Blueberry celebration set for June 12

Photo: With help from uncle Joe Knobloch, Ben Bedwell goes straight for the blueberries in his blueberry pancakes at last year’s festival. The Blueberry Pancake Breakfast begins at 8 a.m. on June 12, and tons of fun will continue until 4 p.m. at the 21st annual Texas Blueberry Festival in downtown Nacogdoches.
Photo by Bruce R. Partain)

The Texas Blueberry Festival, presented by Brookshire Brothers, offers a day-long celebration of the annual blueberry harvest, featuring live music, farm tours, delicious blueberry fare and children’s activities.

“The 21st annual Texas Blueberry Festival will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., Saturday, June 12, in historic downtown Nacogdoches, the First Town in Texas,” said Festival Chair Michelle Smith. “Admission and parking are free, and thanks to Keep Nacogdoches Beautiful, it’s a litter free event.”

According to Smith, Cowboy Max will not only be back, but he will meet up with Jack Dagger for a battle of the bullwhips and blades.

“Cowboy Max will give his daring exhibition of trick roping and bullwhip stunts in his wooly chaps,” said Smith. “And Jack Dagger is a knife-throwing dare devil. Look for two performances during the morning hours on the Festival Plaza stage.”

Festival attendees will want to start the day off with a delicious stack of pancakes made with fresh-picked local blueberries. Hayter’s Mill Creek Farm will also be selling fresh blueberries, and free shuttles rides will provide transportation from the festival to a nearby farm where guests can pick their own blueberries right off the bush.

Live musical entertainment, including folk, country, blues and soft rock performances, may be enjoyed all day on three stages. Children’s activities will include the Blueberry Bounce Park, the Too Blue Petting Zoo and the Big Blue Mural. More than 100 arts, crafts and food vendors will also be on site.

Other attractions include a state and nationally-sanctioned 42 tournament, pie-eating contest, pet parade, horse shoes and washers tournament, classic car show, costume contest and ice cream and cobbler competitions. Visit the Cool Zone locations that will allow festival attendees to relax and take a break from the summer heat.

Prime growing conditions make Nacogdoches County the number one blueberry producer in the state, and the annual harvest peaks in early summer. Proceeds from the Texas Blueberry Festival benefit the Nacogdoches County Chamber of Commerce’s various community and business development programs.

Nacogdoches is located in the piney woods of Texas approximately 150 miles north of Houston on U.S. Hwy. 59.

For more information about the Texas Blueberry Festival, call the Nacogdoches County Chamber of Commerce at 936-560-5533 or the Nacogdoches Convention and Visitors Bureau at 1-888-OLDEST TOWN. Find a link to the Texas Blueberry Festival schedule of events and other details at www.nacogdoches.org.