Cattle are lowing, deep friers are sizzling and country music is blaring: fair season has returned to Carbon County.

With today's opening ceremony, the Carbon County Fair turns 11 years old. The event's Palmerton fairgrounds were a hive of activity Tuesday evening as scores of volunteers and participants prepared for the festivities.Area youth from the Carbon County 4-H Club were particularly busy, as they primped and paced their animals for the fair's stringent judges."It's a lot of work, but I do what I have to, to get the job done," Vanessa Hyska, 19, of Lehighton, said. Hyska has been a member of 4-H for the past five years, and is entering a total of nine animalsthree cows, four goats and two sheepin this year's fair, which is her last."Getting them all ready was tough: I had to make sure I walked them all every day and clipped them perfectly," she said. "I do this because I enjoy it; it's all a lot of fun for me."A few yards away from Hyska's small menagerie, 11-year old Avery Keller was meticulously washing her sheep "Steel." The Lehighton youth took a quick break from her duties to discuss the tribulations that come with raising such an animal."The hardest part was getting him to like me," she said. "He's afraid of other people."This year's fair is Keller's third as a 4-H member, and she has high hopes for her shy sheep."We worked really hard to get him ready for showmanship and bidding," she said. "I'm really excited; I can't wait to show my animals."The brother and sister team of Kevin and Kathie Bond seem to share Keller's enthusiastic spirit. Hailing from Windy Acres Farms in Penn Forest Township, the sibling duo has brought a bevy of entries to this year's fair."Our family has been involved with the fair since we were both kids," Kevin Bond said. "I know that times are tough, but I really hope people come out to the fair and bid. We've got some really great animals this year."In addition to five different breeds of chickens, the elder Bond has submitted homegrown hay and straw, as well as the family's tractor, for judging. Kathie was no slouch either, having baked a collection of pies for the fair. And she's got the scars to prove it."I had a little accident with a paring knife last night," she said, gesturing to her gauze wrapped hand. "We've been pretty accident-prone lately. I guess it's just the excitement of the fair getting to us."But excitement wasn't the only thing running high at the fair. Temperatures were hovering in the high 90s last night, and show no sign of letting up for the rest of the week.Tracy Frable, the coordinator for the 4-H Bunny Busters Rabbit and Cavy Club, says the heat is as much a part of the fair as the live entertainment."We look forward to the fair all year, except for the humidity," Frable said. "It always seems to fall during the hottest week of the year."The people hit the hardest by the sweltering weather are the ones manning the food stands. Members of the Jerusalem Lutheran Church, of Trachsville, sought refuge from the heat of their many stoves under the shade of a nearby tent."It takes us two days to set up our stand and a whole week to prepare our food," Connie Smale said. This year's menu includes Pennsylvania Dutch filling, chicken and beef barbecue and hot dogs, according to Smale"We're here from sunup to sunset every day," she said. "We have a good time, and we meet a lot of nice people."The Carbon County Fair will be held from today through Aug. 15, operating between 3 and 11 p.m. Live entertainment and ride specials will be available daily. For more information, visit the fair's website at

www.carboncountyfair.com.