Words and photos by Liz Williamson
The 2018 WinterWonder Grass Music Festival made a stop at Squaw Valley this past weekend and Tahoe showed up. Despite pouring rain, sleet, and snow, no one seemed to have a problem getting down to some world class bluegrass and acoustic music. Bands like the California Honeydrops, Fruition, Elephant Revival, and the Devil Makes Three were just a few of the bands that played on the main stage during the three day festival.
Ponchos in tow we didn’t let the rain get us down on the first day of the festival. The Steep Canyon Rangers had a rocking midday show on the main stage, followed by the The Infamous Stringdusters. They closed out the first night while the crowd danced around in the pouring rain. It was awesome to see our community in such high spirits, with huge smiles on faces, even in inclement weather.
Saturday was a huge day for the festival, we had the California Honeydrops perform, followed by the Devil Makes Three which was the big show on the main stage that night and for good reason. High energy and light snow really made for a memorable experience.
We finally saw the sun come out on the last day and the weather was beautiful. Tahoe in the spring is always nice, especially when you can mix in sunshine, skiing, and bluegrass music. After watching the always fun and exciting Elephant Revival, we found out that they are going to tour for two more years (originally this was going to be their last show!). We ended the night jamming out to Railroad Earth. Talk about some soul refreshing folk music with Grateful Dead vibes.
We walked home that night from the festival heads full of amazing music, eager to go back next year. I hope everyone had a safe and fun night. Thank you to all the amazing bands that came out and put on such an awesome show. Thank also to everyone that worked and volunteered at the event, it wouldn’t of gone on so smoothly without you. On a side note, something we noticed the next day was the amount of trash left in the parking lot at Squaw. Next year let’s strive to really pick up any trash we see, whether it’s ours or not, it’s always good to do the right thing.
