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Wahoo Adventures Hosts A Day of River Tubing and Outdoor Fun at Float Fest on June 23

A crowd gathered for tubing at the 2015 Float Fest run by Wahoo’s and AMB.

Wahoo’s Adventures will be holding its annual Float Fest June 23 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., which includes a day of tubing in the New River and camping the night before and day of.

Float Fest is a BYOB event and will take participants on a 3-hour leisurely float that loops and ends where it began. The water is knee-deep at some parts and waist-deep at others in this “slow-moving, natural mountain stream” as General Manager Jim Roberts said.

The event will start at 10 a.m. with tubing and continue until 2 p.m. with live music from The King Bees, a blues band. Staff member Katrinka Walsh, who has sung blues all around the world, will also be giving her first performance at this event.

Wahoo’s Adventures owns private property on all its water activity locations so there are picnic areas, showers and restroom facilities. The event is on a first-come first-served basis and booking a reservation ahead of time is recommended, for both camping and tubing.

The Float Fest will use some of its proceeds to help support the Middle Fork Greenway project, which is a multi-use recreational trail being developed to help connect Boone to Blowing Rock, according to its website.

Wahoo’s Adventures has supported other organizations in the past, but the Greenway Project is the usual charity recipient for Float Fest. Owner and founder Jeff Stanley said they believe that by supporting the building of this pathway, it will better our community and create an opportunity to get out in nature and exercise.

“If we have a trail that’s going from Blowing Rock all the way into Boone and then eventually to Todd, we’re probably going to have one of the best bicycle trails in the country,” Stanley said.

Turnout for Float Fest depends on weather conditions, but the money raised from the event usually falls between two and three thousand dollars.

Float Fest started a few years ago when Stanley teamed up with Danny Wilcox from Appalachian Mountain Brewery. Wahoo’s usually teams up with a brewery for this event, but because of new alcohol laws in Boone, the event had to be made a BYOB event. The event is located at the New River Outpost on 3380 Big Hill Road, Todd NC. More information can be found on Wahoo’s website at https://www.wahoosadventures.com and on the Facebook event page https://www.facebook.com/events/841776502850336/.

Tubing on the New River, which provides a scenic float through wildlife and mountain landscape.