Burl's Creek Event Grounds is a large-scale outdoor

music venue A music venue is any location used for a concert or musical performance. Music venues range in size and location, from a small coffeehouse for folk music shows, an outdoor bandshell or bandstand or a concert hall to an indoor sports stadium ...

Oro-Medonte Oro-Medonte is a township in south-central Ontario, Canada, on the northwestern shores of Lake Simcoe in Simcoe County. The two neighbouring townships of Oro and Medonte were merged in 1994, under a restructuring of Simcoe County. It is divide ...

township, north of

Barrie Barrie is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada, about north of Toronto. The city is within Simcoe County and located along the shores of Kempenfelt Bay, the western arm of Lake Simcoe. Although physically in Simcoe County, Barrie is politically i ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...

, Canada. It is located on the south side of Highway 11 on Oro-Medonte's 8th Line, between Barrie and

Orillia Orillia is a city in Ontario, Canada. It is in Simcoe County between Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe. Although it is geographically located within Simcoe County, the city is a single-tier municipality. It is part of the Huronia region of C ...

. It most notably holds the

Boots and Hearts Music Festival The Boots and Hearts Music Festival is a multi-day country music and camping festival produced by Republic Live Inc. and owned by Stan and Eva Dunford. The festival is held annually at the Burl's Creek Event Grounds in Oro-Medonte, Ontario, Can ...

in August each summer, and the Barrie Automotive Flea Market each June and September.

Description

Spanning over , Burl's Creek Event Grounds is the largest unused outdoor

in Canada. Operating as an event park since 1984, Burl's Creek changed ownership in 2014. Subsequent site alterations and

landscaping Landscaping refers to any activity that modifies the visible features of an area of land, including the following: # Living elements, such as flora or fauna; or what is commonly called gardening, the art and craft of growing plants with a goal ...

developed three natural

turf Sod, also known as turf, is the upper layer of soil with the grass growing on it that is often harvested into rolls. In Australian and British English, sod is more commonly known as ''turf'', and the word "sod" is limited mainly to agricultu ...

amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...

s for concert viewing. A 1930s-era timber-framed barn was retrofitted into a centrepiece. Cat 5 Fibre cable was installed throughout the grounds, which are serviced by an independent

cellular Cellular may refer to: *Cellular automaton, a model in discrete mathematics *Cell biology, the evaluation of cells work and more *Cellular (film), ''Cellular'' (film), a 2004 movie *Cellular frequencies, assigned to networks operating in cellular ...

system. In addition to the Cat 5, the event grounds owns 1200 garbage cans, 225 portable toilets, 45 picnic tables, 3 shower trailers and a partridge in a pear tree. Burl's Creek also offers camping on unzoned lands in conjunction with festivals. Celebrity TV personality Todd Jenereaux has assumed the position of EVP of Burl's Creek since 2017. Burl's Creek is located just east of

Ontario Highway 11 King's Highway 11, commonly referred to as Highway 11, is a provincially maintained highway in the Canadian province of Ontario. At , it is the second longest highway in the province, following Highway 17. Highway11 begins at Highway ...

between Oro-Medonte Line 8 and Oro-Medonte Line 7, north of Barrie. The grounds are accessed via three separate concession

road A road is a linear way for the conveyance of traffic that mostly has an improved surface for use by vehicles (motorized and non-motorized) and pedestrians. Unlike streets, the main function of roads is transportation. There are many types of ...

s with connection to two Highway 11 interchanges, and Ridge Road, which runs from Barrie to Orillia. The venue is one hour from the Greater Toronto Area, 45 minutes to

Muskoka Muskoka may refer to: Canada Geographical * Lake Muskoka, lake located between Port Carling and Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada * Muskoka River, a river in the Muskoka District of Ontario, Canada Municipalities * District Municipality of Muskoka, a r ...

, and under 15 minutes to

. Simcoe North Regional Airport is nearby. Burl's Creek owners purchased the legendary Barrie Speedway which sat adjacent to Burl's Creek property on Line 8 in Oro Medonte for decades. The Speedway was purchased in 2015 and demolished to make way for additional parking and camping lands for future music festivals. Prior to the closure of Barrie Speedway Burl's Creek held a private race with a number of local celebrities in attendance, most notably Joe Pileggi who came in second place while driving a police car. In 2018 after Burl's Creek received full zoning of their lands, Burl's Creek issued a number of sanctions towards The Township of Oro Medonte and several township staff and council members. These sanctions were in response to numerous fines and penalties the township issued to Burl's Creek from 2015-2016. In addition to these sanctions a half a dozen mandates were also implemented by Burl's Creek towards all neighbouring properties that surround the event grounds. These mandates were implemented to prevent local townspeople from using the event grounds lands for personal use on foot or utility vehicles.

Events

The grounds have been home to the

WayHome Music & Arts Festival WayHome Music and Arts festival is produced by Republic Live and owned by Stan and Eva Dunford. It is a three-day music and arts festival held at the custom-designed camping festival grounds, Burl's Creek Event Grounds. The festival offers multip ...

, the

, the OK Friday Farmer's Market, The Big Feastival Canada, the Huronia Fur and Feathers Swap Sale, and the long-running spring and fall Barrie automotive flea markets. In 2019, it hosted the "Canada Rocks" Festival which was headlined by

The Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the gritty, rhythmically d ...

WayHome Music & Arts Festival - 2015–2017

The WayHome Music & Arts Festival is a three-day

music Music is generally defined as the The arts, art of arranging sound to create some combination of Musical form, form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise Musical expression, expressive content. Exact definition of music, definitions of mu ...

and

arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

camping Camping is an outdoor activity involving overnight stays away from home, either without shelter or using basic shelter such as a tent, or a recreational vehicle. Typically, participants leave developed areas to spend time outdoors in more natu ...

festival A festival is an event ordinarily celebrated by a community and centering on some characteristic aspect or aspects of that community and its religion or cultures. It is often marked as a local or national holiday, mela, or eid. A festival co ...

produced by ''Republic Live'' and held in

, at Burl's Creek Event Grounds between Barrie and Orillia. Owned by Stan and Eva Dunford, WayHome Music & Arts was first held in July, 2015 with an announced 35,000 attendees. In its inaugural year, WayHome featured headliners

Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian-American singer and songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, joining Buffalo Springfield with Stephen Stills, Richie Fu ...

Sam Smith Samuel Frederick Smith (born 19 May 1992) is an English singer and songwriter. After rising to prominence in October 2012 by featuring on Disclosure's breakthrough single "Latch", which peaked at number eleven on the UK Singles Chart, they ...

Kendrick Lamar Kendrick Lamar Duckworth (born June 17, 1987) is an American rapper and songwriter. Known for his progressive musical styles and socially conscious songwriting, he is often considered one of the most influential hip hop artists of his generat ...

, along with

Alt-J Alt-J (stylised as alt-J, real name Δ) are an English indie rock band formed in 2007 in Leeds. Their lineup includes Joe Newman (guitar/lead vocals), Thom Sonny Green (drums), Gus Unger-Hamilton (keyboards/vocals), and formerly Gwilym Sainsbu ...

Modest Mouse Modest Mouse is an American rock band formed in 1992 in Issaquah, Washington, and currently based in Portland, Oregon. The founding members are lead singer/guitarist Isaac Brock, drummer Jeremiah Green, and bassist Eric Judy. Strongly influenc ...

Hozier Andrew John Hozier-Byrne (born 17 March 1990), known professionally as Hozier ( ), is an Irish musician, singer and songwriter. His music primarily draws from folk, soul and blues, often using religious and literary themes. He had his interna ...

and many more. In its second year, WayHome Music and Arts 2016 featured

LCD Soundsystem LCD Soundsystem is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy, co-founder of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals, various instruments), Nancy Whang (synthesizer, keyboards, vocals), Pat Mahoney ( ...

Arcade Fire Arcade Fire is a Canadian indie rock band, consisting of husband and wife Win Butler and Régine Chassagne, alongside Richard Reed Parry, Tim Kingsbury and Jeremy Gara. The band's current touring line-up also includes former core member ...

and

The Killers The Killers are an American Rock music, rock band formed in Las Vegas in 2001 by Brandon Flowers (lead vocals, keyboards, bass) and Dave Keuning (lead guitar, backing vocals). After going through a number of short-term bass players and drum ...

, in addition to performances by

Major Lazer Major Lazer is an American electronic dance music DJ trio, which includes record producer Diplo, and DJs Walshy Fire and Ape Drums. It originates from Kingston, Jamaica, and was founded in 2008 by Diplo and Switch, with Switch leaving after t ...

, M83,

Haim The name ''Haim'' can be a first name or surname originating in the Hebrew language, or deriving from the Old German name '' Haimo''. Hebrew etymology Chayyim ( he, חַיִּים ', Classical Hebrew: , Israeli Hebrew: ), also transcribed ''Ha ...

Metric Metric or metrical may refer to: * Metric system, an internationally adopted decimal system of measurement * An adjective indicating relation to measurement in general, or a noun describing a specific type of measurement Mathematics In mathem ...

Chvrches Chvrches (stylised CHVRCHΞS and pronounced "Churches") are a Scottish pop band from Glasgow, formed in September 2011. The band consists of Lauren Mayberry, Iain Cook, Martin Doherty and, unofficially since 2018, Jonny Scott. Mostly deriving ...

Ray LaMontagne Raymond Charles Jack LaMontagne (; born June 18, 1973) is an American singer-songwriter and musician. LaMontagne has released eight studio albums: ''Trouble'', ''Till the Sun Turns Black'', '' Gossip in the Grain'', ''God Willin' & the Creek Don' ...

, and 60+ more

artists An artist is a person engaged in an activity related to creating art, practicing the arts, or demonstrating an art. The common usage in both everyday speech and academic discourse refers to a practitioner in the visual arts only. However, the ...

. The festival offers multiple stages, a variety of late-night spectacles and experiences, international and local cuisine, an on-site locally produced

farmers' market A farmers' market (or farmers market according to the AP stylebook, also farmer's market in the Cambridge Dictionary) is a physical retail marketplace intended to sell foods directly by farmers to consumers. Farmers' markets may be indoors o ...

, original

art installations Installation art is an artistic genre of three-dimensional works that are often site-specific and designed to transform the perception of a space. Generally, the term is applied to interior spaces, whereas exterior interventions are often called ...

- past artists include internally acclaimed artist such as; DoLab and Angus Watt, and more to 40,000+ fans over the course of the weekend. WayHome Music and Arts was recently awarded the

New Kid on the Block "New Kid on the Block" is the eighth episode of the fourth season of the American animated television series '' The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on November 12, 1992. After meeting his new neighbor, La ...

(Best New Festival)

award An award, sometimes called a distinction, is something given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An awar ...

and was nominated for ''Major Festival of the Year'' at the 2016 ''Canadian Music Awards''. WayHome Music & Arts 2017 took place from July 28–30, 2017. It featured

Imagine Dragons Imagine Dragons is an American pop rock band from Las Vegas, Nevada, consisting of lead singer Dan Reynolds, guitarist Wayne Sermon, bassist Ben McKee and drummer Daniel Platzman. The band first gained exposure with the release of their ...

Frank Ocean Christopher Francis "Frank" Ocean (born Christopher Edwin Breaux; October 28, 1987), is an American singer, songwriter, and rapper. His works are noted by music critics for featuring avant-garde styles and introspective, elliptical lyrics. Ocean ...

Flume A flume is a human-made channel for water, in the form of an open declined gravity chute whose walls are raised above the surrounding terrain, in contrast to a trench or ditch. Flumes are not to be confused with aqueducts, which are built to ...

Justice Justice, in its broadest sense, is the principle that people receive that which they deserve, with the interpretation of what then constitutes "deserving" being impacted upon by numerous fields, with many differing viewpoints and perspective ...

Solange Solange (died 10 May, c. 880) was a Frankish shepherdess and a locally venerated Christian saint and cephalophore, whose cult is restricted to Sainte-Solange, Cher. Saint Solange was the patron of the traditional Province of Berry, of which ...

Marshmello Christopher Comstock (born May 19, 1992), known professionally as Marshmello, is an American electronic music producer and DJ. His songs " Silence", " Wolves", " Friends", "Happier", and "Alone" have been certified multi-platinum in severa ...

, Vance Joy,

Schoolboy Q Quincy Matthew Hanley (born October 26, 1986), better known by his stage name Schoolboy Q (stylized as ScHoolboy Q), is an American rapper. In 2009, Hanley signed to Carson-based independent record label Top Dawg Entertainment (TDE) and in late ...

Tegan and Sara Tegan and Sara () are a Canadian indie pop duo formed in 1998 in Calgary, Alberta. The band is led by identical twin sisters Tegan Rain Quin and Sara Keirsten Quin (born September 19, 1980). Both musicians are songwriters and multi-instrumental ...

The Shins The Shins is an American indie rock band formed in Albuquerque, New Mexico, in 1996. The band is the project of singer-songwriter James Mercer, who has served as the band's sole constant member throughout numerous line-up changes. The band's c ...

and others.

Boots and Hearts Music Festival

''2015–present'' The Boots and Hearts Music Festival is Canada's largest multi-day

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, o ...

and camping festival produced by Republic Live Inc. and owned by Stan and Eva Dunford. It is held annually at the Burl's Creek Event Grounds. Since its inception in 2012, Boots and Hearts has become Canada's largest country music festival and considered the second-largest music festival in North America behind only the CMA Music Festival. The festival offers Emerging Artist Showcase, multiple stages, meet and greets, VIP offers, and is attended by 45,000+ festival-goers over the course of four days. Boots and Hearts was awarded the CCMA (Canadian Country Music Association) "''Festival of the Year''" Award in 2014, 2015, and 2016, as well as the

Canadian Music Week Canadian Music Week (or CMW) is an industry conference and music festival held over ten days in Toronto and Ontario, Canada. History Canadian Music Week began in 1981 and has grown to become one of Canada's largest and most influential media a ...

"''Festival of the Year''" in 2015, with repeat nominations in 2016, 2017, and 2018. Boots and Hearts has seen the acts of world-renowned artists such as

Carrie Underwood Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American singer. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of ''American Idol'' in 2005. Her single " Inside Your Heaven" made her the only country artist to debut atop the ''Bil ...

Luke Bryan Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan (born July 17, 1976) is an American country singer, songwriter, and television personality. He began his music career writing songs for Travis Tritt and Billy Currington before signing with Capitol Nashville in 2007 ...

Blake Shelton Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music singer and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single " Austin". The lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" spent five weeks at ...

Toby Keith Toby Keith Covel (born July 8, 1961), known professionally as Toby Keith, is an American country music singer, songwriter, actor, and record producer. He released his first four studio albums—1993's ''Toby Keith'', 1994's ''Boomtown'', 1996' ...

Jason Aldean Jason Aldean (born Jason Aldine Williams; February 28, 1977) is an American country music singer. Since 2005, he has been signed to Broken Bow Records, a record label for which he has released ten albums and 40 singles. His 2010 album, ''My Kind ...

Miranda Lambert Miranda Leigh Lambert (born November 10, 1983) is an American country singer and guitarist. Born in Longview, Texas, she started out in early 2001 when she released her self-titled debut album independently. In 2003, she finished in third place o ...

Tim McGraw Samuel Timothy McGraw (born May 1, 1967) is an American country singer, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He has released 16 studio albums (11 for Curb Records, four for Big Machine Records and one for Arista Nashville). 10 of those albu ...

Rascal Flatts Rascal Flatts is an American country music band founded in 1999. The band members were Gary LeVox (lead vocals), Jay DeMarcus (bass guitar, background vocals), and Joe Don Rooney (lead guitar, background vocals). DeMarcus is LeVox's second co ...

Brad Paisley Bradley Douglas Paisley (born October 28, 1972) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Starting with his 1999 debut album '' Who Needs Pictures'', he has released eleven studio albums and a Christmas compilation on the Arista Nash ...

Eric Church Kenneth Eric Church (born May 3, 1977) is an American country music singer-songwriter. He has released nine studio albums through Capitol Nashville since 2005. His debut album, 2006's ''Sinners Like Me'', produced three singles on the ''Billboar ...

Florida Georgia Line Florida Georgia Line is an American country music duo founded in 2010 by Tyler Hubbard of Georgia and Brian Kelley of Florida, both of whom are vocalists and songwriters. Their 2012 debut single "Cruise" broke two major sales records: it was ...

and many other country music stars. The 2017 edition of Boots and Hearts Music Festival took place from August 10–13, 2017 and featured Luke Bryan,

Keith Urban Keith Lionel Urban (born 26 October 1967) is an Australian-American musician, singer, guitarist and songwriter known for his work in country music. Recognized with four Grammy Awards, Urban also received fifteen Academy of Country Music Awa ...

Brantley Gilbert Brantley Keith Gilbert (born January 20, 1985) is an American country rock singer, songwriter and record producer from Jefferson, Georgia. He was originally signed to Colt Ford's label, Average Joes Entertainment, where he released '' Modern ...

Brett Eldredge Brett Ryan Eldredge (born March 23, 1986) is an American country music singer, songwriter and record producer, signed to Warner Music Group Nashville. Eldredge has had five No. 1 singles on the ''Billboard'' Country Airplay chart, three of ...

Eli Young Band Eli Young Band is an American country music band composed of members who met while students at the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas: Mike Eli (lead vocals, guitar), James Young (guitar), Jon Jones (bass guitar), and Chris Thompson (drum ...

and

Dan + Shay Dan or DAN may refer to: People * Dan (name), including a list of people with the name ** Dan (king), several kings of Denmark * Dan people, an ethnic group located in West Africa ** Dan language, a Mande language spoken primarily in Côte d'Iv ...

The Big Feastival Canada 2017

''The Big Feastival'' was an idea originally conceived by

Jamie Oliver James Trevor Oliver MBE OSI (born 27 May 1975) is an English chef, restaurateur and cookbook author. He is known for his casual approach to cuisine, which has led him to front numerous television shows and open many restaurants. Oliver reac ...

in the UK in 2011. The event was designed and built around food, music and fun for the entire family.

IMG img or IMG is an abbreviation for image. img or IMG may also refer to: * IMG (company), global sports and media business headquartered in New York City but with its main offices in Cleveland, originally known as the "International Management Group ...

produced the hugely successful event in the UK since 2012 and brought this unique festival format to Canada. Held August 18–20, 2017, it showcased the country's top culinary talent, including Canadian

celebrity chef A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become a celebrity. Today, chefs often become celebrities by presenting cookery advice and demonstrations, usually through the media of television and radio, or in printed publications. While television ...

television personality Celebrity is a condition of fame and broad public recognition of a person or group as a result of the attention given to them by mass media. An individual may attain a celebrity status from having great wealth, their participation in sports ...

, and

restaurateur A restaurateur is a person who opens and runs restaurants professionally. Although over time the term has come to describe any person who owns a restaurant, traditionally it refers to a highly skilled professional who is proficient in all aspec ...

Chuck Hughes Charles Frederick Hughes (March 2, 1943 – October 24, 1971) was an American football player, a wide receiver in the National Football League from 1967 to 1971. , he is the only NFL player to die on the field during a game. Early years Born ...

. Activities included culinary workshops, educational sessions, live cooking demonstrations in the Big Kitchen and artisanal products at the Producer's Market. The 2017 edition of ''The Big Feastival'' featured

Weezer Weezer is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1992. Since 2001, the band has consisted of Rivers Cuomo (vocals, guitar, keyboards), Patrick Wilson (drums, backing vocals), Scott Shriner (bass guitar, keyboards, backin ...

Ben Harper Benjamin Chase Harper (born October 28, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Harper plays an eclectic mix of blues, folk, soul, reggae, and rock music and is known for his guitar-playing skills, vocals, live perf ...

The Strumbellas The Strumbellas are a rock band from Lindsay, Ontario, whose music has been described as alternative country, indie rock, farm emo, and gothic folk.

Basia Bulat Barbara Josephine Bulat (born April 13, 1984), known as Basia Bulat (), is a Canadian folk singer-songwriter. She is known for performing with an autoharp. Early life and education Bulat grew up in Etobicoke, Ontario where her mother was a mus ...

, Choir!Choir!Choir!,

De La Soul De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternat ...

, Dwayne Gretzky,

Magic! Magic! (stylized in all uppercase) is a Canadian reggae fusion band based in Toronto, Ontario. The band is composed of lead vocalist, guitarist/producer Nasri Atweh, guitarist/keyboardist Mark "Pelli" Pellizzer, and bassist Ben Spivak. Activ ...

and

Wintersleep Wintersleep is a Canadian indie rock band formed in Halifax, Nova Scotia in 2001.Heidi Ulrichsen"Wintersleep offers 'sneak peeks' of new album at Boreal" ''Sudbury Star'', June 30, 2014. The band's original lineup consisted of vocalist and g ...

OK Friday

''2015–present'' ''The OK Friday Barn Fair'' is a community-driven,

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

and farmers market held seasonally at Burl's Creek Event Grounds. In collaboration with ''Southern Georgian Bay Farmers Markets'', ''OK Friday'' sells a wide range of farm fresh produce and a variety of ready-to-eat items, alongside local bakeries, artisanal producers, and craft makers. Visited by up to 1000 people each week, OK Friday is a gathering place for Oro-Medonte. Local residents and neighbours John and Josephine Hemsted have sold their world famous lamb burgers and falafel at the OK Friday market since its beginning in 2015.

Event history

2015–2017 *

2015–present *OK Friday Farmer's Market 2015–present *The Big Feastival Canada 2017 *Huronia Fur & Feathers 1995–2017 *Spring Automotive Flea Market 1984–2017 *Fall Automotive Flea Market 1984–2017 *

The Tragically Hip The Tragically Hip, often referred to simply as the Hip, were a Canadian rock band formed in Kingston, Ontario in 1984, consisting of vocalist Gord Downie, guitarist Paul Langlois, guitarist Rob Baker (known as Bobby Baker until 1994), bassi ...

2012 *Zombie Dash 2012 * CMT Music Festival 2011 *

2009 * Jack Johnson 2008 *

–

No Filter Tour The No Filter Tour was a European/North American concert tour by the Rolling Stones which began on 9 September 2017 in Hamburg, Germany. The tour was scheduled to conclude in 2020 but had to be postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The tour ...

2019 * Big Sky Music Festival 2019

References

External links

* {{Official website, https://www.burlscreek.com Music venues in Ontario Tourist attractions in Simcoe County Festival venues in Canada