By TIFFANY ECKERT/KLCC News
VENETA — Final preparations are underway for the 56th annual Oregon Country Fair starting Friday. Fair crews are hard at work, putting finishing touches on 260 craft booths and 17 stages speckled along a winding mile and a half of shady, accessible paths called “the eight,” because it’s vaguely shaped like a figure 8.
Oregon Country Fair marketing manager Vanessa Roy hopes that all guests — whether returning or newcomers — feel truly welcome.
“We invite you to come to the fair as a moment of respite from the turbulent times that are around us,” she said. ‘We are an island in this storm. We want you to come in and feel included and safe and loved. Come live your authentic self and bring a friend with you because I guarantee there’s going to be something there for everybody.”
Roy said fairgoers can expect a diverse, all-star lineup of music and performance arts, including vaudeville, acrobatics, and (strike up the band) parades! Culinary options are plentiful with 85 multicultural food booths and carts.
Recycling is made easy, thanks to 200 volunteers on the recycling and composting crew who help you decide what refuse goes where.
KLCC is keeping its tradition of broadcasting the Oregon Country Fair live from Main Stage meadow. This year, KLCC’s OCF broadcast will air from 1-7 p.m. Saturday and 1-5 p.m. Sunday.
Recently, an Oregon Country Fair documentary complete with archival footage and numerous interviews with early Fair family members was produced by Oregon Public Broadcasting as an Oregon Art Beat special. The one-hour film is called “Oregon Country Fair: Magic in the Woods.”
Getting there
A reminder — come to the Oregon Country Fair with your ticket because no passes are sold on site. Online tickets cost $64.46 for a one-day adult admission, or $159.02 for a three-day pass. Children 12 and under are free with a paying adult. Discounts are available for veterans, “alter-abled” and seniors.
The fair highly encourages carpooling or better yet, ride the bus. You don’t need a bus ticket: your fair pass gets you on any Lane Transit District bus to the site outside of Veneta, for free. That includes fast and frequent shuttle service from Valley River Center and the downtown LTD station. LTD schedules are available at ltd.org or by calling (541) 687-5555.
Other details
The Peach Pit is the quintessential guide to getting around the Oregon Country Fair site. Fair goers can grab a paper copy at the entrance and find a Fair site map, schedules of all performances on all the stages, artisan crafts and food booth directories and more.
Access Advocates for the Alter Abled, or 4A, at OCF promotes equal access for all Fair participants with equipment loans, sign language interpreters and other assistance including advocacy, education and advice. 4A is located in the Dragon’s Head at the entrance and also in Community Village.
White Bird Rock Medicine has long been a presence at the Oregon Country Fair. For the second year, White Bird Rock Med is operating as a stand-alone nonprofit, supporting other local nonprofits serving the community. They dispatch trained medical and mental health professionals to incidents anywhere on site. All services are free and confidential.
Each of the two locations has doctors available throughout the event — Big Bird next to Main Stage Meadow [B5 on the map] and Little Wing in Xavanadu near Wind Gate [L3 on the map]
Hydration stations can be found throughout the fair. Water crews keep clean, refreshing water flowing to food booths, drinking fountains and misting areas where fairgoers can cool off with gentle misters operating non-stop.
- This story appeared July 8 on KLCC, a nonprofit public radio station in Eugene and a news partner of Lincoln Chronicle.
