Willow State Winter Carnival wraps up this weekend

This weekend will cap off the 61st Willow State Winter Carnival after a fun kick-off this past weekend.

The two-weekend event kicked off last Friday night with a pot roast dinner, followed by a fireworks show that lit up the skies above Willow Lake.

Saturday brought out dog mushers, snow machines, and outhouses as races for all ages and interests commenced, with the popular Sven Eriksson 25K, the Lead Dog dog mushing race, and the always-entertaining Outhouse Races, to name a few.

“I love that we’re getting people back outside,” said Steve Charles, who could be seen on the frozen Willow Lake monitoring races when not on his snow machine in preparation for the next race.

Visitors needing a break or a cup of coffee could head indoors, where there are plenty of vendors within the Willow Community Center, selling anything from homemade candles, jams, and sauces, to any kind of fur-made wear to keep the bite of the winter off.

"We rode out from Houston to come up. We haven't bee for a while, so it's nice to see so many out," said Houston resident Mike Adams, whose family rode snow machines to the carnival. It was his grandson's first experience on a snow machine, but definitely not his last.

People also have the opportunity to run into royalty, as the Willow King and Queen can be spotted taking in the fun the carnival has to offer. This year, the honors go to Ron and Berna Brooks, honored for their continued hard work and community support as first responders with Willow-Caswell Fire Department and the Willow CERT.

“And what is a Queen without the Queen Mother?” joked last year’s Queen, Grandma Jo, who happens to literally be the Queen Mother as she is Berna’s mother.

This weekend will see a Poker Run, snowshoe softball, a vintage snow machine parade, and the Carnival Cup Hockey Expedition.

Winners of the Pike Derby will be announced, along with the winners of the photo contest, and the lucky winner of the Polaris 550 Indy Snow Machine from Hatcher’s Pass Polaris.

"It is a lot of work, but it’s so much fun,” said carnival chair Linda Oxley.

For more information, visit www.waco-ak.org/waco-events/ or the Willow Alaska Community Organization Facebook page.