Five FREE Things To Do In The Carolinas In The Next Five Weeks

1. College football. Calling all football fans…the college football season is here. Check out the USC vs. Vanderbilt at 7 p.m. on August 30 on ESPN for FREE. Go Gamecocks! If you want to buy a ticket or view their 2012 schedule, go to www.gamecocksonline.com. Or I suppose you could watch Clemson or NC State or Duke or Tarhills or A&T…

2. North Carolina Apple Festival will be held in Hendersonville from August 31st – September 3rd.  Visitors will enjoy a arts and crafts booths, food vendors, orchard tours, music, and more. The festival is free but you need to bring $ to buy yummy apple stuff. Apples pies, apple cakes, apple cider, apple butter…www.ncapplefestival.org

3. Biking enthusiasts can choose from the Pisgah Mountain Bike Stage Race (9/17-22, Pisgah Mountain) or the Mountains to Coast Fall Ride (9/29-10/6, Brevard to Carolina Beach). Or do both if you’re up for it! FYI: There’s a cash prize of $20,000 for the winner of the Pisgah Race! But if you do the Mountains to Coast Race, you may to miss Mayberry Days (9/27-9/30, Mt. Airy). Record attendance is expected this year since Andy Griffin died recently.

4. Second Annual 17 Days Festival gets underway on September 21 in Greensboro, NC. From 9/21 – 10/7 more than 130 events will take place across the city that will include plays, music and dance concerts, art shows, cultural events, and special exhibits. There will also be a four-day Chocolate Extravaganza the last weekend in September. One of the highlights will be a champagne and chocolate brunch & cooking class at the Proximity and lots more!  Many events are FREE.    www.17daysgreensboro.org

5. FREE MUSEUM DAY. On September 29th, all ages get in FREE to 1,400 participating museums across the U.S.A. This awesome event is sponsored by the Smithsonian. Some museums across the Carolinas included in this list include:

Beaufort Historic Site (NC)

Carolinas Raptor Center (Huntersville, NC)

Childrens’ Museum of Wilmington (NC)

Drayon Hall (Charleston, SC)

McKissick Museum (Columbia, SC)

North Carolina Museum of History (Raleigh)

Reynolda House (Winston-Salem, NC)
Spartanburg Science Center (SC)

Tryon Palace (New Bern, NC)

Whalehead Club (Corolla, NC/Outer Banks)

For more information, visit www.smithsonian.com/museumday