OCF 2024

Hello! Here’s my report about this year’s Oregon Country Fair (OCF). Like life, everyone has a different version of how this event shapes their lives. We all wander about asking each other “Did you see this? Did you eat that? Did you see so and so?” But in the end, you have a map, weather, food, drink, music, theater, crafts, people, costumes, rainbows, and HEAT! This was the hottest OCF I’ve ever attended (15-20 years attending, in a row-ish). Much time was spent grumbling about the heat – and figuring out how to survive and thrive given that condition.

Don’t miss Part 2 – Resources + Booths

If you know nothing about OCF and want a quick video that gives you a magical glimpse, here’s this year’s promo video. For a limited time, they’ll be streaming the main stage acts here.

This Fair is like no other. It’s been going on longer than most and is heavily volunteer-run and organized. It probably has more volunteers than just about any event in the world. Many people involved stay with it for a lifetime. There are many booths (food/crafts) that have been there since the beginning, 55 years ago! People also switch from one crew to the other depending on life circumstances – ex: my partner is on that crew = and I joined that crew. Or, we broke up and I needed a new place to be! I heard a lot of that in one of the many Facebook groups that people gather in to talk about the event. Like this one!

Volunteering is how one earns a pass to be able to stay in the Fair after dark and also usually enables you to camp in or close to the Fair. There are woods and nearby open fields and they are filled with tents, and vans, and RVs. Luckily, after my first visit 20 years ago, I have become “Fair Family” and that gives me this wristband that allows me to go to and fro at all hours. Some people bust their butt all year long and some people do very little for this wristband. But my sense is that it all comes out in the wash. Those who work super hard on this event reap rewards that others can’t dream of. Particularly noticeable is the close community in some of the groups where people put together something magical together while watching their families grow together. Strong bonds are created as well as family and Fair lore!

So, I guess this may be more of an inside baseball reading on the Fair. We on the inside are cautioned to keep our experience on the down-low somewhat. Some of that makes sense, but I’ll try to lean into my own experience – which I think it’s Fair to say is mine to share. If you have feedback for the event, you can leave it here.

So, this year I drove with my housemate to the event on Wednesday and we arrived in the afternoon. Once through Albert’s Circle, we arrived at camp. Our campmates were already somewhat setup and there were a couple pop-ups that made our entry a bit more pleasant. Getting in can sometimes be easy, but sometimes it can be a bear (taking hours to find your name or pay for a parking pass in person). Luckily, this year I was able to pay for my camping and parking pass online – whew! Once I had arrived at camp, I set up my tent, and said my hellos – it was off to the Ritz to luxuriate in the amazing sauna and shower and fire areas. If you’ve never been to The Ritz it’s really quite something. You pay your money and in you go (please take off your shoes as you enter!)

The Ritz has been there a good long time. When you enter you’ll see an open space with a fire area in front of you; a stage off to the left and in the distance 5 rows of showers (on either side of poles) and then cubbies to put your things. Off to the right at midnight is a giant sauna that can probably hold 70-100 people. The seats are tiered – 4 levels * 4 sets of these. On the edges of the showers are your cold shower – pull on a rope and you are hit hard with cold water! Very cold water! At 2 o’clock from the entrance – more cubbies and a fire area which is cooking just to warm your belly. I’ve never seen anything like it. 3 pm? Another sauna – probably the original – seats about 40 and is round. More cubbies are behind that and then you have more showers and another fire area which also hosts an amazing cobb bench. There’s another of these as you walk in – a great place to sit and relax once you’ve done the sauna/cold water combo a few times. There’s a place to check your valuables (instruments). The stage features acts from the Fair – I’ve played there many times – and it’s so fun to play music for naked people!! Hot showers, saunas, live music, and friends – this place really is my heaven.

Joshua Morton

Food vendors don’t start selling until at least noon on Thursday so I was on my own till then. Our camp was having a group dinner of jambalaya that night, but I wandered over to visit a friend nearby and he was serving … jambalaya! So, I ate and played music with him and his friends.

The only reason I have any pictures at all (if you want to see them all they’re over here) is because of this bench and the others near it (go see the pics!). I never bring my camera/phone to Fair. The last thing I want is to be spending time on my phone (it goes pretty much dark once I have my tent up). But after the Ritz on Thursday morning, I meandered to where these benches sit (not open to the public) and I had a seat. They are brand new, were finished the day before and I think might be made from lumber milled from downed trees on site. OK, one more.

These benches are filled with musicians each night – sometimes until dawn – playing songs for one another and collaborating. It’s a pretty magical place and I usually spend at least a couple of hours there each year, but this year – this was my visit. I sat on the benches and realized – I must show other people the benches and the design – hopefully, places like Breitenbush and elsewhere will create something like this!

The Land

Last year’s storms took a heavy toll on the trees. Many are downed or were removed pre-event. This has also led to piles of wood all over the camping areas. It also led to many booths losing shade this year – making a hot fair even hotter! I hope that the Fair Org is thinking about how to remove these wood piles given we’re now in a wildfire-prone area. I’d suggest sooner rather than later and would be happy to help organize work parties until this is done. Otherwise, we risk losing the forests. Have feedback for the Fair? Here is their feedback form. The Cascadia Wild/Forest Defense booth had a petition asking the Fair Org. to open the land to indigenous groups who have been gathering here for thousands of years. I signed.

What it’s like to be the Mayor

Being the outgoing person that I am I know a lot of people at this event. I’m sure I’m not the only one. But I am one – I have been called The Mayor (and I usually suggest – there are probably more than one 🙂 – but I am certainly one. This leads to a different type of experience than many people have. I walk a pathway and am often greeted by name frequently. As I get older and everyone else does, too – I am not always able to place the other person, but eventually, we get to where we met and stories unfold. I spend a lot of time in various booths – playing music and trying the local foods and other offerings. So, this adds up to a lot of connecting and reconnecting every day. I am a humble mayor. I also spend a lot of time interacting with strangers and seeing how things are going with them. I try to leave things much better than I found them 🙂

And back to the Ritz

walking and walking

the dusty paths

saying hello

sharing a kind moment or two

communicating clearly

the truth serum of Fair

One thing that is very clear to me is that at this event people are very real with one another. This often means skipping over the chit-chat and getting right to the meat of things. It might be health-related, or relationship-related – but conversations tend to go deep fast. It’s very refreshing and can lead to deepening relationships, too. There’s also clarity about not over-sharing various logistical things. This is probably an aspect that is more prevalent in the Fair Family world, but it might also be spilling over to everyone – and it’s one more way that life at the Fair is different – and why we cry when it’s over. I saw a lot of crying this year. People need this type of experience more than ever right now. I heard one child ask: “Why does Fair have to end?” – I’m sure many people would love to have more villaging in their lives.

Heat

It was a scorcher this year – with daytime temps in the high 90s. There were misters; there was encouragement to drink water. Stay hydrated. I’m sure WhiteBird saw its share of heat-related visits. A way I figured out to beat the heat was to have a small towel that I could put around my shoulders (once wet) and even over my head. Whew, without that I don’t know how I would have coped. Also, trying to stay in the shade as much as possible was a strategy. That didn’t work too well when I had to cross town, though.

I like to highlight the craft and other vendors that I meet along the way (plus, the ones I work with!). Here you go, Part 2! What’s the story behind these lamps, L48, for instance?