Festival fun this weekend

Two staples of the festival season are set to hit the Labrador coast this weekend.

The 30th Annual Bakeapple Folk Festival will take place Aug. 6-9 at the Labrador Straits Regional Arena in L'Anse au Loup, while the 18th Annual Mary's Harbour Crab Festival will take place Aug. 7-9 at the Raymond C. Rumbolt Memorial Recreation Centre in Mary's Harbour.

The bakeapple festival begins on Thursday at 7 p.m. with 'The Passing of the Light' at Point Amour, where there will be a dramatic portrayal based on the Wyatt family, who were lightkeepers at the historic lighthouse for 84 years. Special events throughout the weekend include a bakeapple breakfast at Forteau's Seaview Restaurant, a traditional lunch-n-special at West St. Modeste's Oceanview Restaurant and a fish-n-brewis supper at the Labrador Straits Arena.

Musical act Borderline will perform at the adult dance Saturday night, while Karaoke Star Jr. winner Jaimee Thomas and local all-girl band Labrador Spice will perform on Sunday.

Saturday will be the kids' day at the festival.

Stelman Flynn, co-chair of the bakeapple festival, said the four-day event offers activities for all ages and all tastes.

"It's a celebration of our heritage," Mr. Flynn said. "What we try to do is offer a range of activities, from traditional concerts to square dancing to traditional music, and given the population base I think it's going to be carried out, as it usually does, relatively smoothly."

The crab festival kicks off with the crab bake-off, followed by a crab cuisine tasting, in which visitors can pay $3 to taste a wide variety of crab dishes and entertainment by Lisa Smith.

Saturday features family activities, a fish-n-brewis supper and music provided by Dwight Lethbridge during the adult dance.

Sunday starts with the little crab boat race at 1:30 p.m. at the community bridge and ends with the blessing of the fleet after the closing ceremonies at the community wharf at 6 p.m.

"It's open for everyone but it's focused on the fishermen and the crab plant workers and everyone who's involved with the crab plant," said Kelly Russell, co-ordinator for this year's festival. "We have the crowning of the Crab King and Queen too. At the end of Sunday we have the blessing of the fleet. We go down to the wharf with all the crab boats and we all go for a couple circles around the harbour."

It's a great opportunity, she added, for "people that moved away from Mary's Harbour to come home."

- With files from the Labradorian