Travel NC

Sir Walter Wally and Groundhog Day Celebration 2019

Sir Walter Wally is North Carolina’s own famous groundhog. On Groundhog Day Saturday Feb 2th, 2019 he will make his appearance in downtown Raleigh.  The annual Groundhog Day celebrations takes place at the N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences in Raleigh February 2. And its on a Saturday so more kids can come and watch the excitement.  Will he see his shadow and predict winter for 6 more weeks? Or will he not see his shadow meaning spring will come sooner? Groundhog Day is an annual tradition. It’s the day we find out if there will be 6 more weeks of winter or an early spring.

The capital city of Raleigh brings out their own Sir Walter Wally each Groundhog Day.  The exciting ceremony takes place on the steps of the Museum of Natural Science in downtown Raleigh. The N.C. Museum of Natural Sciences’ Groundhog Day event is from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. this Saturday Feb. 2, 2019. The shadow ceremony starts at noon on the steps of the museum. There are also several other “activities, including displays about the historyy of Groundhog Day, animal architects, how animals survive in the winter and signs of spring”.  Each year the celebration grows with more people attending and more news stations covering to report the big news.

Update:Sir Walter Wally says we will have 6 more weeks of winter!

Our on Sir Walter Wally is of course named after Sir Walter Raleigh. Sir Walter Wally has a pretty good record of predicting a long winter or an early spring.  Wally has a 50% success rate as compared to a 39% success rate of Punxsutawney Phil in Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania. In fact the Weather Channel puts him in the Top 11 Groundhogs to watch on Groundhog Day for an accurate prediction! Impressive!

Do you want an early spring or do you want more winter (and more snow)?!

Let us know in the comments below!

Raleigh Southern Farm Show 2019 at NC State Fairgrounds

The Raleigh Southern Farm Show 2019 takes place this year January 30 – February 1 at the North Carolina State Fairgrounds. Free admission and free parking. There is a lumberjack show to enjoy and the adults can test drive a few Chevrolet models. There is also a FFA Truck and Tractor Driving Competition. This fun event is not just for farmers. It has gown into a fun event to go to for everybody. Children love all the tractors and large farm equipment at the farm show. Even the big kids love the huge tractors and farm equipment on display. There are hundreds of vendors at the farm show with all types of outdoor, hunting and farm equipment, devices, supplies, products and more. And of course food, there will be five concession stands and one sit-down restaurant.

At the Southern Farm Show you can test drive a Chevrolet on a track setup just for the test drive. A long line of people were waiting to test drive the bright blue Chevy Camaro, a Chevy Suburban and a Chevy pickup. Ford was also there with several vehicles on display with all their doors open and completely accessible to anyone who wanted a close look. You could sit in the vehicle, inspect it, walk around it, check out the motor. No salesperson around to annoy you!

There were multiple huge tents setup with all types of equipment inside. Things like dirt bikes, four wheelers, ATVs of every size. There were displays of zero turn lawnmowers big and large, farm planters, harvesters, tobacco equipment. grain equipment, combines big, small and ginormous! There were some of the biggest tractors you could ever imagine. Big kids and little kids really enjoy going to the Southern Farm Show to see all the sights.

The Forestry Service is at this event. Many children were at this table talking with and getting their pictures taken with a Forest Ranger. They also have a lot of information about selling timber and how to reforest your timber. There was information proper forest management what to do and what not to mange woodland.

You can also do some shopping. Many vendor offer clothing, boots, capes and hats, gloves, coats, tee shirts, hoodies and other apparel. Carhartt was there this year with some nice coats and other apparel. John Deer was there with apparel and other items. There are licence tags, keychains, caps, coffee mugs and more.

The food is also good. Several vendors are setup around the grounds offering funnel cakes, fried twinkes, fried oreo cookies, hotdogs, hamburgers, steak and cheese hogies, blooming onions, curly fries, drinks and more. Inside the Graham Building is the Murphy Barbeque House severing hot meals of BBQ, hamburger steak, hotdog, hamburgers, cake and other deserts and more.

The Southern Farm Show in Raleigh is held each year in early February. The three-day event gets bigger and better every year. If you think you don’t need to go because you are not a farm you’re making a mistake! Take the family, take the children and go enjoy this fun farm show. But dress warmly! This week during the Southern Farm Show the weather will be very cold. Highs will be in the 40’s with overnight and early morning temperatures below freezing.

Annual Bulluck Furniture Warehouse Sale 2019 Starts Jan 26

The annual Bulluck Furniture Warehouse Sale 2019 begins Saturday, January 26, 2019. The warehouse sale for 2019 will be at the same location as the last few years. That location is Phipps Warehouse at 218 N. Church Street near downtown Rocky Mount, NC. Phipps Warehouse is located next to the Imperial Centre on Church Street. See the map below for directions. Parking is to the left of the warehouse when coming down Church Street. The annual Bulluck’s Gigantic Warehouse Sale is one of the most popular sales in Eastern North Carolina. Thousands of shoppers travel from all over the United States to attend this popular sale. This huge fine furniture sale is held every year in late January and goes through February.

Bulluck Warehouse Sale 2021

The annual Bulluck Warehouse Sale 2021 will take place in April 2021. The sale begins on April 3, 2021.

It will still be held at the same location as the last few years, 218 North Church St. in

downtown Rocky Mount, NC at the Phipps Warehouse.

I will post more information such as dates and hours when available.

More information to come!

Complete list of dates and hours coming soon!

The huge warehouse has over 80,000 square feet of area with sale items from Bulluck’s Furniture. Sale items include scratched and dented fine reproduction furniture, lamps, lamp bodies, lamp shades and lamp parts, wood accessories and items, bronze statures and items, crystal pieces, chandeliers, ceramic planters of all sizes, floor and wall screens, traditional and transitional furniture, vases, bowls, statues plus so much more. The sale is huge and after the first seven days the warehouse is restocked with more and different sale items added. So more than one trip to this sale is a must!

Bulluck’s Gigantic Warehouse Sale takes place in an old tobacco warehouse in downtown Rocky Mount. The warehouse is full of fine furniture, lighting and decorative accessories. Row and rows and rows of tables are set up and covered with lamps, bowls, statues, brass, art, vases, pots, candlesticks and more. Chandeliers hang from the rafters, mirrors and art are hung on the walls. Furniture of every type (contemporary, traditional and transitional) are out on display with prices slashed. Even outdoor furniture is included. The furniture is just beautiful! Bed frames, china cabinet, dining room tables and chairs, end tables and more.  The smell of leather is wonderful! Leather couches, leather office chairs and leather formal chairs all on sale.

Here are the dates and times for this year’s sale. It will not be open on Wednesdays or Thursdays.

All sales are final. Items are 60-90% off retail prices! The Bulluck Warehouse Sale 2019 is a great event to shop if you want to add or redecorate your home or office. Save hundreds on fine furniture, lamps and accessories. All tables and sections of items are marked down 60-90% in the whole warehouse. As the sale continues into February prices will drop.

The warehouse will be closed and restocked with additional items for sale with even better prices. When the sale resumes items left from the first few days of the sale are slashed for the second portion of the Bulluck Warehouse sale.

Make plans to get to the Bulluck Warehouse Sale 2019! I go every year and the most fun! You do not want to miss this huge fine furniture warehouse sale! To see the old warehouse alone is worth the trip. I love the old tobacco barn with its old wide wood plank floors, huge windows and high wood ceiling. But to add all those beautiful pieces of fine furniture inside the warehouse and put them on sale! Once the sale starts I will post pictures here. Make sure to check back to Travel NC  to see the pictures and find out more information.

Here are some pictures from last years warehouse sale!

Bulluck Furniture Warehouse Sale Location and Map

Spring Hope Pumpkin Festival 2018

The Spring Hope Pumpkin Festival takes place this weekend, October 5 and October 6, 2018. The fun festival is always held on the first weekend in October each year. This year will be the 47th Annual Spring Hope Pumpkin Festival! The fun starts Friday late afternoon and then on Saturday from 8 am until 6 pm. The festival kicks off  Friday night with bands, dancing, food, and fun for all ages. On Saturday in downtown Spring Hope the community turns into one big party with arts and crafts, food, games, and carnival rides for the kids. At 2 pm the parade begins.

There is the Miss Pumpkin Festival Pageant and Little Miss Pageant where winners take their place on the floats and wave to the crowd.  Then they have a recipe contest and the great pumpkin weigh-in. This year there are almost 20 food trucks and vendors this year. Lots of arts and crafts for all those shoppers! The weather for Saturday may be a little cloudy but temperatures will be in the mid ’80s.  Everyone enjoys the Spring Hope Pumpkin Festival. It’s a great time to enjoy all that great festival food like hotdogs, candle red apples, popcorn, cotton candy, funnel cakes and more!

Bring the whole family and have fun this weekend. Each year about 25,000 people attend this popular fall festival. Way too much fun to miss.

Beech Mountain Land of Oz Fall Event 2017

Beech Mountain Land of Oz theme park’s annual Autumn at Oz celebration takes place this year in September. The dates for this year’s three-day festival are September 8-10, 2017. This is a three-day weekend event lasting from Friday through Sunday. It will be the 24th annual Autumn at Oz festival. The festival has a lot of fun activities, face painting, photos with the characters, props and souvenirs, food, and drinks. People travel from all over to come to this popular festival in the North Carolina mountains. The festival started out as a small reunion of the theme park’s former employees. Now it is has grown into a popular weekend festival. Children and adults as well will all enjoy this fun event that celebrates the Wizard of Oz.

Autumn at Oz

At Autumn of Oz visitors can travel thru the twister that took Dorothy to OZ, walk along the Yellow Brick Road, explore Oz and meet many of the beloved characters such as the Tin Man, Dorothy, the Cowardly Lion, Scarecrow, Professor Marvel, Auntie Em, Uncle Henry, Glinda the Good Witch, the Wizard of Oz and even The Wicked Witch of the West with her Winkie guards and flying monkeys!

Tickets go on sale July 24th, 2017 and cost $40 for both adults and children. Advance tickets are recommended due to the popularity of the festival. It usually sells out every year. Buy tickets at their website Land Of Oz/Autumn at Oz, but act fast because tickets sell out fast!

Beech Mountain Land of Oz History

Land of Oz in Beech Mountain was an operational theme park for 10 years from 1970-1980. Hard times hit the park and it closed. Then vandalism and destruction took its toll. In 1990 the area was taken over by Emerald Mountain development. With renovations and hard work now it has become what it is today. Emerald Mountain Properties have private parties at Oz, rentals, sales, Land of Oz, Oz souvenirs, Autumn At Oz Festival, bike and hiking trails and 440 acres to discover and explore.

Location and Map to the Land of Oz at Beech Mountain, NC