A fun-filled day at the Maine Common Ground Fair: food, crafts, art, agricultural and livestock exhibits, demos and presentations.
A Day at the Maine Common Ground Fair
The Maine Common Ground Country Fair is an annual event held in the small town of Unity, Maine in mid-September.
Organized by the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association (MOFGA) , it focuses on organic farming, sustainability, and rural living.
The fair features a variety of activities, including workshops, demonstrations, local crafts and art, agricultural and livestock exhibits, and food vendors emphasizing organic and locally sourced products.
There is also live music and fun activities for families, making it a vibrant celebration of Maine’s agricultural heritage and community spirit.
The Common Ground Fair is not just for farmers or homesteaders, though.
In fact you don’t even have to call Maine home to enjoy the festivities! My sisters planned their visit to Maine this year specifically so that we could go to the fair last Friday.
Think of it more as classic country fair, but with a focus on organic living and sustainability.
Find out for yourself what it’s all about, and join me and my sisters for a fun-filled day at the Maine Common Ground Fair!
Getting There
Meet us at the fair!
The only way to get there is by car. (Or bicycle, horse, or on foot if you start early, I suppose…)
Unity is located in central Maine, about a 1 3/4- hour drive from Portland.
But leave some time for traffic.
Not words I find myself saying frequently here in Maine.
Approaching the fairground, though, you are driving on local roads, which were not designed to accommodate the volume of fair traffic.
I think it took us about 30 minutes to go the last couple of miles this year.
As we inched along in the car, I started to feel my ingrained D.C.-area parking panic start to set in. We arrived at around 11:30. And while we were parked close to the road, there were still plenty of spaces available. Phew!
Be aware that all parking is in a field!
And that there is quite a long walk from the parking to the fair. It is mostly along a lovely wooded path, though, which I always enjoy.
There is apparently a shuttle that runs from the parking to the fair, but once at the fair there is still a lot of walking on unpaved ground. My 90-year old dad and his friend did not join us that day. It would have been way too much for them.
To avoid some of the traffic there is also a train that runs from a location in Unity and one from nearby Thorndike. You can learn more about the train here.
Food
Let’s head first to the food stands!
Because that is probably my favorite part of the fair.
And because I am hungry after the drive!
I have talked numerous times about my difficulty finding vegetarian food when I eat out here in Maine.
Well, that is not an issue at the Common Ground Fair.
They have the usual rows of food trucks and stands you will find at any big fair.
Except the focus here is on local and organic foods, and definitely heavy on the veg!
Think tofu fries and seaweed salad.
Grilled Mediterranean eggplant.
Vegan pad thai and egg rolls.
Empanadas with carrot salsa.
Indian food and Asian rice bowls.
Burritos, pizza, and tacos.
For those who enjoy meat, poultry, and fish, don’t fret! There were Italian sausage sandwiches, oysters, lamb shawarma, jerk chicken, burgers, fish tacos. And, of course, lobster rolls.
For dessert there are pie cones, maple fried dough, vegan cheesecake, and chocolate cake.
For lunch my sisters and I split some falafel pita sandwiches, egg rolls, and shiitake mushroom fries.
At the end of the day before leaving we had some wild Maine blueberry crisp. Yum!
What would you choose?!
There are also farmers markets at both entrances to the fair, where you can purchase fresh produce, flowers, maple syrup, pickled veggies, and more!
I bought two bouquets of dried flowers for my dining room mantel (sharing soon!) and a jar of Ginger Carrot Kraut.
One vendor had some bourbon maple syrup that seriously tempted me. My sisters picked up some maple sugar candies.
Local Crafts and Art
Let’s go next to another favorite area of mine — the huge Fine Crafts and Art Market tent.
There are so many talented artists and makers in Maine and New England in general. I love finding special handmade items and meeting the person who crafted them.
For the home there was pottery, baskets, turned wood items, dishtowels, and so much incredible artwork.
And personal accessories included jewelry, clothing, knitwear, and more that I can’t remember.
I purchased a tall basket with a glass insert for flowers or kitchen utensils. One of my sisters got me a block printed dishtowel with a mussel shell pattern. And the other bought me a hand-turned wooden French rolling pin. (We all had birthday and Christmas shopping to do…)
In another Maine maker’s section I picked up two birthday gifts for my daughter-in-law. I can’t share what they are in case she reads this post! But they are good!!
Agricultural and Livestock Exhibits
It wouldn’t be a country fair if there weren’t agricultural and livestock exhibits.
I always like to give the animals a visit. (Though as a vegetarian, I don’t necessarily like to think about the ultimate fate that awaits some of them…)
The goats are my favorite. Particularly the angora, with their curly shags.
For the last few years there have been no poultry exhibits at the fair due to the elevated risk of Avian Influenza in Maine.
And, even though I don’t have a veggie garden, I always enjoy a visit to the exhibition hall, where Maine farmers and gardeners display the fruits, veggies, and blooms of their labor.
This year we marveled at the many kinds of tomatoes, the shiitake mushrooms growing on a log, the giant romanesco zucchini, bouquets of beautiful kale and chard, rainbow peppers, soft-hued eggs, and fat pumpkins.
Fresh veggies just make me happy!
In another part of the fair, my sister Lissa enjoyed the Maine heritage orchard Pear and Apple ID tent. She was trying to identify the tart little apples that grow on the scraggly tree in my yard.
Presentations, Demos, and Displays
While I mostly enjoy the food, crafts, animals, and veggie exhibits at the Fair, there are also educational presentations, demos, and displays on a wide range of topics related to organic farming, sustainability, and rural living.
You can check out everything from European scythes and compost worms and bins to wood-burning pizza ovens and chicken coops.
On Friday alone there were presentations and demos on:
Mite Treatments for Healthy Hives.
Green Cemeteries, Home Funerals, & More.
Reverse Wrap Weaving with Natural Fibers.
Beginners Guide to Going Off Grid.
Goat Hoof Trimming
The Basics of Breeding Your Own Pigs
History of Draft Horse Breeds in America
Solar Cooking Demo
And so much more!
The one thing I was disappointed they did not have on Friday was the Sheep Dog Demo. I have so enjoyed watching these smart dogs doing their job in past years.
Common Ground Fair Merchandise
Before heading out, we must pay a visit to the Common Ground Fair merch tent. No day at the fair would be complete with out bringing home some souvenir Fair swag!
The Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association hosts an annual contest to select that year’s unique custom poster design. They receive over 100 submissions from Maine and MOFGA-member artists hoping to have their artwork selected. After all, it will be featured on the Fair poster, website, promotional materials, and on Fair merchandise such as t-shirts and tote bags.
It is always fun to see what the year’s “theme” is!
Through the years there have been chickens, pigs, cows, a raven, and a goat. Garlic scapes, bee balm, peas, and swiss chard!
Everyone has their favorites.
And at the fair you can see people rocking t-shirts and sweatshirts from years past.
There was even a quilt displayed in the exhibition hall made out of different Fair t-shirts.
This year’s artwork was an owl perched on the branch of an apple tree.
I did some shopping in the merch tent for my daughter Leah to give as Christmas gifts, and one of my sisters bought me a t-shirt as a belated birthday present.
As the Common Ground is an organic- and sustainability-focused fair, the t-shirts are printed by Maine small business Liberty Graphics using water-based ink on organic cotton.
SIDE NOTE: We just happened to do some shopping at the Liberty Graphics t-shirt store in Camden the night before. They have some fabulous designs and happily have a whole line of women’s t-shirts. Yay! Say goodbye to too-long t-shirts with narrow hips and high necks! You can shop their t-shirts and tea towels online.
And you can shop this and some other year’s Common Ground Fair merchandise here!
This Week Into Next
Well, it is officially Fall.
And I can’t deny that it is really starting to look and feel like it.
I’m not mad about it, though.
I am ready to embrace the cozy nights and hot drinks. Cruciferous veggies, winter squash, and apples! Oatmeal in the morning. Soup at night. Blankets, sweaters, and warm socks.
I love my fading garden with its brown grasses, rose-hued limelights, and spent blooms, all set against a colorful backdrop of turning leaves.
This week I swapped out a few pillow covers in the living room. Added a wool plaid throw. Just the beginning of changes.
In the dining area, my sisters and I decorated the mantel and fireplace with dried flowers. I think I will share that next week!
And this weekend, I think it is time to get the pumpkins for my Great Pumpkin Wall.
A sure sign that fall is here!
Another fun fall festival, the Lucketts Fall Market will be taking place October 11-13 in Berryville, Virginia. Read all about my trip there last year in my blog post A Vintage Hip Day at the Lucketts Fall Market.
That’s it for this week.
Closing today with heartfelt thoughts for those affected by Helene. Such devastation.
Take good care, friends,
Loved reading about your trip to Common Ground! What a unique and fun thing that Maine has to offer. One day we’ll get Poppy up there for it, I have no doubt she would be thrilled to see all the animals.
Hi Zo! Would love to go to Common Ground Fair with you and Poppy. She would definitely love the animals! And probably all the veggies too, ha! She could find another gourd lovey… The Common Ground always makes me think of you, since we have had two fun days there!
This brought back so many memories. In the late 1980’s this, divorced, parent of two girls, living in another county woman made the decision to return to graduate school. My search for a school was limited by the courts to a 500 mile distance from the city I was then living in. I chose the University of Maine. We moved there just before school started. At my orientation day, I talked with a student who clued me into the Common Ground Fair as something I shouldn’t miss. My then 9 year old daughter and I made the drive to Unity. The fair was everything I had hoped for and more. It made me feel like Maine was wrapping its arms around me and telling me “you are home.” The year leading up to the move had been very stressful, the move was very stressful, starting back to graduate school was stressful, getting my girls settled was stressful. You get the picture. The fair wiped all that away and I knew I had made the right decision. We went to the fair every year we lived there and I miss it greatly. I think if I were to return at fair time, I would burst into tears just by walking on the “common ground”.
PS. You live in my favorite Maine region. My go to escape when I needed a break was Port Clyde!
Hi Cathi — Thank you so much for sharing this heartfelt memory with me. The Common Ground Fair is as much a celebration of Maine community as it is organic and sustainable living. Such a special event in a very special state! And I am so grateful for this beautiful spot I get to call home!
Our part of Florida was not hit as bad as others, thankfully.
Your post about the County Fair brought back some wonderful childhood memories. From age 7-11 I lived in a small town in Kentucky. The Taylor County Fair was a big deal. Back then it was safe to go with just my friends.
Hi Nancy — Glad you did not experience the full wrath of Helene as some did. The devastation in North Carolina is heartbreaking to see. Happy to have brought back some childhood fair memories for you!
I loved reading about your trip to the Country Fair! Sounded like so much fun and really a fun event to attend with sisters! Thank you for sharing! I love reading your blog!
Hi Tami! Thanks so much for reading my blog and for reaching out to say hello! I am so happy my sisters were able to join me at the Common Ground Fair this year. We had such a fun day together!
Beautiful post Molly. It sounds like you had a great time spent with your family. The fair looks like such a fun way to view all the artisans of Maine. Enjoy your week. Sending lots of prayers for all those affected by Helene both two legged and four legged.
Hi Suzie — It was so great to have my family here! My sisters and I particularly enjoyed our day at The Common Ground Fair. The craft tent is always fun to visit!
Loved reliving the fair through this post since it’s been so many years since I was able to go. The food sounds delicious!! Thanks for picking up a few things for me!
Hey honey! You will have to come out sometime in September so we can go to the fair together! We have never done that.
Wow, Molly, now that’s a real faire. I love it and would have eaten myself silly and shopped for the next five Christmas’. What a dream to spend a day at the faire with your sisters. xo
Hi Juliet — I love the veg- and locally-sourced focus of the food vendors at The Common Ground Fair. A different spin from most fair fare! And yes, it is a great place to knock of some Christmas shopping!
I just had to pop in and say “Hey!” On a recent cruise, Portland was a port of call. We chose an excursion that took us out of the city. While I only got a taste of Maine, I absolutely fell in love with it! I found such peace in the nature and joy in the people I met. I will definitely be back soon for an in depth visit. In the meantime, once home, I sought out some blogs to read and follow. Yours was one of them! I am enjoying your imagery and written descriptions of life in Maine. I likely will never live there, as all my children and grandchildren live right around me here in MI. But, my heart would love to spend time in Maine at least once a year! Thank you for your lovely blog. It helps to keep such a beautiful place I have visited alive in my heart until I can visit again.
Hi Tammy — What a kind message! Thank you! I am so happy that my blog provides you with a “Maine fix” when you are not here! There is something so special about this state — definitely the people and the beauty of our natural surroundings. I think a vacation in Maine each year sounds fabulous! My daughter-in-law grew up in Maine, but she and my son now live in West Bloomfield, Michigan. They love it there and parts of it definitely remind them of Maine!