Join the Friends of Serpent Mound (FOSM) for the 14th annual Summer Solstice Celebration Festival, and be a part of acknowledging the rich mound builder heritage and the archeoastronomy of the Great Serpent Mound.
Join the Friends of Serpent Mound (FOSM) for the 14th annual Summer Solstice Celebration Festival, and be a part of acknowledging the rich mound builder heritage and the archeoastronomy of the Great Serpent Mound. They have three fun filled days of educational lectures, presentations, workshops, tours, music, hands-on activities and so much more. The celebration begins Friday, June 23 at 3PM until 7PM and continues 10AM thru 7PM Saturday and Sunday, June 24 and 25. The event is held at Soaring Eagle Retreat, 375 Horner Chapel Road, which is along the eastern boarder of the Serpent Mound Park. Festival parking is free, parking at the Serpent Mound Park is $8 or more, and the two locations are accessible via a short walk along the Buckeye Trail.
“Every year we continue to grow and evolve,” says Delsey Wilson, Executive Director of FOSM. “This year, we approached several other organizations, businesses, and like minded individuals to help us keep the event free to the public and the following answered that call – Michael & Donna Eastlake, Holly Johnson & Family, Wallingford’s ACE Hardware in Peebles, the Adams County Travel and Visitors Bureau, the Peebles Flower Shop, McCann Laundry, Wallace-Thompson Funeral Homes, West Union Mower Services, Abby’s Place in Peebles, the Great Serpent Mound Dowsers Group, the Serpent Mound Star Knowledge Peace Summits, The Strange Road – Podcast, Wal-Mart, Fair Ridge Farm, and Beverly McKenzie, owner of Soaring Eagle Retreat.”
Throughout the weekend, one can learn about and use an atlatl from the Ohio Atlatl Association. Enjoy artifact and antique toy collections from members of the Archeological Society of Ohio. See modern and traditional flint napping techniques. Learn about medicinal herbs and native plant at the United Plant Savers booth, and sustainable agricultural and forestry ways at Rural Action’s booth. FOSM will offer their Photographic Nature Scavenger Hunt again this year. Families pick up a list at our booth and if they get pictures of at least half the items on the list, all the children receive a prize.
On both Saturday and Sunday, Indigenous musician Jack Flute Holland of Crazy Flute will play his music for us. Also on both days, FOSM Volunteer, Kenny Grooms will oversee a Family Fishing Workshop with prizes for the kids and creek side fishing, sponsored by the Adams County Travel & Visitor’s Bureau and Wal-mart. All participants over 16 must purchase their license beforehand. Each day a different presenter will conduct an Invasive Species Removal workshop.
New this year, is a hands-on Falconry Program on Friday, June 23. This is a very exciting addition, with an opportunity for 10 audience members to interact with the raptors and be a part of the show. Also on Friday,there is a workshop on dowsing. Martin McAlister with the Edge of Appalachia, will present Sunken Mountain: The Flora and Geology of a Meteorite Crater in Southwest Ohio, while off in a different section of Soaring Eagle a FREE 1.5 hour chainsaw safety & maintenance workshop will start, great for novice or seasoned chainsaw users, sponsored by the West Union Mower Service.
On Saturday, music by Chris Davis starts our day full of archeological presentations. Local historian and author Jeffrey Wilson will discuss his new release “Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, the Expanded Edition.” Local history buffs will also enjoy the presentation on Researching 13,000 years of Adams County Area Prehistory by Jonathan Bowen. The Strange Road Podcast will record an interview for their show. Gary Argabright will offer a two-hour presentation on the Spetnagel Turkeytail Cache. We will end the day with a 2 hour Country Music Concert with Nashville recording artist Luke Whittaker. Workshops of the day include yoga, tree grafting, a magic show, sound healing & meditation, and more
Sunday, starts with an early 9 AM kayak tour on the Ohio Brush Creek, directly below the Serpent Mound Park, sponsored by MoonDoggie LIVERee. Presentations start at 11 AM with a singing bowls demonstration, and continues with Mississippian Moundbuilder Designs, The Sounds of Nature, and music from local folk musician Phill Barnett, then Midwestern Artist Steven Rutherford. The day’s workshops include How to Measure a Champion Tree, Turkey Calling, along with the already mentioned activities. We will conclude the festival with an Open Community Drum Circle from 6PM to 7PM, so be sure to bring your hand drum of choice, and join in. Besides these great learning and entertaining opportunities, please visit and shop with our 50 vendors and yes, there will be food!
The Friends of Serpent Mound is a 501c3 non-profit organization. We invite you to visit our website for the full festival schedule, to learn more about our Perseids Meteor Shower Event in August, the Serpent Mound Star Knowledge Peace Summit that we are helping sponsor in September, or to become a member. Learn more at www.serpentmound.org.
FRIDAY, JUNE 23
3:00 PM – Opening Greetings – Delsey Wilson
4:00 PM – Raptor Program – Ohio School of Falconry (1 1/2 hours)
6:00 PM – “Sunken Mountain: The Flora and Geology of a Meteorite Crater in Southwest Ohio” – Martin McAllister
7:00 PM – Festival Closes for the day
SATURDAY, JUNE 24
10:00 AM – Music – Chris Davis
11:00 AM – Music – Jack Holland from Crazy Flute
12:00 PM – Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, The Expanded Edition – Jeffrey Wilson
1:00 PM – “Researching 13,000 Years of Adams County Area Prehistory” – Jonathan Bowen
2:00 PM – Live Podcast Interview – The Strange Road
3:00 PM – The Spetnagel Cache of Turkeytails and Its Association with Chillicothe’s R.P. Schwarz Mound (2 hours) – Gary Argabright
5:00 PM – Real Country Music – Luke Whittaker (2 hours)
7:00 PM – Festival Closes for the day
SUNDAY, JUNE 25
9:00 AM – Kayak Tour below Serpent Mound (Hosted by MoonDoggie LIVERee)
10:00 AM – Open
11:00 AM – Singing Bowls – Deo Abellera
12:00 PM – Mississippian Moundbuilders and “How Humanity got their first Fire” – Pamela Bennett
1:00 PM – The Sounds of Nature – Kathi McQueen
2:00 PM – Music – Jack Holland from Crazy Flute
3:00 PM – Music – Phill Barnett
4:00 PM – TBA – Jeffrey Wilson
5:00 PM – Sound Healing, Dance Music, and Drumming – Steven Rutherford
6:00 PM – Community Drumming
7:00 PM – Festival ends
WORKSHOPS (More added regularly)
Friday, June 23
4:00 PM – Basic Dowsing – Teresa Mahan, Great Serpent Mound Dowsers
6:00 PM – Chainsaw Safety Class (1.5 hours) – Dan Loch, Stihl Field Applications Specialist
Saturday, June 24
10:00 AM – Morning Yoga – Joanie Boyle & Bird Hike – Scioto Valley Bird and Nature Club
11:00 AM – Invasive Species Identification & Removal – Rural Action Sustainable Agriculture & Forestry
1:00 PM – Grafting Pawpaw Trees – Ron Powell
2:00 PM – Buck the Magic Cowboy – Shawn Grey (tentative)
4:00 PM – Sound Healing & Meditation – Joanie Boyle
6:00 PM – Family Fishing Workshop – Kenny Grooms, FOSM Volunteer
Sunday, June 25
9:00 AM – Kayak Tour on Brush Creek (Free if you bring your own Kayak, $ to rent one.)
10:00 AM – Morning Yoga – Joanie Boyle
12:00 PM – How to Measure a Champion Tree – Rural Action Sustainable Forestry
1:00 PM – Removing Invasive Species & Pollinator Establishment – Seth Rankin
2:00 PM – Turkey Calling – Kenny Grooms, FOSM Volunteer
3:00 PM – Buck the Magic Cowboy – Shawn Grey (tentative)
6:00 PM – Family Fishing Workshop – Kenny Grooms, FOSM Volunteer
7:00 PM – Festival ends
