New Location for LEAF Festival! Deerfields in Mills River
Lake Eden has been a cherished home for LEAF Festival and Retreat, and we’re deeply grateful for its history.
Moving to our new location, Deerfields, will allow new opportunities for sustainability, for the organization to turn over a new LEAF and grow, ensuring LEAF Festival can thrive for years to come, while staying true to LEAF’s mission: Connecting Cultures and Creating Community through world music, arts education, preservation, and experiences.
Deerfields, just 30 minutes from Asheville in Mills River, offers an escape to an unspoiled outdoor experience. There is abundant camping space (want to camp in Valhalla?), two lakes to swim or SUP on the property, listen to music on the outdoor stages, dance or do yoga in the fields, hike the ridge-line trail, and relax on the rocking chair porch, dance or do yoga in the fields, hike the ridge-line trail, and relax on the rocking chair porch.
Deerfields is a 940-acre family property that adjoins Pisgah National Forest in Henderson County, North Carolina, in the Mills River community. Deerfields has been the home of many large family and friend events and music festivals for over 20 years.
A little Deerfields family history… In 1927, Monroe Redden Sr. and his wife Mary Belle, purchased a piece of land known as the Green Place. It was an old homestead without cabins, lakes, nor the open fields that now make up what the family lovingly called Deerfields.
Grandmother Mary Belle designed the Lodge which was built in 1935. Standing on the porch one late afternoon she remarked that the fields around the cabin were filled with deer and there the name “Deerfields” was born.
In 1998 Deerfields was passed on to the brothers John J. and Greg who are the stewards of the land presently. Starting in 1998 the brothers began their journey together on the land hosting festivals, weddings, and various outdoor adventure events.
In 2010 John J. and Greg partnered with what is now known as Carolina Conservancy to ensure the protection of the vital watershed that is held by these hills. The land is now protected from development, and this ensures that the land will continue to provide habitat and haven for many of the species found in this extremely biodiverse corner of the world.
The next generation of stewards of Deerfields, Sarah, Jacob, and Jordan, are actively involved in taking care of the property, and are making their mark towards guiding the future of Deerfields, where LEAF will host you October 16-18, 2026.
Come create lifelong memories with friends and family in a magical new LEAF location!
Explore Deerfields – deerfields.com
