Hailey, Idaho: sheep dog trials, Folklife Fair, sheep shearing

I know the phrase "like herding cats" but how about "like herding sheep"? Today, on Buttercup Road in Hailey, Idaho, I watched sheepdog trials and learned that not all sheep are so willing to follow the leader. A sheepdog handler has ten minutes to instruct their sheepdog to round up four sheep, lead them through three gates and into a holding pen. Ten minutes seems like a long time, and the first sheepdog, Ben, got them almost all the way into that pen before time was up. Shoot, I thought, nothing to this.

Then I watched two more contestants. The next sheepdog had rowdy ewes who would not behave, scattering in the field. After 8 minutes, the handler had to forfeit, and extra shepherds and sheepdogs entered the field to coax the miscreants back to other side of the field. The next sheepdog, Bobby Blue, made more progress, but couldn't get them into the pen. The sheepdogs, all Australian shepherd breeds, were smart and fierce. They crouched if the sheep got flustered, backed off if needed, and never let up. A great show; catch it if you are ever in sheep country.

Next we visited the Folklife Fair, also in Hailey. Here were craft booths containing every type of wool art you can think of - felted gnomes and pumpkins, purses, hats, sweaters, rugs, blankets, more. Of particular interest were the spectacular multi-eyed wool wall art. You see Kathy examining this art above. The food served in the food trucks? Lamb of course. (We had lamb gyros and a local beer.)

Whilst eating and shopping we were enterrtained first by Basque dancers (the Basque were the original sheepherders in valley). That was followed by the Scottish dancers and bagpipers (Scots were among the early settlers in Idaho), and then the Peruvian dancers (Peruvian immigrants have largeley replaced the Basque shepherds).

And of course, we couldn't miss the sheep shearing demonstration. Here we see a professional sheep shearer. He claims to be faster than any machine, shearing up to 40 ewes in an hour (the rams can take an hour all by themselves). He has his own shearing trailer. The sheep enter into the trailer on a ramp, get a haircut, and exit out the side. He shaves off the fleece in one continuous sheet, all in about five minutes. Two ladies in the audience felt sorry for the poor ewe, but I thought it far better than a trip to the dentist. And within two weeks, the shorn sheep will have a centimeter of new fleece.

We also treated ourselves to Basque rum cake (see pic above), vintage Norwegian sweaters, and (for me), slippers from the Bag Ladies of Sequim, WA.

We also stopped off at the Grange Hall to help weave a community "Mother Tree" using thick hand-dyed wool yarn. Doris Florig, a fiber artist, was our instructor. We worked on the trunk (as best we could). Tomorrow we will enjoy the end of the Trailing of the Sheep Festival with Sheephearing Stories and a BIG SHEEP PARADE. Stay tuned...