Two Festivals, One Saturday: Blue Ridge's October Calendar and the Local Causes Behind It
On Saturday, October 10, two of the biggest local fundraisers in Fannin County run at the same time in two different places. At the Fannin County High School football field, more than 15 marching bands and over 2,000 band students from across Georgia compete in the Blue Ridge Mountain Marching Festival. Downtown, the 16th Annual Fall Arts in the Park Fine Arts and Crafts Festival opens its first day.
Each event sends its gate money to a different local organization. The same pattern holds for most of the month. If you plan to attend, give each event its own entry fee, its own parking plan and its own hours.
The two events have very different logistics. One is a scheduled festival with set hours and shuttle buses. The other is a full-day competition whose timetable hadn't been published as of this week.
| Blue Ridge Mountain Marching Festival | Fall Arts in the Park | |
|---|---|---|
| Dates | Saturday, October 10 | Saturday and Sunday, October 10–11 |
| Location | Fannin County High School football field | Downtown Blue Ridge |
| Hours | All day; times not yet established | 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days, rain or shine |
| Admission | $10 at the gate | $5 for ages 13 and up |
| Free entry | Third grade and under | Children 12 and under with an adult |
| Parking | Large parking area on site; no detailed directions published | Free lots and shuttles, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. |
| Proceeds support | FCHS marching band and music education | Blue Ridge Mountains Arts Association |
The arts festival has the more detailed parking plan. Free parking and a free shuttle run both days from Fannin County Middle School at 4560 Old Hwy 76 and from the Blue Ridge Farmers Market at 787 Summit St. The shuttles start an hour before the gates open and keep running an hour after they close. That leaves time to park, ride in and get back to the car without rushing the last booth.
The marching festival is harder to plan around. The News Observer's preview says times for the all-day event "have not yet been established." The festival's own site mentions a large parking area but gives no specific directions. Check that site again before Saturday. If you only want the evening, the program ends with the host band. The FCHS Marching Band performs in exhibition at the end of the night, and this year's show is called "Asphalt Jungle."
The competition itself is more organized than a hometown band night. It's a Georgia Music Educators Association contest, with bands split into divisions 1A through 5A. Silver covers 1A through 3A and gold covers 4A and 5A. Judges come from Young Harris College, the University of North Georgia, and high schools in Ringgold and Perry, among others. They score band, drum major, percussion, color guard and dance or majorette. Concessions, food stands, food trucks and vendors will be open, and festival T-shirts and hoodies will be for sale.
The overlap matters because both events depend on a single weekend's turnout. The News Observer calls the marching festival the FCHS marching band's biggest fundraiser of the year, with all proceeds going to band students and music education at the high school.
Arts in the Park benefits the Blue Ridge Mountains Arts Association. The nonprofit runs programs and events out of The Art Center, in the old Fannin County Courthouse at 420 W. Main St. Sponsors include the Fannin County Chamber of Commerce and CVB, Old Toccoa Farm Resort and Tri-State EMC.
BRMAA also says it still needs volunteers. Shifts are on Friday, October 9, and Sunday, October 11, covering setup, booth sitting, greeting and the gate. Sign up by calling The Art Center at 706-632-2144, through Eventeny, or by emailing [email protected]. Event coordinator Kayla Nichols takes questions at the same number, and details are at brmaa.org. The volunteer days fall on either side of the marching festival, so you can help with the arts festival and still keep Saturday open for the football field.
After October 10, the events spread across the next three weeks and several locations. Most of them also benefit a cause or an institution.
October 20 is also a City Council meeting night. The City of Blue Ridge calendar lists the council meeting at 6 p.m. that Tuesday, a council workshop on October 13 at 6 p.m., and a Planning Commission meeting moved from October 6 to Thursday, October 8, at 6 p.m. If you follow local decisions as closely as local festivals, the Planning Commission meets just two days before the October 10 crowds arrive.
The Blue Ridge Scenic Railway is the one constant through the month. Its 2026 fall rides run from September 19 to November 3, with two-hour express trips and four-hour extended trips. The tracks run past Downtown Blue Ridge Park, so Pawsfest on October 17 takes place right next to a working excursion line in its busiest season.
On October 31, the railway's booking calendar showed a 5 p.m. Trick or Treat Train with open-coach and closed-coach options. Seats are booked through a live calendar, so availability can change at any time. Confirm on the railway's fall rides page rather than assuming a departure will still have room.
The month ends downtown. The Halloween Safe Zone runs October 31 from 5 to 6 p.m. on East Main Street between Church and Mountain streets. Candy goes out at 5 p.m., and the costume contest starts at 5:30.
East Main will be closed to traffic during the event. The City says free parking will open at 4 p.m. in City-owned lots, along Mountain Street and at City Hall. That gives families an hour to park before the first candy goes out. It also overlaps with the Trick or Treat Train, which has the same 5 p.m. start on the railway's calendar.
There's one traffic change just north of Blue Ridge. In Copperhill, the Tennessee Department of Transportation started resurfacing Ocoee Street, also Highway 68, on October 5. The work is expected to last through October 31 and is reported to cost $4.19 million. It also covers a stretch south of New Stansbury Road in Turtletown. According to The News Observer, the project removes street parking on the north side of Ocoee Street, the side where Habanero's sits, to widen the lanes. City officials had opposed losing the spaces but agreed to the state's recommendation.
Closer to home, a Blue Ridge traffic notice from late summer is already over. The City closed the Hwy. 5/Blue Ridge Drive entrance to the Walmart and Home Depot shopping center on August 31 and September 1 while keeping the exit lane open. Drivers were sent to the Progress Connector entrance from Scenic Drive and the Progress Circle entrance from Hwy. 76/515 beside Zaxby's. If you learned those routes in September, they're still available as side entrances.
Living in Blue Ridge means October is more than a busy month for visitors. It's also when many local organizations raise money for the year ahead, and that shapes how the town feels from season to season. If you're thinking about what that rhythm means for a home or a future move in Fannin County, Jacklyn Zuniga is glad to talk it through, with no pressure. Let's Connect.
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