The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

It’s nice to see the Wahkiakum County Fair banner hanging across SR 4 once again! This is an indication that our fair is just a few weeks away. The heavy wooden sign has also been hung over the main entrance admission gate to welcome everyone as they walk into our fair. We appreciate the Wahkiakum PUD crew and the equipment they use to handle this important task each year!

We are going into high gear this week as a lot of event details are finalized. Buildings will be cleaned and decorated as we get ready for the thousands of entries that we hope to receive from the community. I encourage everyone to bring their crafts, photos, flowers, baked goods, garden vegetables, canned goods, fresh berries, quilts, sewn items, oil paintings and exhibit them. If you have a special talent like knitting, basket weaving, drawing, painting, crafting items, etc. and would like to demonstrate to others this craft, we have demonstration tables set up in the T-building for that purpose. Call Becky at 795-3480 to be added to the schedule.

Wondering when to bring your still life and animal exhibit to the fair? Here is a list of the important dates and times:

• August 13, 3-9 p.m. bring in 4-H, FFA, Open Youth, Open Adult, Club and Organization exhibits of art, paintings, photography, collections, food preservation, sewing, needlecraft, quilts, crafts, hobbies, and wine & beer. Educational displays must be set up by 9 p.m. Posters for Open Youth and Adults can be turned in from 3-9 p.m.

• August 14, 3-9 p.m. bring in 4-H, FFA, Open Youth, Open Adult, Club and Organization exhibits of baked goods, candies, decorated cakes, floral, garden, bales of hay and forage crops.

• August 15, 3-4 p.m. enter all Market Sale Animals, 4-9 p.m. enter all 4-H, FFA, and Open Class Animals.

The exhibits you bring to our fair will be viewed and enjoyed by family, friends and visitors. I hope you will participate, just bring the special items that you grow or craft and help us fill all the buildings up to overflowing this year.

A few years ago a new exotic barn was built but it was not wheelchair accessible because there wasn’t a sidewalk or ramp to the building. Last week Ed and Nick Brockway mixed and poured concrete to make a new ramp to the exotic barn! Another building is now accessible to everyone that would like to wander though and view all the little animals and birds within.

Wondering how the building and painting of the swine, goat and sheep pens are coming along? The second coat of paint has been applied and all the doors built! To complete the project the doors need to be painted and all the hinges and bolt locks attached. It’s a project still in progress but the end is in sight thanks to Ed Stevens, Nick Brockway, Barb Czarnecki, MacKenzie Stevens, Georgie Billings and Azery Gribskov. This project started moving a lot faster after John Gustafson loaned us his chop saw! Thank you, John!

At our Wahkiakum County Fair booth at the Vista Vendors' Market held at Vista Park last week-end we handed out fair books and entertainment schedules, plus we sold fair passes, firewood raffle tickets and T-shirts. I had new T-shirts in many bright colors and they were selling very well. It was a beautiful day for the event and well attended.

If you would like to buy a $6 Fair pass, you can purchase them at the Skamokawa Resort, Sharon’s Pizza and More, Cathlamet Pharmacy, Bank of the Pacific in Cathlamet, the Rosburg Store, the Bank of the Pacific in Naselle and the Fairgrounds office.

If you need to gain access to the Fairgrounds contact Fair Manager Becky Ledtke at 360-795-3480 and please leave a message. The next Fair Board meeting is on August 8, 7 p.m. at the Fairgrounds.