PennWest Edinboro’s picturesque campus will be filled with the colorful traditions of Scotland during the 30th annual Highland Games & Scottish Festival, Sept. 5-7.

Featuring world-class musicians, Celtic vendors, the national Scottish fiddle championship, highland dance performances, harp competitions, athletic competitions, Scottish clan gatherings, kids’ crafts and games and traditional Scottish food, the festival serves as a tribute to Edinboro’s founders and ongoing celebration of the history and traditions of Scotland.

“Edinboro’s Scottish heritage is part of what makes our campus and surrounding community so unique and special,” said festival director Katie Spangenberg. “There’s no better way to celebrate our roots than with three fun-filled days of bagpipes, kilts, games and so much more.”

Edinboro’s Planetarium will kick off the three-day cultural celebration at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 5, with an exploration of Celtic-based constellations and a comparison of the night skies over Edinboro and Edinburgh, Scotland.

Part of the Planetarium’s fall 2024 lineup, the show – “The sky above Edinburgh... or is that Edinboro... or; what difference does it make anyway?” – will be held in Cooper Science Center room 169. All planetarium programming is free and open to the public, but reservations are required.

A public fiddle workshop is set for 6 p.m. Friday, Sept. 6, in Frank G. Pogue Student Center room 143, followed at 7 p.m. by the regional qualifier fiddle competition in Pogue Student Center’s Scot Cinema.

The main festival events and games will be held throughout Saturday, Sept. 7, on the Edinboro campus, around McComb Fieldhouse at the corner of Scot and Scotland roads, and at the adjacent Pogue Student Center.

The beer garden (presented by Lake Erie Ale Trail) opens at 11 a.m. on the McComb Fieldhouse lawns. Opening ceremonies and massed bands are set for noon

Musical performances will fill the air throughout the day, while burly athletes toss various weighty objects as part of the ever-popular heavy athletic competitions. The events include the caber toss, hammer, stone and 56-pound weights for height and distance.  

An array of high-quality vendors will be on hand, selling clothing, jewelry, glassware and other goods. Scottish and American food vendors will offer sausage rolls, meat pies, shepherd’s pie, chicken dinners, kettle corn, cookies, desserts and more.  

The full schedule of Saturday’s events will run from approximately 8:30 a.m. until 4:30 p.m., followed by the Ceilidh (kay-lee) dinner and music by the Chelsea House Orchestra from 5-9 p.m. in the Van Houten North Dining Room. The cost of the Ceilidh, which includes a full Scottish dinner and an address to the Haggis, is $45 per person.

All festival events are free and open to the public, except the Ceilidh.

Events will go on, rain or shine, with alternate locations set in case of inclement weather. Full festival information is available on the website at pennwest.edu/edinboro-highland-games.

Let the Games begin!