Join the men of Bearapalooza, The Middle Tennessee Bear Alliance, The Carolina Bear Lodge, The Nashville Conductors & The Virginia Mountain Bears for RocktoBearfest, a Smoky Mountain weekend getaway in the month of October at Timberfell Lodge, Tennessee's Premier Private Men's Resort & Campground (and check out who Mr. Timberfell is - Cole - triple woof...?). This event will be taking place from October 10th thru the 12th.

All of these groups will be hosting special events throughout the entire weekend, and Bearapalooza will be doing their live show with all your favourite Bear performers. There will also be an 80s campfire sing-a-long. DJ Michael Carrera and DJ Cub will rock 'The Tavern' each night at the 'Bear Belly Dance Party'. There's a lot more going on as well, just check out their site for all the info, and click here to see their YouTube video ad.

The Hairrison Street Fair (website - poster) is coming once again, it's just around the corner, and it's gonna be big. It's their 5th year doing this and it's all taking place in San Francisco over the Labour Day Weekend ~ August 31st.

Not only that, but it's gonna be Bear Week soon as well. A full 10 days of Bear bustin' events starting August 23rd and running right thru until September 1st.

"The Hairrison Street Fair and San Francisco Bear Week are organized by PrideWorks, a California non-profit corporation. It is a celebration of Bear community pride but is welcoming to all - we like to say 'The Bears are having a party and we want everyone to come!'. The fair and events during the week support different LGBTI community organizations. The fair raises more money per capita than any other gay fair in San Francisco. We also organize Team Bear (articles) which raises funds for AIDS services. Last year the team raised $150,000 and our goal this year is to raise over $250,000!".

Bear Arabia is organizing their 'goodbye to summer' party which will be taking place from October 8th thru the 12th in Beirut. They prior events were hugely successful so they decided to organize this 2nd Bear Arabia International Weekend. This time, the event is going to be divided into 2 countries, so not only will you be visiting Lebanon but Syria as well.

This young energetic group has only been around for 2 years, and even during all the tension with Israel and the bombings, they went ahead and formed what is now known as the Lebanon Bears. They have been collecting donations to help support 450 kids in need around their country. Once there was some peace in Lebanon, they launched their 1st Bear Arabia weekend and it was a success, and they are expecting nothing less with their upcoming run.

Ursus Planet (which translates as Bears' Planet... which sounds a lot like PlanetBears... which is very cool) will be conducting their next event on the beach in Sitges, Spain from September 19th thru the 23rd.

"Ursus Planet was conceived and created in 2002 in Sitges by Manuel Garcia (Get Real Productions). His main goal with Ursus Planet has been to provide the best possible events, socials and entertainment for Bears, Cubs, Chubs, Daddies, their friends and admirers, all over the world".

The New Orleans Bear and Bear Trapper Social Club (NOBBTSC) are planning their largest fund raiser entitled Bear Decadence which will be held over the Labour Day Weekend (August 28th thru September 1st). The event is always a ton of fun and they donate the money to great causes such as Project Lazarus and they even adopted black bears at the Aubudon Zoo. Check out their site for all the info.

The Golden State Bears from Fresno, CA are planning for their upcoming Bear Frenzy 14 which is just around the corner ~ August 15th thru the 17th.

Bear Frenzy is their annual Mr. Golden State Bear contest weekend. The title winner helps them all year round by raising money at their events (selling raffle tickets and being charming) for the club and gets to represent their club at selected events, including IBR in San Francisco (February). The basic schedule for the weekend is: Greet Your Meat, Pool Party & BBQ, Contest, and Victory Brunch. Visit their site to see photos from prior years.

The BEARmuda is a rendezvous for Bears in the city of Quebec. BEARmuda is coinciding with Gay Pride as well as Quebec's 400th anniversary, so there will be all kinds of great things to check out. This will be taking place from August 29th thru the 31st. They plan on brunches, dinners, open-air spectacles, happy hours, as well as participating in all the other activities which will be going on in irresistible Quebec. For more info, contact the BEARmuda gang.

This might seem a little early to mention, but it seems that this event sells out quick. It's Chubfest 6 and it will be taking place in Palm Springs, CA from February 6th thru the 8th, '09. All the info concerning can be found on their site ChubsRule.com.

From their site: "Have you ever wanted to go some place to meet hot Chubby men who really appreciate having a good time with you? Socially and otherwise in a very nice clothing optional resort? Of course you wanted to do that, and Chubfest  is the place for that to happen. Not only is Chubfest social and playful but affordable".

Chubs in Paradise is around the corner and today is I believe the last day you can get tickets to their event. This is taking place from July 17th thru the 19th in beautiful Fort Lauderdale, FL. Check out who's going and see pics taken from this event last year.

Project Big is one of the sponsors and BearBob1952 (profile) has informed me that they will be putting on a fashion show at the pool party. Now since this is a clothing optional pool party, the models will actually be putting their clothes on instead of taking them off. It's a new concept to catwalking the runway.

BearQuest is the first ever UK festival/camping weekend for Bears, Cubs and admirers. The dates are August 29th thru the 31st (which is the week after the August Bank Holiday).

This event be featured in a large circus style marquee with stage, DJ (top DJs confirmed - DJ Charlie from Brighton, DJ Dave Bear, DJ Ross Alexander), entertainment, with beer and food available, and there will be stalls and a large funfair as well as a campsite for guys to pitch their tents. They also have tents on site - 6 or 8 Bears shared tents. BearQuest will also feature a Bearlesque, the last UK tour of Mary Kiani, and there will also be a professional international wrestling show featuring hunky Bear and Cub wrestlers from around the world.

They have vacancies for bar staff, marshalls, stallholders, etc... so please email the organiser DaveBear.

There's a group in Spain called Bear Sitges Club, situated in Sitges (Wiki) and they are a very active bunch, as I have written several articles about them in the past. They have an upcoming event entitled 'El Planeta De Los Osos' aka 'Planet of the Bears' which will be taking place from September 8th thru the 14th'. It's their International Bear Week and they hold their Mr. Bear Sitges.

Every time I go thru my older files and folders, I seem to unearth some photos that I seem to have forgotten existed. I then question whether I should re-post them, since part of me says that I should move ahead and there's no need to post older photos... while the other half of me said that these pics are surely going to be of an interest to someone, and it's always fun to reminisce a little... anyhow... as you can I decided to add them.

They are from an event I attended called Bear Fest '00 which took place in Washington DC, an event held by the Highwaymen TNT. Actually, a TV show called 'Dot Comedy' from Britain had contacted me, liked my site I was working on at the time (BearPress.com) and they wanted to feature me. I met up with their cameraman, had a great weekend, and then was expecting to see myself on British TV. Well seems the cameraman was a newbie and we didn't follow the script so they didn't use any of footage. Oh well, they at least paid for my weekend so it wasn't a complete loss.

Looking back at these pics, I realize just how often I do not go to events. This was the only Bear event I've ever been to in the States, and that was 8 years ago. My only true excuses are - I'm in Canada, I'm not rich and I have 2 very large Shepherds I have to take care of. I always want to go, especially since I'm always writing about Bear events... I still want to go, and I'm not dead yet.

Click here to check out the photos.

The Red Earth Bears are getting ready for their upcoming Bearadise Games which will be taking place from September 7th thru the 9th in Oklahoma City, OK. This is their 9th year running it.

From their site: "Bearadise has become one of the hottest Bear events of the season. It's held annually at the Habana Inn Gay Resort in Oklahoma City. The gay strip is centrally located adjacent to the hotel so transportation is no problem. The Habana Inn is the largest gay resort in the country with over 200 rooms, two swimming pools, several clubs, a full service restaurant, gift shop and the infamous 'Walk of Shame'...". For more info and to register, check out their site, and click here to see photos from last year's Bearadise.

The Northeast Ursamen of Connecticut are preparing for their upcoming Bear Migration. This is number 16. The following is from their site (download their PDF form): "Every year a group of brave and hearty Bears set off from their homes and trek into the 'Endless Mountains' of Pennsylvania, to a place where their most primal urges can be unleashed. That place is Hillside Campground and the annual trek begins Friday May 23rd and ends on Monday May 26th. Registration Deadline is May 18th. Hillside Campground is a private, members only campground for adult, gay men. It is located about ½ hour north of Scranton, PA on Rt. 81 in Gibson, PA. Amenities include 100+ camp-sites, a heated in-ground swimming pool, 'nature walk', and bonfires by the recreation hall. Clothing is optional".

The DCBC (District of Columbia Bear Club) are planning another great Bear Invasion in Washington DC from August 8th thru the 10th. This one is called 'Bear Invasion XII - Psychedelic Fur'. They have a ton of events planned out, including their Mr. DC Bear and Mr. DC Bear Cub contest. Make sure to register early because this event is always packed.

The Trinity River Bears of Fort Worth, TX who have been bringing you Bear Trek for the past 6 years in the month have May have postponed their 7th until further notice.

On their website, they state that they have plans on running it later on in the year and to keep an eye on their website for further details about their upcoming schedule.

LebTour is the 1st and only LGBT guide in the Arab world, and they are planning for their upcoming Bear Arabia event which will be taking place in Beirut, Lebanon from June 12th thru the 15th. For more info, check out this PDF file that has their complete itinerary written down.

Some of the events they have planned are a Bear Arabia welcoming party with the elections of Mr. Bear Arabia. They will be visiting the famous Baalbeck archeological temples, Ksara winery, a magical hammam experience in one of the oldest Turkish hammams of Damascus still in use, as well as stops at some mosques, churches and souks.

For more info, email them, check out their TubeBear profile, and click here to see some pics from their previous Bear Arabia events.

The Liberty Bears of Philadelphia, PA are going to have their Bears on Liberty Weekend (this is their 6th) on May 8th thru the 11th. This year they will be joining forces with the Liberty Gay Rodeo Association which means they are planning a trip to the Liberty Stampede rodeo. Also, as one of their main events, Bearapalooza (TubeBear profile) will be playing on Friday night at the Loews Ballroom.

The Bear Albany group (TubeBear profile) are getting ready for their upcoming Bear Trek which is going to take place from May 1st thru the 4th in Rye, NY which is just 20 minutes away from New York City. Tons of events are planned, just check out their site for all the info.

From Bear Trek: "Due to the enormous amount of emails and requests, we are going to offer a special package due to the tough financial times in the US. We realize that these are tough times for all, but we don't want you to miss a great event, so we offer you the 'Scout Master Goes Bust' package". And while you are checking out their site, take a look at their gallery from last year.