Morehead is home to two annual music festivals: the Poppy Mountain Bluegrass Festival and the Clack Mountain Music Festival. The Clack Mountain Music Festival (clackmountainfest.com) occurs on the first weekend of June and features bluegrass, traditional folk and country music artists. Poppy Mountain (poppymountainbluegrass.com) also hosts bluegrass and country music, but this festival takes place in September and lasts for five days. Clack Mountain Music Festival is held in Morehead's First Street Arts District, while Poppy Mountain is the destination for the Poppy Mountain Bluegrass Festival. Both festivals feature musicians from Morehead and throughout the southeast United States.
The First Street Arts District in downtown Morehead is home to art galleries, featuring works from nationally renowned and local artists. Two of the district's galleries, Pine Grove Gallery of Fine Art (pinegroveart.com) and Rowan County Arts Center (rcartscenter.org), have permanent and special exhibits. The second floor of the Rowan County Arts Center has a 179-seat auditorium for theatrical performances.
Another art gallery is the Kentucky Folk Art Center (moreheadstate.edu/kfac), located on the campus of Morehead State University. The art center features over 1,400 pieces of art created by Kentucky artists. Types of art at the Folk Art Center include crafts, jewelry, toys, books and photography.
Fishing opportunities are available within Morehead's city limits at Triplett Creek, which flows through the city's downtown area. The creek offers chances for catching freshwater fish such as largemouth bass, muskies, striped bass and walleye. Morehead is also less than 30 minutes from Cave Run Lake, one of the largest lakes in eastern Kentucky. This 8,270-acre lake is a man-made reservoir on the Licking River and provides many of the same fish varieties as Triplett Creek. Scott Creek Marina is south of Cave Run Lake's dam and hosts boat slips for fishing in the lake. Tourists may also view fish at the Minor E. Clark Fish Hatchery, also south of the dam.
Rather than stay in a hotel, some Morehead tourists prefer to park their RVs or pitch tents in one of the city's campgrounds. The Zilpo Recreation Area (2375 KY 801 S. Morehead, Kentucky, 40351; 606-784-6428) offers 172 RV and tent campsites on their 355-acre property; the campsites have electrical and water hook-ups. This campground also has three miles of sandy beach area on Cave Run Lake.
Rudy's Ranch and Horse Camp (rudysranchcamping.com) features 110 RV campsites with electric hook-ups and 40 sites for primitive tent camping. Rudy's also provides campers with opportunities for horseback riding on the campground's trails. Campers must bring their own horses to ride at Rudy's Ranch. This campground is in Salt Lick, less than 20 minutes from Morehead.
