Autumn Is Here — And So Is Sheep & Wool Fest!

Well, it’s official. Autumn is here.

We got our first frost last night. The sheep are getting winter-fat and winter-fuzzy. The leaves are beginning to turn, and the music of the songbirds has been replaced by the honking of geese heading south.

And for me, that means one thing:

Vermont Sheep & Wool Festival!

Oh boy, oh boy. This is one of my very favorite weekends of the year.

Held at the iconic Tunbridge Fairgrounds the first weekend in October, Sheep & Wool Fest is a celebration of pretty much everything I love about rural Vermont: sheep, farming, fiber, craftsmanship, creativity, and people who are really, really good at making things with their hands.

There will be sheep everywhere — major breeds, minor breeds, big sheep, little sheep, fluffy sheep, sleek sheep, and some sheep that will make you stop and say, “Well, aren't you something?” It's a wonderful chance to see breeds you may never encounter otherwise and to appreciate just how much variety there is in the sheep world.

And then there is the wool.

Beautiful yarns. Gorgeous textiles. Hand-dyed fibers. Weaving. Spinning. Felting. Rug hooking. Knitting. Fabric arts. And an astonishing collection of talented craftspeople making beautiful things.

Need a new one-of-a-kind sweater to get you through a Vermont winter? You'll find one.

Mittens? Hats? Scarves? Blankets? Yarn for the project you've been promising yourself you'll actually finish this year?

Yep. It's here.

Looking for inspiration for a new hobby? Or perhaps a little encouragement to take an old hobby in a new direction? You'll find plenty of that, too.

In fact, this is where I first got inspired to try rug hooking a few years ago. I wandered around looking at the incredible hooked rugs being made by local artists and thought, I could do that.

So I did.

And yes, for those who aren't familiar with the terminology, we rug hookers actually do refer to ourselves as hookers.

No, that's not a typo.

It's a long-running source of amusement, and we embrace it.

There will also be sheepdog herding demonstrations, which are always a highlight for me. If you've never watched a good sheepdog work, it's hard to explain just how remarkable the partnership is between dog, handler and sheep. It's part communication, part instinct, part training and, frankly, a little bit of magic.

And then there's something new this year:

For the first time ever, Lucky Dog Farm will be there!

I'll have a couple of my ewe lambs with me, along with a little piece of Lucky Dog Farm — photos of the sheep and dogs doing their thing, recipe cards, information about the farm, and, of course, me.

Come find me and say hello.

I'm happy to talk sheep with you for hours. Or sheepdogs. Or grazing. Or farming in Vermont. Or why I raise Dorpers. Or why I farm the way I do. Or what makes grass-fed lamb so delicious.

And if you've ever wondered what happens between a lamb being born on a Vermont pasture and becoming the lamb chops, ground lamb or merguez that you put on your family's table, I'm especially happy to talk about that.

Because that's really what Lucky Dog Farm is about: raising good food, right here, on this land, and sharing it with the people in our community.

So if you're headed to Tunbridge for Sheep & Wool Fest, please come find me.

Bring your questions. Bring your curiosity. Bring your appetite.

And if you're really lucky, one of my ewe lambs may even let you scratch her nose.

I can't wait.