Fantasy Caravan Day 43, part 2 - Palmer -- Alaska State Fair

On Saturday afternoon, we took advantage of an opportunity that just happened to work out -- the Alaska State Fair had just opened on Friday, so we were able to attend it!

There are multiple different entries into the fairgrounds, and they are marked by specific colors -- we went in through the Yellow gate, so we needed to leave by that gate to get back to where we parked the Jeep. There were yellow hoofprints on the asphalt leading to the gate from the center of the fairgrounds (and red ones to the red gate, purple to purple, and green to green).

There were LOTS of things to see -- this lady was demonstrating how to fillet a fish.

Inside a hall where there were some 4-H animals -- this is a mother and two kids with such pretty markings... and the one from next door is standing on their container of hay and eating through the fence, cuz the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence!

While we were enjoying gyros for lunch, this fellow came by...

... and entertained us:

The folks who were sitting at the picnic table with us (locals) said that he is an Alaska Fair tradition; however, one of our fellow travelers in the Fantasy RV group thought he looked familiar and found a video he had taken of an entertainer at the Tampa RV Super Show -- and it was the same guy, even had the same clothes on!

We had been told not to miss the quilts on display that people had made and submitted to be judged for prizes...

We found the correct hall -- they were displayed all over the hall!

Such beautiful quilts, such creativity!

I thought this one was very cute!

A couple of neat things happened while we were in there -- our friend, Judi, and I were admiring one piece that had won Best in Show in "mixed media"; it also indicated that it was done by a first time exhibitor. One of the support folks for the exhibits came over and was explaining the intricate work in that piece (unfortunately, we didn't get pictures of any of the pieces that I'm describing in this paragraph). While she was talking with us, I noticed a young woman trying to take a picture of another work of art, and I asked if we could move so she could get a better picture -- she was taking a picture of a work that her younger sister (12 years old) had made -- it had won best in show in its category -- she was texting the information to her sister. The exhibitors don't know how their pieces did in the judging until they come to the show and see if they got a ribbon. Meanwhile, the young woman's husband was trying to get her attention to look at something -- "Look!" he said, pointing. She didn't see what he was pointing at until he showed her more specifically -- she also had won Best in Show for her item -- a woven piece that she had made with scraps. She had just learned to weave recently, and expected nothing -- she burst into tears of joy! The young woman and her 12 year old sister were also first time exhibitors -- it was so neat to be there to experience her joy.

Then we walked around the corner to go up another aisle, and there was a woman standing next to some of the displays -- she called my attention to a wooden chest...

It was indeed gorgeous -- she then pointed across the aisle and said, "That's the artist, and he's my son!" The son was a little embarrassed, but his mom was very proud -- the inlay work and the quality of the box were gorgeous. He had made it for his wife to store the quilts that she makes!

This was another project -- a fish wheel -- similar to the ones we'd seen at the Chena village back in Fairbanks.

Just along the walkways, we came across a group of Star Wars characters that were available to take pictures with the fair goers.

This lets you see some of the crowd (it was very full, but not to the point of feeling overwhelming) and one of the mountains in the background.

We stopped in at the equestrian arena to see the 4-H State Horse Show in progress. They were doing a dressage-type class -- each horse and rider completed a set of tasks (walking to a specific point, taking up a canter to the left in a circle, and then returning to the start point of the canter and changing lead to a circle to the right, stop at a specific point, and back up some number of steps, and complete with a jog down by the judge). Interesting difference to when I competed -- no ribbons were awarded in the show ring -- they could pick up the judges comments and ribbons from the administration stand after the class had finished. A mother that we spoke with indicated that they don't award ribbons in classes to 4-Hers, something about it not supposed to be a competition? Also, that there could be multiple ribbons of each color given out in the class. I don't know - sounded odd to me!

From there, we went to watch the tractor pull - this wasn't a competition, but rather a demonstration -- the tractors were from many different years and capabilities (so they customized how quickly the weight came forward based on the power of the tractor.

One of the competitors:

Each of them drove back down beside the course to wave to the crowd -- this fellow tossed his hat into the stands!

A couple of John Deere tractors...

... another one.

Then there was a highly modified Ford

Here's a video of his pull:

The last one to pull...

Here's a video of his pull:

After the pull, the audience members were welcomed to walk around the tractors and talk with their owners... but we decided that we were ready to head back to the campground.

This was one of the flowers on the way out -- a begonia, but it looked like a yellow rose.

One of the big things in the Alaska State Fair are their huge vegetables. They were not yet at the fairgrounds as their weigh in is later:

These were examples from previous years.

We had heard some about Palmer's agrarian history -- I copied this in from Wikipedia():

In the late 19th century, the U.S. government began to take interest in the Matanuska coal fields located north of Palmer. This interest sparked financiers to consider constructing the Alaska Central Railroad in 1904. The advent of World War I created a need for high-quality coal to fuel U.S. battleships, and by 1917 the US Navy had constructed rail from the port of Seward to the Chickaloon coal deposits. At the end of World War I, the U.S. Navy distributed land in the coal fields to war veterans and additional land was opened to homesteading. Farmers, miners and homesteaders began to populate the area. The Palmer Post Office was opened July 6, 1917, under the name of Warton. With railroad accessibility, new markets for agriculture began to open up for farmers in the Matanuska Valley.

In one year, Palmer transformed from a mere whistle stop rail siding to a planned community with modern utilities and community services. Eleven million dollars from Federal Emergency Relief Administration was spent to create the town of Palmer and relocate 203 families from the hard hit Iron Range region of Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. Families traveled by train and ship to Palmer, arriving in May 1935. Upon their arrival they were housed in a city tent during their first Alaskan summer. Each family drew lots for 40-acre (160,000 m2) tracts and their farming adventure began in earnest. The failure rate was high, but many of their descendants still live in the area and there are still many operating farms in the Palmer area, including the Vanderwheele and Wolverine farms. In 1971, the National Outdoor Leadership School started operating wilderness education courses in the nearby Talkeetna and Chugach mountain ranges from a local historic farmhouse, the Berry House, which is currently listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

In addition to an agrarian heritage, the colony families brought with them Midwest America's small-town values, institutional structures, and a well-planned city center reminiscent of their old hometowns in Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Michigan. Many of the structures built are now in a nationally recognized historic district. Construction of the statewide road system and the rapid development of Anchorage has fueled growth around Palmer. Many Palmer residents commute 45 minutes to work in Anchorage.

Evidently the long days of summer are conducive to growing huge vegetables!

Back at the campground, it was so comfortable to sit outside and we enjoyed the sun and pleasant temperatures and talking with some of our fellow travelers!

Busy day, but we enjoyed all that we did!