious Indian Fry Bread,” said Grace. “The Tried Stone Gospel Choir reminded me of my roots and the church that I grew up in. My aunt Deborah is an African-American gospel singer. And being eighteen hours from home it’s good to hear some gospel music every now and then.”
