It’s that time again……RIVERFEST!!
With the temperatures around here still being so hot it is hard to believe that Fall is upon us, but what better way to kick off the fall (other than football of course!) with Wilmington’s Annual Riverfest! Riverfest is one of two downtown street festivals the
town puts on every year, the spring version is the Azalea Festival. This years festival is going to be October 5th, 6th, and 7th , and will be on Front and Water Streets as usual. Riverfest is a very popular event for the locals and out of Towner’s even travel this way to take part in the fun. The festival started back in 1979, downtown had become some what of a “ghost town” with many retailers jumping ship to the new Mall and centers for shopping, but there were some originals still holding their ground and keeping their storefronts and pubs on Front Street open for business. Many owners felt with the new “mall craze” people were not appreciating the grand architecture and beautifully mysterious river that downtown Wilmington offers. A small group of Wilmingtonians began organizing a cultural street fair that would take place in Historic Downtown to bring the people back down there. Riverfest was born…. The first Riverfest was October 4th, 5th, and 6th, 1979 and was a huge success!! Riverfest not only has brought great family fun to the locals but it has also had a huge economic impact on our surrounding community year after year.
Here is a list of events taking place at this years festival that you won’t want to miss!
Classic Car Display-
Dust off that antique car and show her off on the streets of downtown. This is held on Saturday the 6th from 10-6.
Run on the River 8K-
This is put on by the Wilmington Road Runners Club, one of the oldest clubs in North Carolina. Here is a link to the Route Map: 2012 Run the River 8K Route Map PDF Race will begin on Sunday, the 7th at 8:00 am, registration begins at 6:30 am.
Invasion of the Pirates Flotilla-
This is definitely one event you won’t want to miss, big vessels old and new will be decked out in pirate flags, multi color lights and pirates screaming out ARRGGGG. Here is a link to the flotilla route: http://www.wilmingtonriverfest.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/Flotilla-Route.pdf. This takes place on Saturday the 6th at dusk, 7:15 pm.
For more info, check out: http://www.wilmingtonriverfest.com/
Enjoy the festival!
Written by: BlueCoast agent Carly Gravely