The South Country Fair is back after a two year hiatus due to COVID-19, July 16, 2022 (Photo: LNN)

By Drew Stremick

South Country Fair is back after a two-year hiatus

Jul 16, 2022 | 5:05 PM

FORT MACLEOD, AB – The South Country Fair (SCF) is back after a two-year hiatus due to COVID-19. SCF is a three-day festival that features a variety of music, spoken word and performance art along the Oldman River in Fort Macleod.

The festival has grown significantly since it first began back in 1987, where according to the South Country Fair website, it started off as “A camping weekend for several local folk clubs in 1987 intended for organizers to get to know each other better.”

April Hutchinson is the Volunteer Coordinator for SCF and has been volunteering with the festival for 23 years. She says SCF is a special place.

“This is like our family vacation every year, and for many people this is the same,” Hutchinson explained.

“Our set-up crews, they take time off work to come here, help get it put up. Our strike crews come and take time off to help pull it down. I think anybody who comes here, I’ve never met someone who’s come once and not said, ‘What the heck, why have I not been here before?’ Because this is just a real magical place.”

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For anyone who has never been to SCF, Hutchinson says there are plenty of reasons to attend.

“You are going to get this amazing experience of music you’ve never heard of, or music you have heard of, but live, [and] like up close and personal,” Hutchinson said. “You will interact with amazing artists, [and] performers. You can do yoga, you can learn how to play the ukulele. We have beautiful vendors that create things to sell. We’ve got a river that’s great to swim in at night. The lights go on, the music is cranked, people are dancing, and it’s just yeah, it’s so amazing.”

Festival goers enjoying one of the many live performances happening at the South Country Fair this weekend, July 16, 2022 (Photo: LNN)

Hutchinson talked about how without volunteers, SCF couldn’t exist.

“It’s entirely volunteer run. We don’t have any paid employees. We have at our peak, we’ve had over 400 volunteers,” said Hutchinson. “It takes a lot of humans to put this thing on, but everybody who comes and helps is just so amazing.”

Jeff Strand is one of those volunteers. He spoke of a similar sentiment when it came to describing how it feels to be back and being at SCF.

“I started volunteering on Monday for setup. This is my fourth time here, first time volunteering, and it’s just a great environment, a great place to be in,” Strand said. “Everybody’s really happy to see each other. You see the same faces year after year, and so not seeing certain people for two years, it’s nice to have a reunion.”

Kids and adults took time to enjoy the play area, July 16, 2022 (Photo: LNN)

Organizers like Hutchinson are expecting anywhere between 1,500 to 2,500 people to attend the festival, and over the course of the weekend, festival goers can watch over 20 artists perform on two stages.

Although SCF is smaller in size than other festivals that happen around Alberta during the summer, it doesn’t mean it’s lineup doesn’t pack a punch. This year the SCF has Polaris Music Prize winner and JUNO Nominee Terra Lightfoot as one of it’s headlining performers.

If you’d like to experience SCF for yourself, you can still purchase a day pass for Saturday, July 16, and Sunday, July 17. Visit the SCF website for additional information.

Emily Triggs and her band performs for the South Country Fair crowd, July 16, 2022 (Photo: LNN)