Two weekends ago we made the trip up to Rhinebeck, NY for the state Sheep and Wool Festival. We had a beautiful fall day with the leaves changing, crisp cold air, and blue skies. The festival was a fun an interesting experience; unfortunately severe overcrowding made it difficult to enjoy most of the vendors and demonstrations. If you could get to them, the vendors had a wide selection of raw wool, roving, and yarn for sale. I still have more wool to wash then I can handle, but it was pretty to see it all piled up.
After an frustrating attempt to see some vendors and buy a few spinning and carding tools, we gave up, grabbed a beer, and headed to the livestock barns. This was one of the best parts of the festival. I happen to love the smell of a barn, and we loved exploring all the varieties of sheep. We even watched a little of the sheep sheering; a process which I’ve been surprised to learn my city-dwelling friends expect to be painful for the sheep. In reality the sheep are carefully groomed (the contraption to hold them does seem a little uncomfortable, I admit) and end up free of several pounds of wool from their backs. Afterwards, they get a little custom fit jacket to keep them warm. After a hot summer it seems to me it must feel great.
The other activity that we loved was the sheep dog trials. I’ve seen this before in a small arena, but this competition took place in field the size of 2-3 football fields and had the dogs bringing the herd of sheep through obstacles from one end to the other. They were amazing to watch, and once again I feel fascinated as I watch nature and man work together so beautifully.
Over all we had a really great time. A lot of it was just the opportunity to get out of the city and experience some quiet for awhile. I think that part of my draw to sheep, felt, and all of the natural world is that I feel so completely isolated from the it here in New York City. While there are many wonderful things about living here, it also feels quite separate from reality. There are so many aspects of being a human that you simply cannot experience when you are surrounded by concrete, steel, and a population that walks through the streets only looking straight ahead.
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