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Hells Canyon Mule Days - Sept. 5-7
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This year’s mule show will be three full days of events that include classes for every age group and skill level. The gates open at 9 a.m. Sept. 5 with a line-up of driving classes including singles and teams. A harnessing demonstration by Dick Walker will be held just before noon in the main arena followed by fun events for the afternoon. Highlights of the weekend events include the Classic Jump Off Challenge, which is always a crowd pleaser, and fast action events include pole bending, barrel racing, mule and donkey races, wild cow milking and the Fast Ass Express. Don’t miss Berry and Amy Krohn’s mule clinic at 9 a.m. Saturday for special tips on mule training. Before the grand entry Saturday, the popular Stick Mule Races and Boot Scramble are scheduled. These two events are for kids ages 5-9 who are spectators. Everyone wins a blue ribbon, and special awards go to the winner of each heat. During the Saturday afternoon show there will also be a contest for the oldest spectator and the spectator who has traveled the most miles to attend the show. The weekend is packed full of mule-related happenings, and there is always something to see and do for the whole family. Visitors can enjoy strolling The Green and visiting with the expanded array of vendors, exhibitors and western artists. Tennessee mule artist Bonnie Shields of Sandpoint, Idaho, is the featured artist at this year’s show. Shields is well known for her drawing, painting and sculpture. In 2005, Shields designed the Hells Canyon Mule Days signature logo. She is a long standing member of the Cowboy Cartoonists Association, and her mule art can be viewed at the show as well as on her website at www.bonnieshields.com. Old World Oxen Living History Co. will set up camp again this year. A rare 1800s vintage female bullwhacker brings history to life with gentle 6-foot oxen, a freighter’s wagon and Old West artifacts. Bullwhackin’ Kass — AKA Sheryl Curtis — sets a camp that takes school kids 150 years back in time with hands-on experiences. This exhibit and show is sponsored by the Wallowa County Soroptimists. The Hells Canyon Mule Days Quilt Show will be on display in the Cloverleaf Hall on the fairgrounds. There will be more than 100 quilts displayed for the three-day event. Vendors will represent quilt shops throughout the region and sell quilting-related items. Show hours are Friday 1 to 5 p.m., Saturday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is $3. Call Betty Whitehead for information at 398-1266. The Max Walker Memorial Cowboy Poetry Gathering will be on Friday evening in the show barn at the fairgrounds. Enjoy cowboy yarns and good ol’ country music by local and regional artists playing fiddle, guitar and banjo into the night. Saturday events not to be missed include the non-motorized parade with this year’s grand marshals Juana Malaxa and Maria Onaindia leading the procession of riders, teams, pack-strings, local horse clubs and past grand marshals.
New to the celebration this year is a Dutch Oven Cook-Off scheduled on Sunday with the North Central Idaho Cookin’ Irons Club from Kooskia, Idaho, in charge. Join the fun and show off your camp cook recipes. Daily show admission is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors (60 and older), and kids 12 and younger are free when accompanied by an adult. A HCMD souvenir admission button will serve an admission ticket; buy it on Friday and get in for free on Saturday and Sunday with the button. Celebrate Wallowa County’s tradition of mules and muleskinners at this annual end-of-summer event. For more information call Sondra Lozier at 541-426-3271 or 541-263-0104, toll free 888-323-3271.
Schedule of eventsFriday, Sept. 5Driving classes, trail classes, jackpot events — 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dick Walker Harness Demonstrations in main arena — 11 a.m. Max Walker Memorial Cowboy Poetry Gathering — 6:30 p.m. HCMD Quilt Show in Cloverleaf Hall — 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 6
Halter classes and showmanship classes 8 to 10:30 a.m. Hells Canyon Mule Days Non-Motorized Parade, downtown Enterprise 11 a.m. Stick mule races and boot scramble — 12:12 p.m. Wild Cow Milking-Flapjack Race, Jump-Off Challenge, Fast Ass Express — 12:30 p.m. Jim Probert Pit Barbecue Dinner — 5 p.m. Mule and horse sale — 6 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 7Ranch Riding-Western/English Pleasure, mule races and much more — 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. First annual Dutch Oven Cook-Off — 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Show awards — 4 p.m. |
