Ellicott Rock Side Trail
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"Hillbilly's Country Store"
In a much simpler time, Saturday nights meant bluegrass.
In the Southern Appalachians neighbors would gather at the local
general store and bring their stringed, wooden instruments. Home
made
instruments and home made songs would fill the night air. It didn't
matter if you could sing, just singing along with your neighbors
was good enough.
Every Saturday night at Hillbilly's Country Store
you can step back to that time. The sounds of stringed instruments
are here and so are the neighbors.
Nightfall
Right ar ound
nightfall the crowd starts filtering in. Pick up trucks and mini
vans line the road as another Saturday night gets underway. Most
carry folding chairs to the parking lot in front of Hillbilly's
grocery. As tradition states, the musicians gather in front
of the gas pumps, tuning their instruments. One guitar player commented
that there was talk about moving the weekly gathering to a neighboring
field. "No way" he said, "Tradition says we
play in front of the gas pumps, so that's where we'll stay".
MTV
Most of the people in the audience were in the 35
to 5 5
age group. Unfortunately, like other Southern Appalachian traditions,
the youth of the mountains have joined the "MTV" generation.
No alcohol is served and it is not allowed. Most folks like the
sound of the music and that's good enough for them.
Saturday Night
I called ahead to make sure that the "show"
was still on for Saturday night. "Show up around
dusk with your folding chair and be prepared to sing your heart
out" said a voice at the other end of the phone. It was just
what I expected to hear. The hospitality in the mountains of South
Carolina is unsurpassed. I enjoy coming to the Saturday night gatherings
just to talk with the friendly folks of Mountain Rest. After a day
of hiking, a night of bluegrass seems like the right thing to do!
Gettin' There
Every Saturday night in the Summer. At the junction
of Highway 28 and Highway 107 North is Hillbillies grocery. Take
Hwy. 28, north from Walhalla, South Carolina.
7059 Highlands Hwy
Mountain Rest, SC 29664
(864)
718-7373
 To
Ellicott Rock
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