RALEIGH, N.C. — The North Carolina State Fair is back for another year with opening day set for Thursday.
One of the fair’s largest exhibits is the North Carolina Forest Service exhibit.
Last year, 960,000 people visited the fair over the 11-day event span. Today, people are busy putting the finishing touches on everything before the gates open.
When you think of the fair, you might think of all the food and rides, but a popular spot to stop is the North Carolina Forest Service exhibit. It serves as an educational outreach opportunity and has some interactive aspects including a forest service helicopter.
“Helicopter five is our interactive helicopter. It is fully equipped with TV screens, some video simulation of flight,” Christie Adams, the information and education branch head for the North Carolina Forest Service, said.
The North Carolina Forest Service uses heavy construction equipment to stage the helicopter at its state fair exhibit every year.
“The first question we get is: how did you get that in here? The second, probably most asked, question is: Did that helicopter fly in Vietnam? No, we do not fly it in here. And yes, it most likely flew in Vietnam because it is a Huey,” Adams said.
“What happens next is they'll set it in place, they'll anchor it with straps and then we get to do the fun stuff, which is to make sure all the electronics function on the inside,” Adams said.
The process takes an immense amount of coordination and Adams says all the work is worth it.
“There's never a person in that helicopter who does not have a face that is lit up with joy and excitement,” Adams said. “We get quite a few pilots in that helicopter who all learn to fly to the North Carolina State Fair.”
The Forest Service has had an exhibit at the fair for at least the last 40 years. Dozens of workers, from the piedmont and coastal regions, staff it every day. They help educate people about the role staff and the public have in protecting and conserving the state’s forests.
“We’re going to interact with more people in the span of 11 days, that is the state fair, than we have the opportunity to interact with across the whole year at various events,” Adams said.
The exhibit is meant to be exciting and if that’s what ends up starting a conversation between visitors and the staff, Adams says, they’ve succeeded.
“All the effort that goes into setting this up and making it happen is 100% worthwhile. If we can just give somebody one nugget that they didn't have when they got here,” Adams said.
The Forest Service’s exhibit is located right by gate seven, which was new last year. Adams said, before that gate opened, their exhibit saw about 3,500 people on a typical Saturday. But thanks to that new gate, last year they saw about 11,000 people on a typical Saturday.
The giant 21-foot tall interactive Smokey Bear will also be back again at the exhibit this year.
Another popular aspect that draws people to the forest service exhibit are the free tree seedlings they give away including loblolly pine and longleaf pine.