Dutchess County Fair opens Tuesday
The Dutchess County Fair begins its annual six-day run on Tuesday, Aug. 21, with organizers stressing that the 2018 edition will celebrate the event’s agricultural roots.
Hours will be 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily at the 147-acre county fairgrounds on U.S. Route 9.
“Agriculture is at the heart of the Dutchess County Fair,” officials wrote in a press release. “It is the reason the Dutchess County Agricultural Society was formed in the 1800’s and it is still as important ... now as it was then.”
Officials note the event is the second-largest agricultural fair in the state. They expect displays and competitions to draw more than 300 dairy cows, 70 beef cows, 200 sheep, 170 goats and 500 poultry class birds, as well as rabbits, hogs, llamas, alpacas and horses.
Fair attractions will also include the Northeast Lumberjack Competition, where man meets tree in a series of lumberjack events organizers insist should not be tried at home.
“The term ‘lumberjack’ stems (from) ... forest workers who do not use power tools and historically used saws and axes,” officials wrote. “It was a dangerous job, where the workers had to scale trees with ropes and proceed to cut the tree limbs until they could finally fell the tree.”
Among the 10 lumberjack competitions will be ax throwing, cross-cut sawing, speed ax chopping and hot-saw modified chainsaws.
Grandstand concerts are scheduled to be The Wallflowers at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday; an already-sold out Kane Brown performance at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday; Chris Lane at 7:30 p.m. Thursday; Kip Moore at 7:30 p.m. Friday; and a free show by Little Creek Bank at 7 p.m. Saturday.
General admission tickets are $15 at the gate and $12 in advance for adults. Children 11 years old and younger are admitted free. Admission will be $10 all day Tuesday and $7 after 5 p.m. Thursday. Senior citizen and military admission will be $8 each day. A six-day pass will be available for $50.