Why The Clackamas County Fair Is Worth The Trip To Canby

By Guest Author: Lilly Longshore

I have been to my share of county fairs over the years, so I think I’m a pretty good judge of them, pun intended. This year’s Clackamas County Fair in Canby was fabulous and exciting. It provided a wide variety of exhibits and entertainment — including the world-class Canby Rodeo!

We entered the 49-acre fairgrounds by the yellow ticket booth, passing food stands and other vendors along a wide, paved route. The air was filled with savory smells of roasted sweet corn, smoked meats and kettle corn. We noted the ADA ramp leading into the rodeo arena as we passed as we would be coming back to that later.

I was impressed with the abundance of livestock and small animal exhibits — so many barns full of show-worthy pigs, cows, sheep, goats, rabbits, cavies and birds! This county fair refreshingly features farming, agriculture and 4-H projects rather than commercial displays.

Fun exhibits like the scarecrow contest make the Clackamas County Fair enjoyable.

We escaped the heat for a while by leisurely perusing the photos, diamond paintings, quilts and more in the uncrowded Main Pavilion. This building was nicely wheelchair-friendly, as were the fairgrounds as a whole. I really liked the artistic displays of flower arrangements and the unique scarecrow competion presented in the smaller outbuildings.

Just outside the Main Pavilion, we sat under a massive shade tree, listening to the band Tagima and singer Timothy James. They played folk and rock songs for hours. We sang along and even howled like wolves to one song. It was such fun! We heard other musical styles from great bands around the fair, including a talented Garth Brooks sound-alike and a jazzy ragtime group. I loved all the gifted musical groups sprinkled throughout the fairgrounds!

The ramp to the grandstands was easy to navigate in a wheelchair.

When evening came, it was time to rodeo! The Canby Rodeo has been occurring annually since 1907. Participants from all over the world — Canada, Brazil, Australia and the United States — competed in front of us for the 2026 purse of $250,000. Our seats for this incredible event were four rows from the railing, straight across the arena from the gates where both broncs and bulls burst out, twisting and bucking, intent on throwing their riders. The air was electric with tension as one rider after another tried to hold on for their eight seconds — which doesn’t seem long until you’re on top of a furious bull! I am in awe of the athletes here, both the contestant riders as well as the many helpers who skillfully uncinched the animals and helped riders to safety. All of them were unbelievably capable.

The talent at the rodeo was on full display in a variety of events.

Both danger and elegance were prominent in this rodeo. For me, one of the most beautiful parts of the event was the herd of horses from the Calgary Stampede that were released to gallop around the arena in a magnificent graceful flow.

It was a long day of wonderful entertainment and fun. I was worn out by the end, but so satisfied with the fun of this fair.