The Cluculz Lake Jamboree is on now and will jazz up the whole weekend at the community hall west of the city.
"Fifteen country music bands will fill Cluculz Lake Community Hall, with most kinds of country music you can think of," said Marlene Bernier, chair of the event.
"There will be old country, bluegrass, folk, and a taste of eclectic country and likely a few surprises. Listen or dance to your heart's content. The hall is on Lund Road about 30 minute west of Prince George."
This year, a celebration will envelope the event. With sadness, one of the area's leading musical figures passed away recently. George Garbutt was a core member of the Lakeside Ramblers group and a dedicated organizer of local music events like the Cluculz Lake festival in earlier years.
"This event is a memorial," said Bernier.
It's also notable this year because of the new surroundings. The Cluculz Lake Community Hall got a full facelift, thanks to a $250,000 grant shared between the federal gas tax proceeds and the Bulkley Nechako Regional District.
Admission for this event is $10 per day, available at the door.
There will be an on-site barbecue concession in operation. A roast beef dinner happens at 5 p.m. tonight ($10 for the dinner) plus a pancake breakfast on Sunday at 9 a.m. for $7.
The adjacent campsite is available for free RVing or tenting, as long as campers respect the prohibition on open fires due to wildfire caution.
The music gets going at 10 a.m. today and tomorrow, after the soft opening on Friday night. The host band is Mud River and they will be joined, said Bernier, with musical friends "who play all over B.C. and especially the Cariboo and north-central B.C."
