Modoc County California Modoc District Fair Festival

In the far northeastern corner of California, where the state narrows against Oregon and Nevada, the Modoc District Fair has been the county’s annual homecoming for a century. Held in the small town of Cedarville in Surprise Valley, it is a fair built around ranching, horses and neighborliness rather than big-name entertainment.

The fairgrounds’ own motto captures it: Where the West Still Lives. For four days each August, the valley fills with ranch families, rodeo contestants and visitors who come for a genuinely rural county fair that has changed less than most.

This guide covers what the Modoc District Fair is, its history, what happens across the weekend, and how to plan a visit to one of California’s most remote fairs.

What the Fair Is

The Modoc District Fair is a traditional district fair with a distinctly western character. Its program leans on livestock, horses and ranch skills: a junior horse show, sheepdog trials, ranch saddle bronc riding, a greased pig contest, a men’s softball tournament and a demolition derby. A downtown parade, a fair queen and princess, and several fundraising barbecue dinners round out the schedule.

A carnival midway supplies rides for families, and two nights of live music keep the evenings going. But the heart of the event is agricultural and social. It is the kind of fair where the grand marshal is a local business owner and the exhibitors are your neighbors.

For a nearby comparison, see the Merced County California Tahiti Fete Dance Competition Fest.

A Century of Fairs

Modoc County’s fair tradition reaches back to 1922, when the first fair was held in Fort Bidwell. The permanent Modoc District Fairgrounds in Cedarville were established in 1933, and the event has been held there ever since, through Depression years, wartime and the shifting fortunes of a remote rural county.

By the 2010s the fair was in trouble. The fairgrounds faced closure in 2015 because of a funding crisis, and the fair board approved a transition plan to keep the grounds and the annual event alive. A community nonprofit, the Modoc Heritage Foundation, was formed and took over running the fair under a memorandum of understanding, while the 34th District Agricultural Association focused on stabilizing its finances.

That arrangement has kept the tradition going into its second century. Recent editions have carried the fair past its 100th running, making it one of the older continuously held fairs in a state full of them.

Where and When

The fair is held at the Modoc District Fairgrounds in Cedarville, about 20 miles east of Alturas through Cedar Pass in the Warner Mountains. Cedarville sits in Surprise Valley, a long, open basin of ranches, alfalfa fields and alkaline lakes that runs north toward Oregon and Nevada.

Location	Modoc District Fairgrounds, Cedarville, Modoc County, California
Typical timing	Four days in late August
Edition	Past its 100th running
Operator	Modoc Heritage Foundation with the 34th District Agricultural Association
Signature events	Parade, rodeo, sheepdog trials, demolition derby, greased pig contest
Fair queen	A long-standing tradition, with a princess and parade appearance
Motto	Where the West Still Lives

Gates open across the four days with a mix of daytime livestock and ranch events and evening entertainment. Admission is inexpensive by California standards, and season passes and family day passes are usually available.

The Ranch Events

What sets the Modoc fair apart is how many of its competitions come straight from working ranch life. Ranchers Day brings local ranch families together, and the ranch saddle bronc riding and sheepdog trials are genuine tests of skill rather than staged spectacles.

The junior horse show gives young riders a stage, and the greased pig contest is a long-running crowd favorite that has launched more than a few childhood memories. The demolition derby, usually held at night, is the loudest event of the weekend and packs the grandstand.

Livestock exhibits and 4-H and FFA projects remain central. In a county this rural, the barns are not a sideshow; they are the reason many families come.

The Parade and the Downtown

The fair parade runs through downtown Cedarville and is one of the weekend’s social centerpieces. The fair queen and princess ride in it, along with the grand marshal, local organizations, ranch wagons and marching groups. It is the kind of small-town parade where most of the crowd knows most of the participants.

Barbecue dinners held over several nights double as fundraisers for community groups, and the fairgrounds serve as the valley’s gathering place for the duration. Outside the gates, Cedarville’s handful of streets and its historic buildings are worth a walk.

Planning Your Visit

Modoc County is remote, and that is part of the appeal. Alturas, the county seat and largest town, is the practical base for lodging, fuel and supplies, with Cedarville roughly half an hour away over the pass. Visitors should not expect a large selection of hotels, so booking early matters.

• Book lodging in Alturas or Cedarville well in advance; rooms are few.
• Bring layers, since high-desert evenings cool sharply after sunset.
• Plan for the demolition derby and one barbecue dinner, the fair’s social highlights.
• Allow time to drive Surprise Valley and the Warner Mountains.
• Check the fair’s schedule, since ranch events and evening entertainment run on different days.

Beyond the Fair

The Modoc District Fair is a reason to explore one of California’s least-visited regions. The Modoc National Wildlife Refuge, just south of Alturas, is a 7,000-acre oasis of wetlands fed by Pit River snowmelt and a major stop for migratory birds. The Modoc National Forest spreads over more than a million acres of high desert and mountain terrain.

To the west, Lava Beds National Monument offers lava tubes, petroglyphs and a landscape shaped by volcanic eruptions and the Modoc War. Devil’s Garden, east of Alturas, is home to a herd of wild horses. For travelers who like empty roads and big skies, the fair makes an excellent anchor for a longer trip.

The Fairgrounds and Cedarville

The Modoc District Fairgrounds occupy a grassy, tree-lined site in Cedarville, with barns, exhibit halls, a grandstand and open space for the carnival. It is a working fairground, used through the year for horse events, community gatherings and the fair itself, and its buildings carry the plain, practical look of rural California.

Cedarville is a small town in the middle of Surprise Valley, and the fair is one of the few times it swells with visitors. Around the grounds you will find a general store, a cafe and the historic buildings of a valley that has run on cattle and hay for well over a century. The town and the fair are inseparable in local life.

The valley itself is worth a drive. Surprise Valley is a long, north-south basin of ranches, alfalfa fields and alkaline lakes that runs toward the Oregon and Nevada lines. Mornings here are cool and quiet, and the light on the Warner Mountains to the west is the reason photographers make the trip.

How to Get There

Getting to the Modoc District Fair takes a commitment, which is part of its character. Alturas is reached from the west along Highway 299 or from the south along Highway 395, and Cedarville is about 20 miles farther east over Cedar Pass. The drive from Redding or Klamath Falls takes roughly three hours; from Reno, longer.

Because the region is so remote, visitors should arrive with a full tank and a plan for lodging. Cell service is patchy outside town, and the nearest large hospital is well beyond the county. None of that is a problem for a prepared traveler, but it is worth knowing before setting out into the high desert.

Sheepdogs, Horses and Ranch Skills

The sheepdog trials are one of the fair’s most distinctive events and a window into real ranch work. Handlers direct border collies by voice and whistle across a field, guiding sheep through gates and pens in a test of both the dog’s training and the handler’s timing. It is quiet, precise and absorbing to watch, and nothing like the noise of the midway.

The junior horse show and the ranch saddle bronc riding follow the same philosophy: these are skills that matter on working ranches, judged by people who know them. Young riders compete in the horse show, while the bronc riding puts local cowboys on rough stock in a tradition that predates the modern rodeo circuit.

The greased pig contest and the men’s softball tournament are the lighter side of the same world. Both draw crowds, both are long-running traditions, and both say something about a county where a fair is as much a reunion as a spectacle.

Ranchers Day and the Working Fair

One of the fair’s traditions is Ranchers Day, when the county’s ranch families are recognized and the fair leans into its agricultural purpose. It is a reminder that this is not a fair staged for tourists but one that exists to serve an industry and a way of life.

The 4-H and FFA presence reinforces that. Students raise and show animals, enter exhibits and compete for ribbons, and the fair is where a year of work is measured. For many Modoc families the fair is a fixture of childhood, the place where skills are learned and passed down.

Visitors who take an interest in the barns and the judging will get more out of the fair than those who come only for the rides. The exhibitors are usually glad to explain what they have raised, and the fair’s staff and volunteers are proud of the agricultural program.

Festival Area Map

The map below marks the Modoc District Fairgrounds in Cedarville, with the approach from Alturas through Cedar Pass for planning your visit.

Frequently Asked Questions

When is the Modoc District Fair?

It is held over four days in late August, typically running from Thursday through Sunday.

Where is it held?

At the Modoc District Fairgrounds in Cedarville, California, in Surprise Valley.

How old is the fair?

Modoc County’s fair tradition dates to 1922, and the Cedarville fairgrounds were established in 1933. Recent editions have passed the fair’s 100th running.

Who runs the fair?

The Modoc Heritage Foundation runs the annual event in partnership with the 34th District Agricultural Association.

What are the main events?

A downtown parade, rodeo and ranch events, sheepdog trials, a junior horse show, a greased pig contest, a demolition derby and several barbecue dinners.

Is it family-friendly?

Yes. The fair combines a carnival midway with livestock exhibits and ranch competitions, and admission is inexpensive.

What to Expect From the Next Modoc District Fair

How often is the fair held?

It is an annual event, held each August.

When is the next fair?

The next edition is expected in late August at the Cedarville fairgrounds. Confirm exact dates and entry details with the fair office.

Will the format change?

The ranch events, parade and demolition derby have been constants for years, though the entertainment lineup and carnival vary.

Last updated: October 2026

The Modoc District Fair is not trying to compete with the giant fairs of the Central Valley. It is a county fair in the truest sense, run by and for a ranching community in one of the most isolated corners of California. For a visitor, that isolation is the point: a weekend here is a look at a part of the state that most Californians never see.