Report from the Palmer State Fair

Busy weekend! Drove down the Parks Highway with M, picked up other friends J and P in Denali, had the car break down, had the car fixed, made it to Palmer, attended the Palmer State Fair, where there were MO GIANT CABBAGES!, headed down to Anchorage, spent a night, dropped off J and P, then headed back North for a planned backpacking trip in Palmer. Got intimidated by the steep grade of the trail, unpacked the overnight stuff and converted the hike to a day hike, bombed up and down a 6000-foot ridge in four hours, headed Northward, car camped at the most beautiful camp site I have ever seen, then finally headed home, with perfect weather and enjoying the absolutely stunning scenery of the Interior in early fall. Posts with photos will trickle in here this week as I organize the photos and my thoughts. We will only tackle up to the fair for now.

Here is the spectacular view of Denali we got on the way Southward:


So, firstly, the Mat-Su Valley (the agricultural capital of Alaska, from whence come the most delicious carrots I have ever tasted), was, I am sorry to report, very disappointing. I had imagined the Matanuska and Susitna rivers to flow through a beautiful lush, green valley of growing fields. Instead, it is sort of a suburban spread from Anchorage, with the farm fields tucked away from view.

Wasilla, which was put in the national spotlight by Sarah Palin, is as ugly as one can imagine a suburban town in Anywhere, America to be. It has a Walmart, a Target, a dozen fast food joints, et cetera. People drive at Mach 3 and are very rude to each other. All I can say is, I am thankful that they could fix my car (a simple fix) on a last-minute notice, and I had a cup of gourmet fancy-pants tea in a gas station for sixty cents!

Palmer housing:

Sad, isn't it? I prefer my cabin, even without running water.

A Palmer field of broccoli and cabbages. Finally!


The Fair itself was a lot like the Tanana Valley Fair, only larger and more noisy. A death metal band was playing, and it blasted very loudly throughout. Teenagers with mohawks swaggered around. A man who was working security told me later that six people had been arrested that day! But the giant vegetables and deep-fried delicious goodness did not disappoint!

The fair parking lot:

At this point, I was so overwhelmed and unnerved by the traffic, crowds, and loud noises that I wanted to hold my friends' hands. Fortunately, I felt better after having some disgustingly delicious food!

A line!

Whoever heard of a line in Fairbanks?

Ferris wheel, backlit:


The Chugach Mountains caught the evening light so beautifully:


Maybe the only State Fair in America to have a veggie stand. Perfect for M and me as we were hiking the next day! I got 4 good-sized carrots and 6 golf ball-sized radishes, for a dollar!


It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown!

859 pounds!

An assortment of giant veggies:

Mat-Su Valley veggies put those of Fairbanks to shame, due to the fertile soil and longer growing season.

The third place cabbage was 74 pounds!

The first place was 86, but it was so wilty I didn't photograph it.

786-pound pumpkin!


My favorite vegetable in giant form!


You never know what will turnip at the fair!


Now that is a kohlrabi!


Millie would have had her own garden had she been there!


Fireweed in the parking lot. Theirs is not as far gone as ours:


Oh, I had almost forgotten the tally!
1 buffalo burger with waffle fries
half a dozen corn fritters with honey butter
a shared elephant ear
shared chocolate-covered bacon
1 carrot
2 radishes

:)