The sub-heading on my website implores you to “step back in time.” That is the exact magic I experienced this past weekend at the Smoky Lake Pumpkin Fair.
As I found myself immersed in the magic of an old country fair, it felt like crossing the threshold of a time machine, walking through the decades into a past that seemed to come vividly back to life in the here and now.
Memories tucked away in the quiet corners of my mind were suddenly reawakened as I walked around the classic midway. The unmistakable sights and sounds of the Octopus, the Scrambler, the Roller Coaster, the Ferris wheel, and the Tilt-A-Whirl didn’t just light up the grounds, they brought me straight back to my childhood, recalling the thrill of the summer fair in Estevan when my older sister Carol would joyfully accompany me on every ride.
But the time travel didn’t stop at the midway. Main street was filled with vintage automobiles from bygone eras gleaming in the autumn sun at the Smoky Lake Show and Shine. It was a weekend where the present faded away, leaving only the beautiful echoes of yesteryear.
I had ulterior motives for travelling to northern Alberta. I arrived on Friday afternoon to meet another older sister who now lives in the vicinity of Smoky Lake. Lorraine sells her delicious baking at the Pumpkin Fair’s Farmer’s market. I had to put the goodies she gave me in the trunk for the drive back to Calgary or they wouldn’t have made it home.
There were over 300 vehicles at the car show and a couple in particular made me stop and talk to the owners. Martial Berube’s 61 Dodge Dart Phoenix was quite a find. I have never seen one before, not even back in the sixties when you’d expect to see a few motoring around. He’s kept it stock and it still has the original 361 cubic inch V-8. When I think of a Dodge Dart, I envision a much smaller car. The Phoenix nameplate lasted only two model years and in 1962 the Dart name was moved to a downsized platform.
Another amazing car was the 1961 Corvair 700 Lakewood wagon. The Lakewood station wagon was marketed as an economical solution for family travel with its easy-lift rear door, durable and easy-to-clean interior, and front and rear trunks for storage. Corvairs got a bad rap from Ralph Nader and most of what he wrote has been debunked by others more knowledgeable than him.
At this time of year, the angle of the sun is making it difficult to get photos without shadows. On many of the pictures I have tried to remove the worst of the dark shadows and I ended up with some very beautiful shadow-free images.
In the photo gallery I’ve included a few pictures from the midway and the winning pumpkin which was over 2000 pounds.
Leave a Reply