WYOMING COUNTY, Pa. — The bands don't officially start playing until Friday, but that didn't stop string strumming and jamming one day earlier at the NEPA Bluegrass Festival near Tunkhannock.
Festival volunteer, Vicky Wallace, says "It's more intimate, and you can go from campsite to campsite and jam, and you know the majority of the people. And they all come year after year."
"And if you don't know them, you get to know them, and they become your friends for life," said Christine Grzywacz, another volunteer.
"Most people come from all over the place, hours away, and they call it "neepa" or "neppa," jokes the festival's promoter, Danny Stewart.
Stewart first envisioned this festival at Lazy Brook Park 15 years ago.
"It's magical; this park is unbelievable."
The fest was put on hold last year due to COVID-19.
After tickers were already bought, Stewart says he saved the funds for a rainy day, and it was a rainy day.
"What I did, was I just rolled everybody's tickets over to this year. Anybody that wanted a refund, they got a refund."
For these bluegrass lovers, the comeback is music to their ears.
"We were so sad to see festival after festival canceled, and we were all hoping it would startup. And this is one of the first ones of the season, especially in Northeast Pennsylvania, and we're very excited," said Steven Simpson, the NEPA Bluegrass Festival Emcee.
Mike and Lisa Garon say this is the first big bluegrass festival to start back up since COVID.
"Oh, it feels so good to be out here, with no mask, no worries, nothing, it's great," said Lisa.
Mike agreed, adding, "It's filling up; it's going to be a good time."
And these guys call themselves the SPAM Hogs.
"We used to bring the same can of SPAM camping every year, and we never got around to eating it."
As volunteers at the gate, they're seeing a bigger crowd this year than usual.
"There was a line to get in." Danny Stewart says he expects at least a thousand bluegrass fans from now to Sunday.
"We're getting more people here this year than we've ever had."
They're calling one of the stages the "Traditional" stage for one type of Bluegrass.
"Traditional bluegrass is mostly acoustic, upright bass, banjo, guitar, fiddle, mandolin, and dobro," said Stewart.
And just over the bridge, there will be what they're calling the 'progressive stage.' Where we're told, there will be fewer restrictions on the types of instruments they can use.
"Drums, steel, keyboards, but it needs a banjo or a fiddle in it to still label it bluegrass."
The festival is going on Thursday through Sunday evening.
For more information on the festival, click here.