The 2019 Whitney Blackfly Festival will be this Friday, June 7th, and Saturday, June 8th. We've had a lot of questions about the festival lately so here's everything you've been wondering about:
What time does the festival start and how late does it go?
On Friday, June 7th, the festival runs from 6pm-1am. On Saturday, June 8th, the festival runs from 3:30pm-1am
Where is the festival?
The Blackfly Festival is located at the Bongopix Lodge, 50 Galeairy Lake Road, in Whitney, Ontario.
What bands are playing?
This year's lineup features 10 bands:
Friday, June 7
6pm-7pm: Galeairy Gust
7pm-9pm: The History Buffs
9pm-11pm: Kyle Felhaver Band
11pm-1am: Concession 23
Saturday, June 8th
3:30pm-6pm: Appalachian Celtic
6pm-7pm: Siydock
7pm-8pm: 3 Marlenas
8pm-9pm: Bryan Butler
9pm-11pm: Dave McEathron
11pm-1am: Wilno Blues Band
Is there an entrance fee?
There is no entrance fee to the 2019 Blackfly Festival, yay! All welcome!
Do I have to stay for the whole festival?
It is a very relaxed and intimate festival. You may stay for as long as you want or as briefly as you want.
If you don't charge admission, how do you fund the Blackfly Festival?
If you want to support the Whitney Blackfly Festival please visit our concession stand and purchase food or beverages. Outside beverages and outside food are not permitted. Help us sustain and grow our festival, we appreciate your support!
Do you have a permit to sell alcohol?
We acquired our Special Occasions Permit, #SOPP1100293, from the AGCO on March 8th, 2019. The Blackfly Festival will be professionally staffed with Smart Serve Certified servers to ensure that we abide by all the liquor regulations. As per our special occasions permit, outside food and drinks are not allowed in the festival grounds.
How many people will be there?
Legally our permit allows up to a maximum of 512 people at any given time in our licensed festival grounds.
What kind of drinks will you sell?
We will serve bottled water and pop. Alcoholic beverages will all be served in either cans or bottles. We will have beer, Blackfly Booze coolers, gluten-free beer and cider. Prices will range from $5-$7 per drink.
Thank you Charbonneau's Freshmart for your ice sponsorship!
Thank you Blackfly Booze for your sponsorship!
What kind of food will you sell?
We will have an epic charcoal BBQ during the festival. We will be selling simplistic festival food: burgers, hot dogs, sausages, veggie burgers. Our festival food operation has been inspected and approved by the Renfrew County District Health Unit.
Thank you Mad Musher for donating our burger patties and buns!
Will you accept Visa, Debit, Cash?
We will be able to accept credit card payments, debit tap payments, and cash.
Is smoking allowed?
Tobacco and cannabis smoking is permitted at the Blackfly Festival.
Is it all ages?
Parents are allowed to bring minors into the festival grounds but they should be aware that, like most music festivals, adults will be responsibly engaging in adult activities such as: drinking alcohol and smoking tobacco/cannabis. All customers wishing to purchase alcoholic beverages will be IDed and given a +19 wristband.
What should I wear?
Come prepared for blackflies and mosquitoes! The spirit of the Blackfly Festival is to encourage people to embrace the outdoors during blackfly season. Light colours are recommended (biting insects are attracted to dark colours). Long sleeves are recommended. If you have a bug jacket, bring it just in case! We also encourage you to wear costumes or your trendiest fishing outfit.
Can I bring a bug tent?
We will allow you to bring mosquito tents as long as they are no bigger than 10x10 feet and are easily erected and dismantled.
Do you have overnight camping available?
Unfortunately we don't have overnight camping available this year. We encourage you to book a room at any of the local accommodations in South Algonquin, or perhaps camp on local crown land nearby Whitney. This is only our 4th Blackfly Festival and at this time we don't have overnight camping available. Our festival has grown and our dream is to offer some form of camping in the future.
What are your washroom facilities?
As you might expect at a music festival, we will have porta-potties available for festival attendees as our washroom facility.
Are you crazy, why do you want to celebrate Blackflies, aren't they awful?
The goal of the Blackfly Festival is to inject the local community with a jolt of positive energy during a "challenging" season. Yes, blackflies can be a nuisance. But they aren't the end of the world! The spirit of the blackfly festival is to embrace the outdoors. The Blackfly Festival aims to turn something negative (blackflies) into something positive (a reason to get together outdoors and enjoy local live music at the campfire).
Can we dance?
Dancing is highly encouraged! There is no formal dance floor so you are free to dance anywhere.
Is there parking?
We encourage carpooling as the only parking available is along Galeairy Lake Road and at the public parking area at the corner of Highway 60 and Galeairy Lake Road. Parking along the municipal road is permitted for free. Please be courteous. Find a spot along the road and park your vehicle! Plan ahead, DO NOT DRINK AND DRIVE!
Can I bring my pet?
As long as your pet responds calmly to crowds and people, sure you can bring a pet! Camp Bongopix is a pet friendly environment.
