Food and fire, nature and art, indoors and outdoors, community connections and fun!
On Saturday, February 7, join Chocorua Lake Conservancy (CLC) and Tamworth Outing Club (TOC) for Winter Fest, a fun day and evening of outdoor and indoor activities in Chocorua. Bring your family, bring a friend, or come meet some new ones!
If you’d like to stay at The Preserve at Chocorua over Winter Fest weekend, scroll to the bottom of the page. All room bookings come with free tickets to the Winter Fest Dinner Dance.
Cold-water dip at Chocorua Lake • 10 AM
All set up for the Winter Fest Cold-Water Dip in 2025. | Polly Mahoney
Winter Fest begins at 10 AM on Saturday morning at Chocorua Lake with a Cold-Water Dip and Sauna with the local year-round dipping group, the Tamworth Otters.
If you’d like to dip and sauna, please register in advance by checking the box on either the Winter Fest sign up form, OR the Dinner Dance ticket form, or come along to watch the fun!
Free/by donation. Thank you to White Mountain Sauna Haus for the sauna! Check out their grand opening in North Conway on Friday, January 9!
Winter Fest Indoors and out • 1–5 PM at the preserve at chocorua! (Free/by donation)
Storyteller Andy Davis. | Kate Wilcox
As weather and conditions permit, we’ll have sledding, trails for x-country skiing and snowshoeing (bring your own sleds/skis/snowshoes); Chinooks, sled dog demos and rides and display, and ice harvesting with Chinook Owners Association; a winter camping expo and display of handmade snowshoes and trapping gear; winter stories by the fire with storyteller Andy Davis at 2 PM and 4:30 PM, songs for kids & everyone with Dexter & Lucy at 3 PM; a cold water dipping expo with the Otters; a water quality display with CLC Stewardship Director Debra Marnich; Valentine card making with Arts Council of Tamworth, rag rug making with Tamworth History Center; a plant ally winter hydration center with Tamworth Community Nurse Association, winter tree ID with James Cruickshank from Remick Country Doctor Museum & Farm, activities/displays with other Tamworth nonprofits, as well as bonfires, treats, & hot drinks. By donation. Please register in advance so we can update you on ground conditions and activities.
We’ll also have a silent auction with art and wonderful local experiences from 1–7 PM. All auction and event proceeds will benefit the Tamworth Outing Club and Chocorua Lake Conservancy.
Winter Fest Dinner Dance • 5–9 PM (sliding-scale advanced tickets only)
Dancing at Winter Fest. | Debra Marnich
At 5 PM, we’ll head indoors for beer & wine by donation; cocktail hour music by the Winter Festivarians; a delicious supper provided by The Farmstand (vegetarian & dairy- and gluten-free options) and dessert; and at 7:30 PM a traditional dance with the Winter Festivarians and caller Jennifer McHone Villalobos. No experience necessary! The caller will guide you through jigs, reels, square dances, circle dances, waltzes, and more. This kind of dancing is a long tradition in Tamworth. Tamworth Outing Club has been hosting dances since 1937, the second oldest continuously held dance in New Hampshire.
Tickets are required indoors from 5–9 PM for supper and the evening dance: $10 for kids (6 and under are free); adults are “choose your price”: $25, $50, or $100. Please choose your ticket price based on what you are routinely able to pay for meals out and cultural events. Evening ticket sales help support free afternoon events for everyone, and sliding scale tickets help us make events accessible. Any net proceeds will support TOC's many community activities for children and everyone, and CLC's protection of and care for land in the Chocorua Lake Basin. Please register in advance; this event sold out early last year, and tickets will not be available at the door. Storm date is Saturday, March 7.
If you are coming from out of town and would like to book a room at The Preserve and make a weekend of it, please contact Anna Paddock at apaddock@chocorualake.org or (603) 323-6252. Room rental proceeds also benefit the work of CLC & TOC, and all room bookings come with free tickets to the Winter Fest Dinner Dance.
Banner image: Kate Wilcox