Zigzag Old-Time Campout
September 2-7, 2026
Join us up near Mt. Hood on Labor Day weekend for the 2026 Zigzag Old-Time Music Campout! It’s taking place Sept. 2-7, and will feature workshops with our guest artists Paul Silveria, Athena McKown, and Mark Kilianski.
Bring your instruments and your tent, van/small RV and take an easy hour drive from Portland to the beautiful Zigzag Mountain Farm on Mount Hood. Camping is in your choice of wooded sites or open meadows (restrooms and showers available).
Everyone is welcome, whether you play an instrument, sing, love to listen, or just want to relax in a beautiful place, surrounded by mountains and music.
Zigzag Mountain Farm is offering the option to come out early and stay for 5 days (Wednesday, Sept. 2-Monday, Sept. 7) or just enjoy the long weekend with a 3 day pass (Friday, Sept. 4 – Monday, Sept. 7).
Visiting Artists 2026:
PAUL SILVERIA
Paul Silveria is a musician, dance caller, and teacher who puts community at the heart of his work. Originally from Portland, Orgeon, and now living in Vancouver, BC, he is a 20+ year veteran of the folk and traditional music scene in the Pacific Northwest.
Paul is a driving, and innovative banjo player. He first began learning clawhammer banjo in 2002 in Portland’s thriving, old-time music scene. His repertoire includes old-time, country blues, and jug band tunes, as well as original songs written with the straight-forward story telling style of his traditional favourites.
ATHENA McKOWN
Athena McKown is an established fiddler based in Vancouver, BC. She loves traditional fiddling and the festival scene, and has been playing fiddle music in many forms for over 20 years. She hosts the popular old-time jams with Paul Silveria for the Pacific Bluegrass & Old Time Society, and has fronted numerous ceilidh, contra and square dance bands. She has also performed alongside the Canote Brothers and at festivals, including the Vancouver Folk Music Festival, Cowichan Valley Bluegrass Festival, and Harrison Festival of the Arts, among others. She is currently in Hammer, Pick and Saw, a trio of fiddle, banjo and pedal steel, which honours the old time tradition while exploring a unique and more ethereal side of the music. When not playing music or at a festival, she is a teaching professor in the forest sciences at the University of British Columbia.
MARK KILIANSKI
Mark Kilianski is a guitar flatpicker, banjo player, and singer songwriter, with home bases in Nashville, New Jersey, and Vancouver, BC. But, most of the time you’ll find him on the road with Americana/old-time duo Golden Shoals.
In his formative years, Mark immersed himself in various styles of guitar music including classic rock, jazz, classical, and metal. While pursuing a degree in Jazz Composition at Berklee College of Music, he started meeting bluegrass and celtic fiddlers and took a stylistic left turn, falling in love with folk music’s raw aesthetic and ethos of anywhere/anytime jamming. This diverse musical background informs Mark’s unique sound and approach to traditional music and songwriting. Throughout it all, Mark pays homage to the old timers of American roots music, with his own personal reverence and humor.
Workshop Schedule 2026
We will have a variety of workshops by our visiting artists as well as local musicians. Click the button below for more details and the workshop schedule!
Everyone is welcome, whether you play an instrument, sing, love to listen, or just want to relax in a beautiful place, surrounded by mountains and music. Explore the trails and organic gardens.
Rates
3-Day Regular Rate: $159
3-Day “I Need A Break” Rate: $119 (you choose!)
3-Day Child Rate: $30 (9-16 years); 8 & under free
5-Day Regular Rate: $189
5-Day “I Need A Break” Rate: $154 (you choose!)
5-Day Child Rate: $50 (9-16 years); 8 and under free
Meals and Cooking
We heard your stomachs growling and we listened! Zigzag Mountain Farm does not have the capacity to provide meal plans as they did before COVID times. But we have come up with an alternate plan:
- Thursday Night Potluck (7pm)– bring a dish to share!
- Friday night BBQ (5pm-8:30pm)– German brats, veggie sausage and salads available for purchase
- Saturday and Sunday (noon – 8:00pm): Al Forno Pizza stand
You may also bring your own food (there are 3 BBQs on site and a camper’s kitchen in a converted bus), or eat out at nearby restaurants, such as the Skyway Bar & Grill, the Zigzag Inn, Wraptitude, or Alforno Pizza.
The Zigzag Workshop Faculty and scholarships are sponsored by Bubbaville through the The Bubba Fund – Honoring the spirit of Bill Martin.
