Oyster Festival a hit in Ocean Isle Beach

It was oyster mania in Ocean Isle Beach this weekend.

The area’s 27th annual oyster festival drew oyster lovers from as far away as Mississippi. Some highlights included an array of vendors, a surf contest and the famous shucking contest. All oysters at the festival are harvested locally — and festival goers seemed to be downing them by the bucket.

“Well, I love the steamed Oysters… even learning how to open the things,” said Rosemary Simmons, who came to the festival from the Gulf Coast. “No Bloody hands or anything yet but we’ve only been through two buckets. So we’re gonna find the third bucket and see how we do with that.”

The festival also featured music, family entertainment, arts and crafts. Festival organizers say they expect more than 30,000 people to attend this year.