Supported by Dark MOFO, Events Tasmania and the Huon Valley Council, the annual Huon Valley Mid-Winter Fest is a 3-day event celebrating the significance of the apple in the Huon Valley.
The festival will light up the winter nights with exciting bonfires, dance performances, folk music and storytelling. Mouth-watering food and refreshing beverages will be offered to the participants. Read on to know more about the festival.
Venue: The Apple Shed, 2064 Huon Highway, Grove TAS 7109
Date: 15th – 17th July, 2016 (Friday to Sunday)
Traditions
Continuing with an age old tradition, wassailing will take place to awake the cider apple trees and scare away the evil spirits for ensuring a good harvest of fruit in the autumn season. Wassail King and Queen lead the procession song. Afterwards, the Wassail Queen is lifted up into the branches of the tree where she is supposed to leave a toast soaked in wassail, from the Clayen Cup, as a present to the tree spirits.
Storytelling
Back in the old days, folks gather around the fire to share stories with each other. Huon Valley Mid-Winter Fest attempts to recreate those beautiful moments. During the festival, well known storytellers such as Philip Rush, Tara Smith, Jackie Kerin, Emily and Ben Conolan will share interesting tales with the listeners.
Food & Drink
The delectable food and beverages can be enjoyed by all. Few of the eating venues that can be visited are Black Box Kitchen, Black Mountain Smokehouse, and Our Little Vegan Kitchen. You can enjoy dishes and drinks like cake kombi, hand-crafted Lark Single Malt Whisky, and Flammkuchen.
Music
Professional artists will add more value to the fest with their performances. From folk to jazz, everything will be played here. Some of the artists and bands that’ll perform here include The Crooked Fiddle Band, Willie Wagtails, Grim Fawkner, Rowena Wise, George Begbie and Guerilla Zingari.
Costumes and Prizes
Individuals dressed up especially for Wassail have a chance of winning attractive cash prizes. On Saturday, Best Male wins $250, Best Female Runner Up takes away $100, and Best Child receives $250. On Sunday, the Best Family wins $500 and Best Family Runner Up takes away $250.
Tickets
Tickets will be sold in three pre-sale releases, with a limited number available in each release. Interested people can choose between Weekend Pass, Friday Tickets, Saturday Tickets and Sunday Tickets. Travellers should check out the official website for more information regarding the same.
How to Get There?
There will be free buses moving around the valley picking up people from two locations: Village Green and Skinner Drive. Furthermore, there’ll be special buses running from different places around the south of Tasmania.
Accommodation Options
Crabtree House, Driftwood Cottages, Hobart Hideaway Pods, Southern Lights Hotels, and Port Huon Cottages are some of the accommodation choices available to guests.
