Musicians and fans from throughout the nation are anticipating the start of the Wakarusa Music Fest, which begins June 16, near the Clinton Lake campgrounds, and continues through the night of June 19.

Tickets for the event have been on sale for months, and include three different pricing categories. A four-day pass costs $119, the weekend pass costs $75 and the single day pass costs $50, Brett Mosiman, director of the Wakarusa Music Fest, said. The single day and weekend passes will go up $10 if purchased after June 16. For the fan looking to save a buck, coupons are offered at all Lawrence Yellow Subs, 624 W. 12th St. and 1814 W. 23rd St., for $10 off the gate price.

Parking and camping are included with the price of the ticket, Mosiman said.

The gates will open to VIP’s on June 15, for the general public gates open at 8 a.m. June 16.

The music will begin around noon, Mosiman said, and will continue the first day until about midnight. Events will start at noon June 17 through June 19 and continue until the early hours of the morning, Mosiman said.

This is the second year of the annual event, and promoters are expecting to bring in 15,000 people a day from throughout the country.

The promoters brought national attention to the event last year and this year by spending nearly half their budget on Internet advertisements and placing more than 30 box offices throughout the Midwest, Mosiman said.

“It was gratifying to say that our first year we were a national festival,” Mosiman said.

National attention also serves as an effective marketing tool for many of the local bands playing in the festival.

Big Metal Rooster, a local band, played the festival last year and is on the bill again this year. The national exposure from the concert helped the band tour around the nation, Derek Hein, bass player for Big Metal Rooster, said.

“This thing really came along right when we were trying to get to the echelon,” Hein said.

With more national exposure comes better headliners and a stronger lineup.

This year the headliners are the String Cheese Incident, Wilco, Umphrey’s McGee and Gov’t Mule.

These larger bands helped inspire many younger musicians, like Hein.

“The idea of sharing music with people we use to pay twenty dollars to see is a great honor,” Hein said.

But the stronger lineup is not the only part appreciated by the fans.

The non-stop music for four days was appealing enough for Jenny Hoyt, Topeka senior, to come back another year.

She said the experience was memorable and planned on camping there for the entire four days, as well as being there for the first band tomorrow.

Campers and other fans are allowed to bring their own food, but vendors will be on site to provide food and drink to all, Mosiman said. More than 25 food vendors of all varieties will be at the festival, as well as the sponsor of the event, Fat Tire.

Hoyt said last year she both brought food to the event and bought food at the event.

“We tried to bring enough for the entire weekend, but we also bought some food and beer,” Hoyt said. “It can get pretty expensive though.”

The festival will offer more options than it did last year, Mosiman said. The festival will offer more than 60 arts vendors, as well as entertainment options for children, Mosiman said.