Great Bear Festival | Kalispell, MT (original) (raw)

Join us at the O’Shaughnessy Outdoor Amphitheater at the Wachholz Center for a sunny-afternoon, sunset-concert Flathead celebration on Saturday August 8 2026! The Great Bear Festival returns with family fun, local sounds, and a new headline show by Tommy Edwards and Man & The Box (5:30–8:00 PM). Bring a blanket or lawn chair and settle in as the sun goes down. Important Rain plan: if the weather turns, we’ll move the Concert indoors to this wonderful facility.

What to expect

Tastes: Beer, Ciders and Wine sampling
Evening Concert 5:30-8:00 Tommy Edwards and Man & The Box
Family Fun from 3:00-5:30: Kids Free-Throw contest, lawn games, Kids’ art table, the famous Big Bubble booth, and more!
Food: Local food trucks serving up festival favorites.
Views: Beautiful mountain backdrop and plenty of park lawn to hang out.

This is a Rotary Community Event with profits supporting Rotary projects like: youth basketball, RYLA leadership camp, scholarships, Ashley Creek Park playground, local nonprofit grants, and international clean-water and sanitation efforts.

See you there!

(Keep checking back — more activities and details coming soon.)

Ticket Link Coming Soon

Adults (21+): $30.00 Includes Entry, Tommy Edwards Concert and four beverage tickets covering two 8 oz beverage samples (or four 4 oz samples)

Ages 17-20 yrs old: $20.00 Includes Entry, Tommy Edwards Concert and water/soda beverage

Children (0-16 yrs old): Free Entry, Tommy Edwards Concert, Goodie Bag with beverage (for first 200 kids) and lots of kids activities!

BULK Ticket purchase of 10 or more Adult or 17-20 yrs old Tickets get a 20% Discount
– Email Valerie at [email protected] or call 406-756-4516

Additional alcoholic drink tickets can be purchased for $5 per 8 oz beverage.

2024 Participating Beverage Co’s

Exciting cold beverages will be coming from all across Montana and beyond featuring beers, ciders, sparkling waters and wine. At the event you’ll be able to take your glass around to these beverage artists and sample 4 oz or 8 oz sizes using the tickets provided with your entry fee. Representatives from each company will be on hand to chat with you about their ingredients and story. Rotarians and volunteers will be on hand to pour and welcome you!

For Beer, Cider & Sparkling Waters: 2 tickets = 4 oz pour, 4 tickets = 8 oz pour

For Wine: 1 ticket = 1 oz sample, 2 tickets = 2 oz pour, 4 tickets = 4 oz pour

Additional tickets can be purchased at the Festival

2024 Participating Food Trucks

No festival is complete without some yummy food to accompany the great beverages. Stop by any of the participating Food trucks for something hearty, spicy or cool!

Osprey Cafe

Copacabana Grill

406 Taco Nite

Shnacks

Ranger Joes Pizza

2023 Participating Vendors

2023 Food Vendors

Performances By:

The Music Lab

Organizations supported by the Rotary Clubs of the Flathead Valley

Chicks and Chaps Fundraising
Rotary Basketball
ADA accessible Miracle Field
Senior Mobile Home Repair Program
Salvation Army annual Bell-Ringing
Shepherd’s Hand Clinic
Sparrows Nest Kalispell Renovation
Flathead HS & Glacier HS Scholarships
Water & Sanitation in Guatemala
Flathead & Veterans Food Banks
HEART Locker & HEART Market
MW MT Forest Fires Lookout Painting
Lighthouse Christian Homes
Big Brothers Big Sisters
Glacier & Flathead Choirs
Flathead Youth Home 10-year Upgrade
Abbie Shelter
Samaritan House
Elementary School REading Volunteers
Santa’s Helpers / Christmas Magic
Red Cross Blood Drive
Martin Luther King Community Program
Glacier Symphony & Chorale
Annual Turkey Drive
Braveheart Ministry
Boys & Girls Club
Eradication of Polio Worldwide
Funded IB Testing for Low Income Students at Flathead
Glacier HS Band Trip to DC
Code Girls United
Gateway Community Center Gathering Place