Arizona Via - Summer 2019 - 25

CLOCKWISE FROM TOP: DENISE LETT / ALAMY; ALEX TRAUTWIG /
MLB PHOTOS; FOTOLUMINATE LLC / SHUTTERSTOCK

Enjoy a state fair

State fairs evolved as a way to showcase a
given region's farm bounty, from its sturdiest heifers to the finest in local peach
preserves, with carnival rides, food stalls,
and concerts to keep people entertained
between poultry expos and livestock auctions. No two state fairs are quite the same,
just as no two communities are quite the
same. Consider Washington's Evergreen
State Fair (Aug. 22-Sept. 2 this year) in
the city of Monroe. You can take in duck
races, Aztec Indian dance performances,
and lumberjack skill demos, as well as the
Purple Cow float. Made of blackberry ice
cream, blackberry syrup, and 7 Up, it has
been staining T-shirts since 1960.

Evergreen State Fair.

→ A curious draw at the Great

Utah State Fair (Sept. 5-15) in
Salt Lake City: life-size cows,
each sculpted from almost half
a ton of butter and displayed
in a brisk, 40-degree room.

→ The Alaska State Fair (Aug. 22-
Sept. 2) in Palmer includes a vegetable weigh-off in which, thanks

Houseboats on
Lake Powell.

to upwards of 16 hours of daylight during growing season, the
winning pumpkins regularly tip
the scales at over 1,000 pounds.

→ At the Eastern Idaho State Fair

(Aug. 30-Sept. 7) in Blackfoot,
see a quilt show or arm-wrestling
championship, and eat your fill of
roasted Mexican Crazy Corn.

Catch
a game

TOP: ROBERT HARDING / ALAMY; BOTTOM: JENELLE BONIFIELD

The crack of a bat, the smell of freshcut grass-time spent at the ballpark
is a cherished summer ritual. And for
the Midnight Sun game in Fairbanks,
Alaska, you don't have to play hooky.
The sun never sets on June 21 here, so
the first pitch is thrown at 10:30 p.m. ●

jennifer reese has written for the
New York Times and Entertainment Weekly.

Lounge on a lake

The Midnight Sun
baseball game.

No matter how close you're staying to a lake, you're not technically staying on the lake, unless you're on a houseboat. There's nothing else like it.
The water is always right there, all around you, and the obligations of the
nonliquid world seem very far away. Lake Powell, a reservoir on the UtahArizona border, makes a nearly perfect spot for such a retreat, its clear
water full of bass and walleye, and its 2,000 miles of peach-colored sandstone shoreline yours to explore-or simply to float past.

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3/26/19 11:49 AM

Arizona Via - Summer 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Arizona Via - Summer 2019