Silas Jones performs on the Inlet Stage at the Kenai Peninsula Fair on Aug. 12, 2022, in Ninilchik, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Silas Jones performs on the Inlet Stage at the Kenai Peninsula Fair on Aug. 12, 2022, in Ninilchik, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)

Kenai Peninsula Fair to bring music, food, games to Ninilchik

The event will take place Friday, Aug. 11 to Sunday, Aug. 13

The Kenai Peninsula Fair will again fill the fairgrounds in Ninilchik next weekend, bringing performers, animals, games and food together for an event stretching from Friday, Aug. 11 to Sunday, Aug. 13.

Fair Coordinator Lara McGinnis said Wednesday that each year the fair offers a variety of attractions for a family audience — local musical talent, carnival games, horse rides, a petting zoo, a rodeo and the “always fun” pig races.

New this year is a ticketed comedy show Friday night headlined by Greg Morton — seen on “America’s Got Talent.” There will also be performances by Stilt Circus, a “phenomenal” variety show — on stilts — and attractions by Tons of Fun Entertainment including an obstacle course and climbing wall

McGinnis said she loves what the fair brings to Ninilchik and the Kenai Peninsula.

“These are life-changing experiences,” she said. “That’s why kids keep coming back.”

Those kids aren’t just the ones coming to partake in the festivities — they also include the performers taking the stage and the volunteers making the event happen.

Silas Jones, dubbed “Guitar Prodigy” on the fair program, is a 17-year-old guitarist out of Homer who’s played at the fair since 2021. Last year he drew a crowd as he strummed and tapped on his instrument. He’s set to play Friday at 3 p.m.

Adelyn McCorison is similarly a budding musician from Homer who McGinnis said came looking for a chance to perform. She’s set for appearances on all three days.

McGinnis said one act, the Pushki Pickers, features an artist who’s been playing the fair since the age of 4 — Josh Krohn, who currently heads up KBBI radio.

“It’s awesome when the kids you watched grow up come back to perform at the fair,” McGinnis said.

She credits community support from local organizations and volunteers with making the fair even a possibility — especially in recent years when they’ve run the fair the week after Salmonfest. She said it’ll be members of Freedom House and the Ninilchik Wolverine Basketball team preparing the space next week in the days leading up to opening.

The Kenai Peninsula Fair will be held at the Kenai Peninsula fairgrounds Aug. 11-13. The fair will be open from noon to 8 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday, and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday. The rodeo runs Friday at 6:30 p.m., Saturday at 5 p.m., and Sunday at 1 p.m. The comedy show is Friday at 7 p.m., and tickets are available at kenaipeninsulafair.com.

Admission to the fair is $10 for adults, and $5 for youth and seniors. Youth and senior admission will be further discounted to $3 on Friday. On Sunday, free admission can be secured with a donation to the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank.

For more information about the Kenai Peninsula Fair, visit facebook.com/kpfair.

Reach reporter Jake Dye at jacob.dye@peninsulaclarion.com.

More in Life

Marathon Petroleum Kenai Refinery General Manager Bruce Jackman presents a novelty check for $50,000 to the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank at the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank in Soldotna, Alaska, on Wednesday, Dec. 11, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Marathon donates $50,000 to Kenai Peninsula Food Bank

Funds were raised during fishing fundraiser held this summer

Blue sits for a photo with Santa during Bark, Block and Bowl on Saturday, Dec. 10, 2022 at the Kenai Peninsula Food Bank in Soldotna, Alaska. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Food bank to host Christmas meal, Santa photos

The Kenai Peninsula Food Bank will this month host an opportunity for… Continue reading

Virginia Walters (Courtesy photo)
Life in the Pedestrian Lane: A Little cheese with the whine?

No matter which side of the political fence we stand on, as a generation we are intolerant of pity parties

Photo by Clark Fair, 1990
This is the cabin on Pipe Creek, along the north shore of Tustumena Lake, where Harold Galliett sought shelter after surviving a commercial airlines crash in the lake in September 1965.
The 2 most deadly years — Part 4

The two most deadly years for people on or near Tustumena Lake were 1965 and 1975

File
Minister’s Message: Living out the incarnate love of Christ

Jesus showed the compassionate love of God to all He met

The cast of Nikiski Bulldog Theatre’s “Willy Wonka Jr.” rehearse at Nikiski Middle/High School on Tuesday, Dec. 3, 2024. (Jake Dye/Peninsula Clarion)
Nikiski stages student-directed production of ‘Wonka’

A chocolate factory, the Oompa Loompas and a familiar tale of morality… Continue reading

These traditional southern Christmas Divinity Cookies are soft, extremely sweet and might provide some nostalgic joy. (Photo by Tressa Dale/Peninsula Clarion)
Celebrating divine Christmas traditions

Grandma came to our door this weekend with a gift and a… Continue reading

Harold Galliett, the sole survivor of a 1965 Cordova Airlines crash into Tustumena Lake, is seen here raking his lawn in 1958. (Photo courtesy of the Galliett Family Collection)
The 2 most deadly years — Part 3

The two most deadly years for people on or near Tustumena Lake were 1965 and 1975

A butterfly rests on a hand in this undated photo. (Photo by Meredith Harber/courtesy)
Minister’s Message: Whispering our dreams into the world

Maybe that’s precisely what we need — to place our hope, our wish, our dreams — in something altogether impossible

Most Read