| North Carolina Black Bear Festival | |
| Frequency: | Annually |
| Location: | Plymouth, North Carolina, United States |
| Founders: | --> |
| Or Sponsors: | --> |
The North Carolina Black Bear Festival is a three-day annual June event in Plymouth, North Carolina.
The festival celebrates black bears as an important part of North Carolina's cultural, historical and natural heritage.[1] The festival has over thirty activities, such as live music, bear tours, museums, and helicopter rides. The festival has up to 30,000 attendees each year.[2]
The North Carolina Black Bear Festival was created in 2015 by Tom Harrison, director of Washington County Travel & Tourism Authority. The festival was created to celebrate that North Carolina has the largest black bears and the highest density black bear population globally.[3]
In its first year, the festival was given the "Rising Star Award" and later was awarded the "Top Twenty Event Award" as well as "Best Event" from the Southeast Festival & Events Association. There were around 7000 visitors the first year; in 2018 the event had around 30,000 visitors from 18 states and four countries. Events include mechanical rides, wildlife museums, tours on a bear farm, helicopter rides, a black bear tent theatre, and fishing.
National Black Bear Day, which is celebrated on the first Saturday in June, was founded by the festival.[4] [5]