Stay active – and entertained! – with all the activities Vinton offers for citizens, from outdoor recreation to festivals and events.
Whether it’s public ice skating, a walk along a lovely creek on the Roanoke Valley Greenway, betting on the horses, multiple festivals, swimming, safe bicycling, dancing, ice hockey, youth sports or just hanging out downtown, Vinton offers a wide array of entertainment potential.
Vinton’s premier festival, the Dogwood Festival, which is 66 years old and held annually in the spring, began as a band competition and evolved into a popular spring celebration, replete with its own queen. The Chamber also hosts the Summer Concert Series, while the town hosts a fall festival, wine festival, Christmas parade and 4th of July fireworks show.
The summer concert series kicks off in June with Mingle on the Market at the Vinton Farmer’s Market stage the second and fourth Saturdays of the warm months, 7-10 p.m. The chamber sponsors a golf tournament in May, as well.
Doug Blount, director of the Roanoke County Recreation Department, says the county runs Vinton’s youth sports programs, centered at the Vinyard ball fields. That features four baseball/softball fields, two soccer fields and four multi-purpose fields. The Vinton youth programs are robust and tournaments are frequently scheduled at the Vinyard fields.
The games being played at the huge facility include youth football, baseball, softball and soccer. Club lacrosse has become a popular sport for youngsters, as well.
Roanoke County is also responsible for the development of the Roanoke Valley Greenway and right now that means continued construction on the Glade Creek section. Town Manager Pete Peters stresses that the completion of the greenway is a high priority.
“The Greenway will eventually run from Salem to Botetourt County,” says Vinton Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Angie Chewning. The expansion along Walnut Avenue near the town’s intersection with Roanoke will become a popular spot, she believes.
Vinton installed a canoe and kayak launch along Tinker Creek near Precision Fabrics a couple of years ago and this has become a busy venue for accessing the Roanoke River all the way to Niagara Dam.
The Town owns the War Memorial, which entertains a number of recreational opportunities, but has mostly been closed or only partially used during the pandemic. That is expected to change soon.
Vinton’s Charles Hill Community Center is often the site of considerable activity, though that dialed back a good bit during the pandemic. Chewning, whose office is in the center, says a return to normal is eminent. “When we get going again,” she says, “we will have cards, big-house dancing (with big bands) once a month and we’ll continue the line dancing, which didn’t stop for the pandemic.”
Adults can play hockey, along with their children at the LancerLot and they can all join hands for public ice skating when they are not swimming in the LancerLot pool (or working out in its gym).
The LancerLot is the sole public pool remaining in Vinton and it has a competitive swim team. “The pools closed in recent years. Kids just lost interest in the swimming pools,” says Chewning. “They developed other interests.”
Adult entertainment in Vinton centers on the expanding Rosie’s gaming parlor where legalized betting flourishes. “It has been a real bonanza for the town,” said Chewning, “and the taxes it pays are helping pay for some of the projects we’re working on now.
Vinton may be a small town, but its recreational opportunities are often big-time.
