The strains of fiddlin’ bluegrass will fill the air at Covered Bridge Park on Thursday evening as Carson Peters & Iron Mountain kick off the entertainment portion of the annual Covered Bridge Celebration.

Festivities will kick off in the park at 6 p.m. with an Ice Cream Social in the park sponsored by Food City. The Trailblazer Cloggers will perform on the stage at Covered Bridge Park from 6-6:30 p.m. At 7 p.m. Carson Peters & Iron Mountain will take the stage.

The local favorites have become a mainstay of the festival in recent years, kicking off the concert series.

Carson Peters started playing the fiddle at the ripe old age of 3 when his parents bought him a 1/8 size fiddle, and he began competing in fiddle competitions at four years old. Now at the age of 13, Peters is a seasoned performer with many national TV appearances as well as performances at the Grand Ol’ Opry and the historic Ryman Auditorium.

Peters and his band, Iron Mountain, entertain audiences performing old-time, bluegrass, and gospel music. The group consists of Carson’s father Jamie Peters, of Piney Flats, Eric Marshall and Ben Marshall of Mount Airy, N.C., and Austin Tate of Marion, Va.