GAF 2013: What to Expect

NOC's wildly popular Guest Appreciation Festival will finally be here next weekend (September 27-29), and will be significantly improved thanks to some changes based on feedback from the past few events.  Here is the list of some of the biggest changes you should look out for:

A scene from the GAF Used Gear Marketplace on River Left.

• The Used Gear Marketplace is Moving Back to River Left. GAF's popular used gear marketplace moves back to the middle of the festival ground, ensuring that all of the 5,000 GAF attendees will browse the marketplace.  So, grab some friends and pitch in for a booth at GAF to sell your gear fast! Marketplace applications are still available for $75 for the weekend.  Apply here.
  

• New "Gear Swap" Area will be Available - This area is for guests who just have one or two items to sell at GAF.  Instead of buying a full booth, you will be able to take advantage of a designated gear swap area for your items. While this area won't have premiere placement like the used gear marketplace, it does give individuals a venue to sell their boats. Click here for the Gear Swap guidelines.

• New "Buy-It-Now" Option - Many guests come out especially for sweet deals from the Paddling School's instructional fleet and the Outfitter's Store's demo fleet. These buyers usually have to wait until the Saturday morning sell begins, hoping that other guests don't snag their boat before they can buy it. This year, we're offering a "Buy-It-Now" option where guests can purchase one of these instruction or demo boats on Friday for an extra $99.  This gives you the security of knowing that you can get the exact boat you want without having to camp out overnight. 

• This year, every boat purchase from the Outfitter's Store Gear Sale comes with a 15% off voucher for a clinic or private instruction session with NOC's Paddling School.  This gives buyers the opportunity to enjoy improve their paddling skills while upgrading their boat.

NOC Outfitter's Store Gear Sale

So that's what's new at this year's Guest Appreciation Festival. Be sure to learn more about the deals and entertainment we have planned by clicking here. We have more than 100 boats we want to move, so expect great deals on great boats all weekend long!

Where to Park: GAF 2013

To make your visit as enjoyable as possible, please read the following information about parking before traveling to NOC for the Guest Appreciation Festival on September 27-29.  This is the official event parking plan: 

• We expect most guests will be able to park on-site on Friday and Sunday. When you arrive at NOC, drive across the bridge and let our friendly parking staff direct you to an open spot. Please take their advice, and park efficiently so everyone can park on-property.

• If on-property parking is full--as we expect for Saturday morning and afternoon--we will have convenient satellite lots open within one or two miles of the event site. We'll also provide easy, dependable shuttles to the event for all visitors parking in these lots. 
• If coming from the east (Asheville, Charlotte, etc.) you will see "Event Parking" signs directing you to the open lot at the Gem Mine which is visible from the main highway. 
• If coming from the west (Chattanooga, Knoxville, etc.) you will drive past NOC where a parking attendant will direct you to the Gem Mine by following the signs. 
• From here you will have shuttles available for the duration of the event.   Event shuttles will drop off and pick up at the NOC General Store on a continuous schedule until 7pm. The Gem Mine is just up the street, so riding a shuttle is often easier and more convenient than searching every nook and cranny of NOC for a space.
  
  As a reminder, please don't park alongside Silvermine road. We've seen too many festival attendees get tickets on this road over the years, even though it looks like there are pullouts. 

NOC is also offering free shuttles to the Wayah Forest Service Put-In for those who choose to leave their cars off-property while they are on the river. We usually do this as a thank you to guests helping us avoid a parking crunch during Saturday at GAF. In other words, if you paddle into GAF we'd be glad to drive you back to your car when you're finished. (Just make sure you catch the last rafting bus headed to the put in around 3:30. With all the extra traffic on the river, it should be pretty easy to thumb a ride to the top with another boater this weekend anyway.)

Finally, NOC, in partnership with Endless River Adventures, is offering free shuttles for paddlers running the Upper Nantahala and Cascades section of the Nantahala River on Saturday and Sunday.  Upper shuttles will run from 10am to 4pm. Please "RSVP" for a shuttle by going to the event's Facebook page and letting our staff know your plans. We're just trying to get a good idea of demand; we don't need specific times,

Please note that all GAF remote parking lots close at 7pm. We’d love for you to stay to enjoy the free live music and dancing, so please make your way up to the lots as the afternoon progresses to move your car back down to the center. It’ll make life easier for you when it’s time to go home.

Thanks for planning ahead!

Live Music lined up well into the evening on Friday and Saturday

GAF 2013: Live Music Line Up

NOC's Guest Appreciation Festival is not only packed with deals and activities, but also with free live music. Check out the lineup below and plan your schedule accordingly:

Friday
2 PM - The Night Trotters
From Asheville, The Night Trotters offer "Thoroughbred Bluegrass Music" that's 100% traditional and true to the "old sound." 


5:30 PM - Common Foundation
"Playing a blend of downtempo reggae, chugging Jamaican rocksteady and upbeat ska, Common Foundation fills the air with infectious danceable rhythms and an easygoing atmosphere" This show promises to be a perfect after-work start to GAF weekend. 

9 PM - Lefty Williams Band
A one-armed guitarist playing traditional southern rock and blues, Lefty Williams brings an Allman Brothers sound to the GAF stage.

Saturday
2 PM - Buncombe Turnpike
Out of Asheville, Buncombe Turnpike brings traditional and contemporary bluegrass to the stage. PLaying songs from their fifth album "Forever it Will Be" these accomplished musicians are a can't-miss show on Saturday afternoon.

5:30 PM - Packway Handle Band
An NOC guest favorite,  Packway Handle Band is a bluegrass quintet from Athens, GA that mixes bluegrass with unique covers and high energy beats presenting the audience with a dynamic and upbeat performance. PHB has played some of the biggest shows NOC has ever hosted.

9 PM - Antique Firearms
At the top of the music scene in Asheville, Antique Firearms brings a unique repertoire of experimental, rock and alternative music reminiscent of Radiohead and My Morning Jacket. Perfect music for a Saturday evening party.

We hope to see you out on the dance floor this year!

Click here for a full GAF schedule.

Guest Appreciation Festival 2012: Recap

Cascades, Cascades, Cascades
Some paddlers described it as pure chaos, or even a circus, but the Cascades release was definitely one of the biggest highlights during GAF weekend.  Providing entertainment, personal "first D’s" and what seemed like endless whitewater laps for some, the Cascades were on a-whole-'nother level this weekend.

Hunt Jennings (Yellow) and Matt Anger (Blue) during one of their thirty laps down the Cascades

Being the first recreational release for the Upper Nantahala and Cascades, this past weekend felt like Christmas for many. Boaters came from all over the region to paddle this section of river that is usually dependent on rain fall.

Many of you have requested the photos and video from the release so here they are! To find your photo click here and enjoy!

On Saturday night, The Pourover Pub hosted everyone to watch the Carnage Video from the Saturday release. If you happened to miss it, you can witness some of the chaos for yourself here:

NOC would like to thank everyone who helped with the safety of both spectators and paddlers on the Upper and Cascades during the event. With the extra efforts put in by many, the majority of the release went very smoothly.

Mini Music Festival
With 5 bands performing at GAF, NOC campus felt like a mini music festival!  From mid-afternoon to the wee hours of the night, guests were dancing on the banks of the Nantahala River. The bands fueled the crowd for hours resulting in smiles, laughs and very unique dance moves.

After the live music, the GAF attendees took over the stage during the Ride Garden Dance Party. After a day full of paddling it's amazing so many folks had multiple hours of dancing in them!

And of Course, The Gear Sale
With the combined 30 vendors, 15 private vendors and the Outfitter's Store sales, there were TONS of great deals from this weekend.  If you were looking for boats, gear, or accessories, hopefully you found it in the Marketplace.

The Marketplace was buzzing with energy during GAF.  The atmosphere was full of guests interacting and sharing memories, stories and advice.  It was a great chance to learn about folks interested in similar activities and meet some all around good people!

Take a look at some scenes from GAF 2012 here:

These are just a few highlights from GAF 2012, some others include: learning from Steve Longnecker's birds of prey, wilderness fire starting clinics, stories from Ms. Connie Regan-Blake and much more.  Let us know what you liked the most! GAF 2013 is just around the bend.

GAF 2012 Live Music Preview

I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am about the musicians coming to this year’s Guest Appreciation Festival! If my boss would allow it, I would take the two days off, buy myself a pint of Noon Day IPA, (Nantahala Brewing is coming out for a beer-tasting on Friday from 5-8pm) and park myself at Slow Joe’s to enjoy the melodious bliss that will go long into the night. But since that's not an option, I wrote up the following preview to give you all a glimpse of the treats we've prepared for you.

Friday at 2pm, NOC welcomes Bryson City blue-grass legends, The Freight Hoppers. Bradley Adams and the band will treat you to hard-driving old-time music with an emotional, raw excitement that keeps one foot planted in the past and the other in the present. Looked at geographically, the Freight Hopper’s music can be said to span from Mississippi to West Virginia, and but it’s never more relevant than right here in the Smoky Mountains of Western North Carolina.

At 5pm, Vertigo Jazz Project will take the stage to help rid you of any outdated expectations you may have of what “jazz music” is or might be.  This Asheville band pulls its inspiration from many sources, including Latin, funk, and even pop music, and the result is an upbeat, original, yet studied sound that is truly 21st century. Be ready to dance!

Finally, Friday evening at about 8pm, don’t miss the Packway Handle Band from Athens, Georgia. To quote Splice Today, “The Packway Handle Band mixes dark themes and old-time religion with a uniquely modern folk aesthetic that pins down just what American music is all about.” PHB first won national acclaim as finalists at the Telluride bluegrass competition in 2002, and has been blowing away audiences around the country since 2006 with their thought-provoking lyrics and genuine sense of humor.

The Packway Handle Band, masters of alt-bluegrass, have been one of NOC's
most popular acts over the past two seasons. 

Saturday, when you come down from the Cascades, we’ve arranged to bring in Asheville’s Archrivals for your listening pleasure. Their jazz-rock fusion is made for chillin’ or for dancin’, so whether you’re looking to put your feet up and enjoy a cold brew, or ramp up your energy level for the long party ahead, you’ll enjoy this smooth, unique, groovy sound.

Then, at 8pm, the Secret B-Sides are back for an encore show from earlier this season. Old school R&B sensibilities coupled with a touch of funk and neu-soul make these guys are the reigning kings of soul in Western North Carolina. Juan Holliday and the band will fire up the tunes just as we light the bonfire to keep away the early-autumn chill.

The Secret B-Sides play their third GAF in 2012. The band's signature
funk sound always gets the celebration going strong.  

Both Friday and Saturday, after you’ve worn out the bands, stick around for NOC’s annual dance party, dj’ed by the good folks from Ride Garden. This September 28-29th, the music won’t stop till the first rays morning kiss the uppermost peaks of the towering smokies.