What a festival. With perfect weather, perfect water, a full moon & the best crowd imaginable, it was another amazing Cheat Fest.

In good company, three ‘generations’ of festival coordinators. Thanks Janet & Emma for everything you’ve done for FOC & the festival.

After months of planning, it was incredible to see so many friends of the Cheat come together  to make the festival a reality. This celebration is truly the product of one big river family, and I want to thank everyone who had a hand in making Cheat Fest such a special event – which is hard, because that is a lot of hands!

Double Royalty – The Festival Pharaoh & Friends of the Cheat Director Amanda Pitzer.

There is the team of people who work for months to coordinate their own corners of the festival, the volunteers who return year after year to prepare the grounds and work shifts throughout the entire event, the musicians who donate their performances and keep the beat alive all day long, the vendors, non-profits & artists who come to share their passion &work with our guests, and the friendliest & happiest crowd in the world. I have never met a friendlier crowd.

I met countless people throughout the weekend who shared that it was their 10th, 17th, or even 21st Cheat Festival and I felt so proud to have had the opportunity to be a part of such a special tradition. Thank you, everyone, for the wonderful weekend. We’ll see you next year!

And – thank you to Eric Lee for helping us relive the festival from a bird’s eye view with his spectacular drone footage. Eric is a contributor to Cheat Canyon Adventures, an online adventure blog that highlights outdoor recreation in the Cheat River Canyon area.

Photography contributed by Donnie Riggs