Would be our 40th Year!
Hard to believe this wonderful
event has been arpound this many years, we hope to continue the annual event and
look forward to seeing you in the future!
Take a typical southern California spring weekend in May, add
tall trees, snow-streaked mountain peaks, blue sky and
pine-scented air, and you have the beginnings of a recipe for
Family Fun.
Over 100 Arts &
Crafts booths are open all day, along with food vendors, restaurants,
unique shops, & live music throughout the Festival. There is also
a kiddie amusement area for the little ones! Enjoy lots of places
to sit, relax, and enjoy the beautiful surroundings Pine
Mountain Club has to offer!
Directions
View Larger Map
Address to use for directions 16200 Mil Potrero Hwy
Pine Mountain Club, CA 93222
Lat/Lon: 34.851095 / -119.165402
The Festival
The most unique items at the festivals are all the handmade
crafts, clothing, sundries, food and much more. Many of the
vendors at the Festival are local mountain residents
showing off their talents, adding a local flavor to the
wide variety of artisans who travel here from not only
southern and central California, but from throughout the
Southwest, and even further.
There is something for everyone at the festivals, Weather in May is usually the first signs of warming from our
cold mountain winters and flora and fauna are abundant. This
includes, of course, all the lilac bushes and trees that have
been planted in Pine Mountain Club. Although the actual blooming
lilacs that are so popular in our culture are not a native
plant, they thrive in the climate up here.
The Festival has grown in popularity so much over the years
that vendors (as well as visitors) venture here from as far
away as Nevada and Arizona each year. Thousands of people
can be seen in and around Pine Mountain Club during a Lilac
Festival weekend—hiking, biking, playing golf and tennis,
fishing, sitting or strolling in the clear, crisp alpine
air.
A Little History
In 1982 the festival was started by Judy Watkins, then the owner of "The Pine Cone Parlor", the original restaurant where today the "La Lena"
Mexican restaurant operates. The festival is a way to forget winter and welcome the
approaching spring & summer. The Lilac Festival started as little
more than a bake sale and a Maypole Dance, and has grown
into a full-fledged Mountain tradition. The Lilac was chosen
as a centerpiece for the Festival because it thrives in our
mountain climate, and its short flowering season falls
'roughly' the same time as the Festival.
As the years progressed, so did the events size growing rapidly. The Festival was made a permanent, annual event
sponsored by the Pine Mountain Club Commercial Property Owners
Association (PMCCPOA). Rosetta Burgelin took over as Event Chair and
successfully put on the event (with a lot of help, of course)
for the next 25 or so.
After Rosetta's retirement another longtime member of the community, Mark Bailey, who then owned
"Madd Bailey’s Pub", took the reigns for this annual
event. Mark has done this event along with help from various very dedicated volunteers since.
The original festivals also incorporated a small car show for
locals and visitors to show off their “hot rods” and “classic”
cars. The car show (now ("Run to the Pines Auto Show") grew in popularity so it is now a
separate event typically held on the second Saturday of August
each summer. The Lilac Festival has always had a parade to kick
things off. The parade was originally directed through the
village center in Pine Mountain Club, but because of the size
of the event growing it soon was held on Mil Potrero Hwy (the
only main road that runs through Pine Mountain Club).
*** A little "unknown plant fact" - Few people know
that there is an actual native bush in the California
Mountain areas referred to as the "White Bark California Lilac". The ones that grow
in this area are a shrub that has blue flower shoots and
very sticky, fragrant leaves. More about these lilacs can be
found here:
http://www.laspilitas.com/nature-of-california/plants/ceanothus-leucodermis
there are many varieties of wild California Lilacs so
don’t be surprised if you’ve seen others up here as well as
these!
Local Places to Stay
Pine Mountain InnJennings Resort Rentals
Pine Mountain Village Hotel
Holiday Inn Express Hotel & Suites
Motel 6
Places of Interest
Los Padres National ForestMountain Communities Weather Station
Pine Mountain Club Commercial Property Owners Association
Pine Mountain Club Village Merchants Association
Pine Mountain Club Property Owners Association
Mountain Communities Chamber of Commerce
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