January Events in the Blue Ridge National Heritage Area

January 1

  • Annual New Year's Polar Plunge, the Beach at Lake Lure. Freeze for a reason - to support local charities. Or just come for the fun. Registration begins at 11 am; the Plunge is at noon. Hot drinks, food and bonfires will be on hand for crowds at both the primary plunge site on the Beach at Lake Lure and also at the post-plunge awards party at the Geneva Hotel's Tiki Bar on the Rocky Broad River.

January 5

  • Thursday Jam:  7 - 8:30 PM, Old-Time Music Heritage Hall,  EARLE Theatre, 142 N. Main St., Mount Airy.  Year round, free. Surry Arts Council, 336-786-7998. 
  • Bluegrass Music Jam every Thursday night at The Marion Depot, Marion. 7 pm. 
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall. 828-649-1647.

January 6

  • Winter Heat, An Exhibit of Oils and Collages by Karen McEachin Breit, Welborn Gallery, Yadkin Cultural Arts Center, 226 E. Main Street, Yadkinville, NC.  Opening reception Jan. 6, 5:30 pm.  Exhibit runs through March 3. Breit’s vividly colored nature-themed oils and contemplative collages will warm viewers during this coldest month of the year.
  • Old Fort Mountain Music. 7 pm; Rockett Building, Main Street in downtown Old Fort. 888-233-6111.
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall. 828-649-1647.

January 7

January 12

  • Thursday Jam:  7 - 8:30 PM, Old-Time Music Heritage Hall (lower level of Andy Griffith Museum), 218 Rockford Street, Mount Airy, NC. Year round, free. Surry Arts Council, 336-786-7998. 
  • Bluegrass Music Jam every Thursday night at The Marion Depot, Marion. 7 pm. 
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall. 828-649-1647.

January 13

  • Old Fort Mountain Music. 7:00pm; Rockett Building, Main Street in downtown Old Fort. 888-233-6111.
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall. 828-649-1647.

January 14

  • Saturday Jam:  9 - 11 am, EARLE Theatre, 142 N Main Street, Mount Airy, NC. Year round.  Surry Arts Council, 336-786-7998.
  • Merry-Go-Round: 11 am -1:30 pm, EARLE Theatre, 142 N Main Street, Mount Airy, NC.  WPAQ hosts the second longest running live radio broadcast in the nation, different guests each week.  Year round.  Surry Arts Council. 336-786-7998.
  • Davidson's Fort Historic Park,Old Fort. Open to the public Saturdays from 10 am - 4 pm. A replica is being constructed of the original Revolutionary War-era fort built in 1776. 
  • Saluda Mountain Jamboree. Live music and dancing, Saluda, NC.  828-749-3676.

January 18

  • Textiles and Natural Dyes in India, Catharine Ellis. Textile Study Group, HandMade in America, 5:30 pm.  Join this group and explore information and history of various forms of textiles. jjetson@handmadeinamerica.org or call 828-252-0121, ext 304.

January 19

  • Swannanoa Valley Rim Hike Interest Meeting.  Community Room at Black Mountain Savings Bank, Black Mountain. 7 - 8:30 pm. The Swannanoa Valley Museum’s exclusive Swannanoa Rim Explorer™ hiking series offers eleven hikes that will take place the third Saturday of each month of 2012. Participation is limited.  Those interested should attend this informational meeting where there will be the opportunity to sign up for this unique experience. 828-669-9566.
  • Thursday Jam:  7 - 8:30 PM, Old-Time Music Heritage Hall EARLE Theater, Mount Airy, NC. Year round, free. Surry Arts Council, 336-786-7998. 
  • Bluegrass Music Jam every Thursday night at The Marion Depot, Marion. 7 pm. 
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall. 828-649-1647.

January 20

  • Old Fort Mountain Music. 7 pm; Rockett Building, Main Street in downtown Old Fort. 888-233-6111.
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall. 828-649-1647.

January 21

  • Susan Wernter & David Wilcox, singer-songwriterse perform at Diana Wortham Theater, Asheville. 8 pm.
  • Saturday Jam:  9 - 11 am, EARLE Theatre, 142 N Main Street, Mount Airy, NC. Year round.  Surry Arts Council, 336-786-7998.
  • Merry-Go-Round: 11
    am -1:30 pm, EARLE Theatre, 142 N Main Street, Mount Airy, NC.  WPAQ
    hosts the second longest running live radio broadcast in the nation,
    different guests each week.  Year round.  Surry Arts Council. 336-786-7998.
  • Davidson's Fort Historic Park,Old
    Fort. Open to the public Saturdays from 10 am - 4 pm. A replica is
    being constructed of the original Revolutionary War-era fort built in
    1776. 
  • Saluda Mountain Jamboree. Live music and dancing, Saluda, NC.  828-749-3676.
  • Voice of the Blue Ridge: Every 3rd Saturday, 7:30 - 9 pm, EARLE Theatre, 142 N Main Street, Mount Airy, NC.  Carolina Travelers host an evening of Bluegrass/Old-Time Music with a different guest band each month.  Year round, $7 for adults, children 12 & under free.   Surry Arts Council, 336-786-7998.

January 26

  • 14th Annual Winterfest, Blowing Rock. Runs through January 29.  Mix the heat of bonfires and toasted marshmallows with the frozen thrill of the Polar Plunge and ice carvings.
  • Thursday Jam:  7 - 8:30 PM, Old-Time Music Heritage Hall,  (EARLE Theatre, 142 N. Main St., Mount Airy, NC. Year round, free. Surry
    Arts Council, 336-786-7998.
  • Bluegrass Music Jam every Thursday night at the Marion Depot, Marion, NC.  7 pm. 
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall.  828-649-1647.

January 27

  • Old Fort Mountain Music. 7 pm; Rockett Building, Main Street in downtown Old Fort. 888-233-6111.
  • Live music at Zuma's, Main Street, Downtown Marshall. 828-649-1647.

January 28

  • Chase Away the Blues concert, benefit for the Tryon Fine Arts Center’s Arts in Education programs. Tryon, NC. 4:30 - 10:30 pm.  828-859-8322
  • Selected Shorts, literature performance, Diana Wortham Theater, Asheville. 8 pm.
  • "Civil War Comes to the Mountains" Lecture Series sponsored by the Western North Carolina Historical Association. 2 pm at the Reuter Center on the UNC-A campus, Asheville. Manheimer Room, 102A.  "Rebels and Tories in the Mountains" presented by Dr. Steven E. Nash.   WNCHA members may attend free of charge.  A $5.00 donation is requested from non-members.   Reservations may be made by calling 828-253-9231 or by emailing smh@wnchistory.org  Reservations are not required.
  • White Liquor & Dirt Tracks Exhibit, Mount Airy Museum of Regional History, Mt. Airy. Runs through mid-May. Returning for its third season, this popular exhibit launches with a special day of activities on January 28. This year's theme is "Biographies," highlighting the life and times of pioneers in stock car racing, a sport with strong ties to northwestern North Carolina.
  • Saturday Jam:  9 - 11 am,  EARLE Theatre, 142 N. Main St., Mount Airy.. Year round.  Surry Arts Council, 336-786-7998.
  • Merry-Go-Round:  11 am -1:30 pm, EARLE Theatre, 142 N Main Street, Mount Airy, NC.  WPAQ hosts the second longest running live radio broadcast in the nation, different guests each week.  Year round.  Surry Arts Council. 336-786-7998.
  • Davidson's Fort Historic Park, Old Fort. Open to the public Saturdays from 10 am -4 pm. A replica is being constructed of the original Revolutionary War-era fort built in 1776. 
  • Saluda Mountain Jamboree. Live music and dancing, Saluda, NC.  828-749-3676.

January 29

  • Historic Riceville Tour, Swannanoa Valley Museum, Black Mountain.  1:30 - 4:40 pm.  Explore the rich and colorful history of the Riceville area, the westernmost part of the Swannanoa Valley. 828-669-9566.

See February Events