Every Thursday during the summer and fall, Feast & Field brings together friends, neighbors, farmers, artists, and educators to connect people to the land. The festive, renaissance-like gathering takes place at the former Clark Farm in Barnard, Vermont, in the middle of the Royalton countryside, with amazing views from the top of the hill.

The community is invited to a family-friendly celebration of local food, music, and dancing held on a working farm. A campfire jam follows at dusk, and all are encouraged to bring an instrument.

The Heartwood Fable Collective, a group of farmers, artists, and educators, hosts these lively farmers’ markets and community gatherings. The collective includes Eastman Farm, Fable Farm, and Kiss the Cow Farm. They have worked together with the Vermont Land Trust to purchase the land and farms cooperatively. By sharing time and resources, the partnership is developing a model that works for the farmers, the community, and the landscape.

At Feast & Field, visitors can purchase food, including meats, grown and raised within sight of the market. They’ll also meet wonderful people who will quickly become friends. Then there’s the opportunity to taste great food, including tacos from Merry Bones Farm and cheeses from Spirit Bear Farm, and to enjoy cider as wine produced by Fable Farm and made from local fruits, herbs, saps, and honey. If the air turns chilly, sip tea from Carin’s Kombucha or coffee roasted by Abracadabra. Ready for dessert? Try ice cream from Kiss the Cow. Be sure to bring home flowers from Stitchdown Farm, but before you leave, take a walk and, winding through the fields where cows graze and vegetables grow, view artworks by local artists.

Every Thursday the Feast & Field Market presents some of the finest musicians from Vermont and around the world. Music is presented in partnership with BarnArts Center for the Arts. Donations are encouraged throughout the night by passing a bucket.

Music for August and September:

August 4: Pete’s Posse, old-timey fiddle

August 11: Haywire, bluegrass

August 18: Bessette Quartet with Doug Perkins, jazz

August 25: Riddim Vigil, reggae

September 1: Bull and Prairie, Americana

September 8: Bow Thayer, Americana

September 15: Francesca Blanchard, acoustic indie folk

September 22: TOAST, funk

September 29: Leyeux, Jack Snyder

October dates: TBD

Farmers’ Market – 4:30 to 7:30pm, rain or shine

Kids’ activities – 4:30 to 6pm, organized by Camp Red Clover

Live Music – 5:30 to 8pm