Skip to content

VIDEO: Get ready to rock at Laketown Ranch on Canada Day weekend

Bring your pals to Laketown Rock for good tunes, good times

Laketown Ranch has further stepped up to claim its place as Vancouver Island’s premier festival site by moving Laketown Rock to the Canada Day long weekend.

Rock 2017 was great, drawing many fans to Lake Cowichan on the May long weekend, but this year, with the holiday season finally underway, and schools and colleges all out for the season, a festival running from June 29 to July 1 sounds like a great way to kick off summer.

Collective Soul and Colin James lead a galaxy of super acts, including Creedence Clearwater Revisited, Kim Mitchell, Big Wreck and many more.

It all kicks off Friday, June 29, with the Lance Lapointe Band, Malahat, Sweet Action, Deap Sea Gypsies, Odds, and Barney Bentall warming up the audience for Colin James’s exciting set.

Saturday, June 30, get on up to the Ranch for Broken Strings, Stinging Belle, Quadra Sound, The Static Shift, Tan and Hide, Lost Octave, The Grapes of Wrath, Big Wreck, and finally, Collective Soul.

Celebrate Sunday, Canada Day, July 1 with your friends, enjoying all the amenities at Laketown Ranch and tunes by The Hip Replacements, Man Made Lake, Maverick Cinema, Youngblood, Stray Cougar, Hypeman and the Worms and Sass Jordan.

Then, it’s time for Kim Mitchell, and finally Creedence Clearwater Revisited make their eagerly anticipated appearance on the main stage.

Concert gates are open from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. Friday, and 12 p.m. to 1 a.m. Saturday and Sunday. The box office hours are noon to 10 p.m. Friday to Sunday.

There’s lots of fun for everyone at Laketown Ranch, but it is a huge site so take time out to familiarize yourself with where you are and how to find your way around to the various vendors, venues, and services.

If the weather looks like it will be sunny, Lake Cowichan can get very hot. Take along sunscreen and refresh it regularly and be sure to stay hydrated. There are lots of water stations, filled by the site’s aquifer. The Ranch is not paved, so be ready for gravel and wood chips by wearing appropriate shoes.

Off-season, Laketown Ranch is home to a big herd of elk, along with many other animals and plants. The site is kept really clean during the concert season, so why not do your part by putting recycling and garbage in the many bins provided?

If you have any safety concerns, once you are there, you can call or text the security hotline at 250-510-5649.

Tickets for the festival are available for all tastes and budgets. Kids 12 and under get in free on all three days, accompanying an adult with a paid ticket.

Friday only passes are $55 for Hillside, $65 for The Lawn, $75 for The Rock Pit, and $175 for the VIP area.

For Saturday or Sunday, day passes for the Hillside are $79, The Lawn is $89, The Rock Pit is $99, and VIPs are $200.

Weekend passes offer some savings. The Hillside festival pass is $149, The Lawn is $179, The Rock Pit is $199, and the VIP area is $550.

Order yours at https://laketownrock.frontgatetickets.com/

12508320_web1_180614-CCI-M-Screen-Shot-2018-06-14-at-2.14.01-PM
The Odds have lots of fans in the Cowichan Valley. (Submitted)
12508320_web1_download
Creedence Clearwater Revisited promise all those favourite songs you love. (Submitted)
12508320_web1_maverick-cinema
Maverick Cinema recently performed on the Flats Stage at the May long weekend Laketown Shakedown. (Lexi Bainas/Gazette)