2012 Everglades City Seafood Festival

Festivals, News, Southwest — By Bob Rountree and Bonnie Gross on 12/03/2011 10:15 am

You’ve missed the 2012 seafood festival. But here are other Florida seafood festivals coming up in 2012:

• LaBelle Swamp Cabbage Festival, Feb. 25-26
• Fort Myers Beach Shrimp Festival, March 10-11
• 2012 Marathon Seafood Festival, March 10-11
• St. Augustine Seafood Festival, March 16-18
• Marco Island Seafood Festival, March 16-18
• Cedar Key Art Festival, April 28-29

Here’s coverage of the 2012 Everglades Seafood Festival:

Seafood lovers are counting the days for the annual Everglades Seafood Festival, scheduled for the weekend of Feb. 3-5 in Everglades City, gateway to the Ten Thousand Islands.

This free event packs ‘em in for fresh seafood, country music, carnival rides, crafts booths — with an estimated 50,000 people expected to attend to pack this small town (population 500) the three-day event.

Everglades City, Florida’s “stone crab capital,” is an off-the-beaten-track pocket of Old Florida with many original buildings and a rich history steeped in the lore of pirates and smugglers, murder and mayhem, and some of the best fishing and freshest seafood anywhere in the state of Florida.

The old-fashioned neo-classical City Hall once served as Collier County’s main courthouse until the county’s population shifted north to nouveau Naples, 40 miles away. Everglades City, settled in the 1880s, has retained its small-town charm, if not it’s legendary character and characters.

The town’s first Seafood Festival was held in 1970 to raise money for playground equipment, and that charitable tradition is still alive and well with proceeds from the festival going to local causes and college scholarships for local students.

In addition to shiploads of fresh seafood served up by local fishermen and restaurants, this year’s festival will feature 100 arts and crafts booths, a carnival and continuous country music and bluegrass throughout the weekend.

Festival Hours:

Friday — 5:30 to 10 p.m.
Saturday — 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.
Sunday — 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

And there’s music — lots of it!

The Gladezmen, Big Bottom and the LoCash Cowboys return this year to entertain and will be joined by Dirt Road Mojo, up-and-coming Nashville recording artist David Nails and southern rocker Warren Silvers, whose debut album is being released this month.

Also appearing are the Jessie Thompson Project, the Wild-Eyed Cowboys, Sawgrass and Sowflo, and popular surf-rock/reggae band SowFlo based in Naples.

Since I’ve never heard of most of these bands, I looked up them up to listen to their music and provide links for you to do the same. (But come back!)

Here’s the full schedule of entertainment on the main stage with band links, when available:

Friday
5:30 pm — Sawgrass (Bluegrass)
6:30 pm — Jessie Thompson Project (Rock)
7:30 pm — BeatleBeat (Tribute band)
9 p.m. — Dirt Road MoJo (Country/Southern Rock)

Saturday
10:30 — Hamilton Boys (Southern Rock)
12 noon — Dirt Road MoJo (Country/Southern Rock)
1 pm — Wild Eyed Country Boys
2:30 pm — Big Bottom (Pop, rock, soul)
4 p.m. — David Nail (Country)
5:30 — Jessie Thompson Project (Rock)
7 p.m. — SowFlo (Surf rock, reggae)

Sunday
11:30 am — Hamilton Boys (Southern Rock)
12:30 pm — Gladezman (Rock, Swampgrass, Blues, Psychobilly)
1:30 pm — Big Bottom (Pop, rock, soul)
2:30 pm — Warren Silver (Country)
4 pm — LoCash Cowboys (Hip Hop Country/Biker rock)
5:30 pm — Wild Eyed Country Boys

Getting there

Traffic can be tricky, so arrive early and bring your patience. (Many avoid that problem  by arriving on motorcycle. This is a favorite group outing for motorcycle clubs from Miami and Fort Lauderdale.) Parking is provided by local charities within walking distance of the festival.

A few tips: No pets, no coolers and be prepared to walk.

The Tamiami Trail makes a scenic route to Everglades City — here’s our guide to that road.

From the north, you can also take I-75 south to Collier Boulevard (County Road 951), south to U.S. 41 (Tamiami Trail), then east to State Road 29, which will take you south into Everglades City.

From the Atlantic Coast, take Alligator Alley (I-75) west to SR 29, then straight south to Everglades City.

To help plan your trip:

• Everglades Seafood Festival website
  
• Guide to Tamiami Trail
• Eating stone crabs in Everglades City
• Shark Valley entrance to Everglades National Park
• Clyde Butcher’s Big Cypress Gallery
• Ochopee Post Office
• Joanie’s Blue Crab Cafe
• Big Cypress National Preserve
• Big Cypress Bend Boardwalk
• Fakahatchee Strand Preserve State Park

Nearby RV and/or tent camping:

• Collier Seminole State Park
• Glades Haven
• Chokoloskee Island Park
• Outdoor Resorts of Chokoluskee Island
• Big Cypress Preserve — 6 campgrounds

Tags: Everglades City, festival, seafood