The American Honey Queen is in town to celebrate the life of honeybees, plus all the traditional fun items associated with fairs are open at the Clark County Fair, Summer’s Best Party

Paul Valencia
Clark County Today

She arrived in Clark County around 1 a.m. Friday.

By 10 a.m., she was all abuzz, helping to open the 2026 Clark County Fair.

Delanie Craighead is the 2026 American Honey Queen, and she will be making several appearances in the first days of the fair at the Bee Barn.

On the other side of the fairgrounds, Mars Encounters — the fair’s featured exhibit for families — opened to a huge crowd.

This is Summer’s Best Party, and it includes fun educational activities about bees and a future on Mars, and so much else.

“It’s always fun. We look forward to it every single year,” said Aaron Parker of Battle Ground, who was part of a group of six enjoying Mars Encounters.

The fair, he said, means: “Fun. Excitement. And just watching kids laugh.”

Learning about bees can be fun, too. Craighead’s mission is to create buzz about one of her favorite subjects.

“Honeybees are vital for everything. Everything,” Craighead said. “We depend on them. They do a lot of work for us. I am very excited and honored to get to put in a little work for them.”

The American Honey Queen program was created to show the public how the beekeeping industry connects with the lives of every person in the United States. The program has several ambassadors, with one named the American Honey Queen.

Craighead was named the 2026 Honey Queen in January. She said one starts at the state level — she was California’s queen — and then there is a national contest. Craighead said the winner is determined based on communication skills and knowledge of the industry.

Since then, she has been traveling the country, going to two or three states a month. She attends festivals and fairs. She also gives presentations at schools. And she participates in hive demonstrations.

She is enjoying her time criss-crossing the country.

“It’s amazing. It’s wonderful,” she said, plus educational for her. “I don’t have hurricanes in California. I would have never thought of that. You go to Florida, and they’re teaching you how to prepare your hive for hurricanes.”

There are some other benefits, as well.

“There are 300 different types of honey in the United States,” Craighead said. “Every state, I get to try another one.”

At the fair for the next few days, she will be hanging out at the Bee Barn, courtesy of the Clark County Beekeepers Association. She hasn’t seen much of the area just yet, but so far, she is impressed.

“I love the mountains. I love the trees,” Craighead said. “I love the greenery, and I know the honeybees do, too.”

She wants everyone who comes to the fair to visit the Bee Barn.

“There are a lot of opportunities to learn. If you want to see live bees, we have a hive in there, just doing their thing. We have an observation hive, where you can see a queen up close. I hope it will spark their interest a little bit.”

Craighead said she has always been fascinated by insects, and her “creepy crawlies.”

There was something special about learning about bees, though.

“Every time I get to work with bees, I come back in a better mood,” Craighead said.

Beyond the bees and Mars, there are arts and crafts, and plenty of food. Of course, the rides are always popular, too. The carnival opens at noon every day of the fair.

The Clark County Fair runs through Aug. 16 in Ridgefield. For more on the fair, including schedule and tickets, go to: https://www.clarkcofair.com/

This year, the fair is promoting its app, which has easy access to everything associated with the fair: https://grandstandsites.com/gs/index.php?c=CC_Fair