BLOOMSBURG, Pa. — The rides were spinning, food is cooking, and smiles were there to stay.
The 166th Bloomsburg Fair is officially underway and it's back just like you've always remembered it.
"I love the fair I love the people. I love the consistency the same stands. I know where I wanna go I have friends that I come with," said Kathy Hoffman, Atlanta.
Kathy Hoffman is a Bloomsburg native, who now lives in Georgia.
She, like many, has been coming here for years.
"I am a fair faker since I was born and I've been coming up from Atlanta for 40 years just for this fair," said Hoffman.
It's a tradition many fairgoers are certainly excited to get back to after two years off because of the COVID -19 pandemic.
"We come every year when it's open and we just kinda just enjoy the sights, the sounds, and kinda just have fun. Spend time with the family," said Briana Morrison, Tamaqua.
The fair features carnival rides, games, and food, Livestock, and live entertainment and shows.
And one of the new fan favorites this year: First bite fishing where folks are about to catch fish then release them right at the fair.
The annual event draws in over 400,000 people.
Organizers say this year, they believe many more could come out as long as the weather remains clear.
"Rain typically does shorten up the number of people coming but really we keep going back to the weather forecast and that's what drives it here but I think people are hungry to get back to the fairs and the Bloomsburg fair is one of the best in the state so I think we're going to have a good one," said Brian Campbell, Bloomsburg Fair Superintendent of Agriculture.
And in unpredictable times people say it's nice to get back to something that seems so normal.
"I mean, I think with the Bloomsburg fair you get a lot of people that come here and you kinda get this sense of community. It's a bunch of people coming together for something simplistic to just have fun," said Morrison.
The Bloomsburg fair runs from now till October 2nd.