Palmer Alaska is home to the renowned Alaska State Fair. Occurring at the end of August every year, Palmer Fairgrounds comes alive with all the sights and sounds that signify the State Fair is here again. Giant cabbages and other vegetables abound and big name headliners perform at the Alaska State Fair! Palmer, Alaska is home to many other spectacular visitor attractions. Stay at a Palmer bed and breakfast inn to visit these many attractions. Drive an hour down the National Scenic Byway of the Glenn Highway and walk on Matanuska Glacier, one of the few road accesible glaciers in the State and this one you can trek out as far as you'd like on the spectacularly vivid blue glacial ice. Visit the Iditarod Headquarters in Wasilla, just ten minutes down the road and home to the Iditarod Museum and cute cuddly sled dog puppies in the summer months. You can even take a sled dog ride! Stop by the Palmer Visitor's center in downtown Palmer and learn about the history of this special place populated in the thirties by the Matanuska Colony Project under the direction of FDR. Visit the gardens and marvel at the gigantic flowers fed by the midnight sun. A Palmer bed and breakfast inn is the perfect place to make your base camp while exploring all that Palmer has to offer. Hatcher Pass is home to Independence Mine State Historical Park and is located a short drive from downtown Palmer. You can take the incredible drive over the Pass into Willow, Alaska or just go on up to the Mine and spend the day reliving the Gold Rush as you stroll among the restored Independence Mine buildings and read about the men and women who built their dreams on the mountain. You may even want to try your hand at panning for gold in one of the small streams at Hatcher Pass. Give yourself 2 or 3 days to explore what locals call the Mat-Su Valley, named for the 2 rivers that flow through its borders. The Matanuska River, home to white water rafting and the Susitna River, home to world class Salmon fishing. A short drive up the Parks highway will take you to Denali National Park and don't forget to stop in Talkeetna on your way up North and enjoy the local flavor of this unique Alaskan community, base camp to all who trek "the mountain" Denali. The people are laid back, proud and friendly here in "the Valley" so stay awhile at one of the many welcoming Palmer bed and breakfast inns where the hosts are happy to help you get the most out of your stay in Palmer, Alaska.