By Jessica Isaacs
Looking for an exciting way to enjoy this weekend? Break out your lederhosen and head up to Sugar Mountain Resort for its 25th annual Oktoberfest celebration from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday. Bring the whole family or come on your own and make new friends — whatever you do, don’t miss this event!

Admission, parking and shuttle services are all free, and you can take advantage of on-mountain lodging discounts of up to 25 percent off if you want to stay for the whole weekend.
The fun takes places at the base of the mountain in the ski lodge, but you can ride the Green Chairlift or the Oma’s Meadow Chairlift to the top of Oma’s Meadow Slope and take in the impressive views.
Fill up on traditional Bavarian cuisine and wash it down with authentic Bavarian Spaten beer, which will be flowing all day each day. If you’d rather stick to American favorites, there will be hot dogs, hamburgers and other festival foods on hand.

The Oom Pah sounds of the Harbour Town Fest Band, including yodeling, accordions, Alpenhorns and more, will have you on your feet and dancing the weekend away. At 2 p.m on Saturday, hear a special performance by the Valle Crucis Middle School band.
Take the kids down to the Ski School Play Yard for bounce and play stations, hay rides, face painting, cotton candy, popcorn and a special appearance from Sugar Bear and Sweetie Bear.
Kim Jochl, vice president of the resort, said the Oktoberfest celebration brings people from all walks of life together and that it offers something for everyone.

“There’s a different atmosphere in each of the different sections, but the festival itself is lively and fun. There are families down in the kids section and up on the deck is a diverse and eclectic group of people who mesh together well to enjoy the festival,” Jochl said. “The band creates a lot of noise and the music inspires people to get up and dance, so that makes it really fun and people like to watch the dancing. Out in the craft area it’s pretty low-key because people are shopping and walking around.”
Oktoberfest at Sugar began as a one-day event hosted by the community association, but Jochl said the resort has worked hard over the years to upgrade it, change it and adapt it to what people are looking for when they come to the mountains.

Now, as the 25th annual event makes its way to the resort this weekend, locals and visitors to the High Country alike look forward to the growing celebration.
“It’s outside and it’s fall, and people love to be in the mountains in the fall. We also offer genuine Bavarian Spaten beer from Germany and the traditional foods like bratwurst, knockwurst, strudel and more,” Jochl said. “It’s consistent and solid with the Oktoberfest traditions and we continue to work to appeal to the customer and always make it better.

“Of course, the lift rides are a big hit when the weather’s great because it’s beautiful to see the foliage, and people who don’t ski really look forward to the opportunity to ride the lifts and get to the top of the mountain.”
While you’re at the ski lodge, enjoy discounts of up to 30 percent off all 2015 winter apparel and footwear in the sports and gift shop. You can also get your hands on new 2016 merchandise or get up to 50-70 percent off of Spyder sample items.
Have any questions? Call Sugar’s administrative office at 828-898-4521 for more information or check out www.skisugar.com.









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