Welcome to the County Fair

This weekend was the Fairfax County fair and carnival. Growing up, I only went to one or two county fairs, so I was curious to see what Fairfax County had to offer. I wasn’t expecting much because Fairfax County isn’t exactly known for its farms, but the ads promised animals, rides, games, and food.

The fair was at Frying Pan Farm, which is the last working farm in Fairfax County. Apparently, Cox Farms (close to where I live) is considered more of an attraction rather than a “working” farm. To my untrained eye, I would say they are both farms.

I’ve driven past Frying Pan Farm before…and been very confused by the random farm tucked in between the suburbs that surround it. Fairfax County bought the farm in the mid-1900s (yes, I’m doing this now for dates before the 1970s) as a park and educational tool for kids who live away from farms (pretty much all of Northern Virginia at this point). The park provides a hands on experience of farm life during the Great Depression. They have animals that are raised for market, including the usual chickens, pigs, cows, ducks, and turkeys, and event space loke for the county fair which is partnered with the local 4H Club to show animals.

I didn’t even know there was a 4H Club in Northern Virginia since I always associated them with rural parts of the country. The four Hs stand for Head, Heart, Hands, and Health and is a program for kids and teens. I remember staying at a 4H camp for an annual church retreat and being told that the 4H Club was a “farming club” for kids.

I think one of my cousins used to show rabbits through 4H.

There is a lot more to it than farming. The kids are able to complete a variety of projects and the county fair provides a space for them to compete against each other for prizes. There’s of course the animal show (I saw the goats and sheep) as well as a number of craft, cooking, written, and artistic entries put in for competition. Some of the projects were amazing - one entry was a three tiered wooden chandelier with a bird figure in the center.

I had fun seeing the animals, both those being shown and who live full time at the farm. I got to hold a couple of week old chicks and pet a rabbit. I also had my mind blown by how large pigs actually are. It wasn’t my first time seeing a pig, but each time I see one feels like the first time. Pigs are big animals. I also took plenty of pictures of the cows to share with my sibling (it’s an obsession with that one).

Of course there was food, rides, and games. The food wasn’t what I’d call traditional, but felt authentic to Northern Virginia. Not a lot of deep fried nonsense, but there was BBQ, Tex Mex, El Salvadorian, hot dogs, burgers, and Thai food. I chose to have Pad Thai.

I didn’t ride any rides or play any games. It was raining while I was there and, when it wasn’t raining, it was 87% humidity. I felt gross. However, there were a few rides I would have indulged in if the weather had been better. I would have loved to go on the Ferris wheel and there was a cute carousel. The games were the standard carnival games - plus really expensive. I did think it was weird that one of the game’s prizes included live goldfish.

I felt a little bad for the poor fish.

Due to the weather, I didn’t stay long and it looked like things were wrapping up early, too. The fair started on Thursday evening and today was the last day. The first three days had great weather, though too hot for me. I’m glad I went on the last day. It wasn’t too crowded and I saw everything I wanted to.

Have you been to your state or county fair? Part of me wishes I’d been able to go more as a kid (though I did go to the May Day Fair regularly in Lancaster, PA, it didn’t have animals). It’s a cool experience, especially for kids.

Until next week.

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