SeeCalifornia.com

This week at the annual Temecula Valley Balloon & Wine Festival you’ll find dancing, pouring and soaring — in a Lake Skinner setting on the outskirts of town. With its roots steeped in country (and heritage grapes & vines,) the festival again offers a line up of country music artists on Sunday such as Justin Moore (You Look Like I Need A Drink,) Tyler Farr (Redneck Crazy,) and Raelynn (You’ve Got WildHorse.) There are jazz and rock bands such as Sugar Ray, Spin Doctors, The Wallflowers and Hoobastank, as well.

Hosting a music and lifestyle festival in the country doesn’t hurt attendance one bit as evidenced by sellout events such as the recent Napa Bottle Rock and Indio’s Stagecoach and Coachella fests. In fact, rural charm seems to attract bigger crowds seeking to escape reminders of work, jobs and city traffic and smog.

While there are some down sides such as overtaxed country roads and overloaded resources, going early and leaving or staying late is among solutions. (We’ve gotten stuck in the crowd leaving Skinner Lake.) Several festivals actually book special buses to transport ticket holders.

June Music Festivals

Country roads

• FELTON: Redwood Mountain Faire June 2-3, 2018
  at Roaring Camp Railroads
• POWAY: Sam Hinton Folk Festival June 2 in Old Poway Park
• VALLEY CENTER: Music Festival June 2 featuring Detroit Underground at Bates Nut Farm
• LAYTONVILLE: Enchanted Forest June 8-10
• BLUE LAKE: Mad River Festival June 14-July 14
• GRASS VALLEY: Father’s Day Bluegrass Festival June 14-17
• LIVE OAK: Live Oak Music Festival June 15-17
• SUSANVILLE: Bluegrass Festival June 22-24
• BOONVILLE: Sierra Nevada World Music Festival June 22-24
• LAYTONVILLE: Kate Wolf Music Festival June 28-July 1 at Black Oak Ranch
• NEVADA CITY: Music in the Mountains starts June 1 through summer