Get ready for the return of the National Sheepdog Finals to Carbondale, CO. Tuesday, September 26th to Sunday, October 1st, 2023, at the Strang Ranch, located north of Carbondale on Missouri Heights at 393 County Road 102. This will be the 5th year that Strang Ranch has hosted the hugely popular event since 2011. Hundreds of families enjoy the outdoors, competition, dogs, and food. Whether you’re an avid dog handler, a dog lover, secretly rooting for the sheep, or simply looking for some wonderful outdoor fun, this week of sheepdog trials has it all. The very best dog handlers in North America will compete for the title of National Sheepdog Champion and a purse of over $45,000. Watch the sheep dogs and their skilled handlers work together to best the notoriously difficult western Range Sheep.

Along with the thrilling sheep dog competition, there will also be food and a craft fair, educational demonstrations and the very popular lamb cook off. Four top chefs from the valley will be providing cooking demonstrations and tastings over the weekend: Chris Lanter of Cache Cache and Home Team BBQ, Jake Burkholer of Hominy Southern Kitchen, Mark Hardin of Field 2 Fork Kitchen, and Matt Kennedy of Foraged and Farmed. In vendor row you will find fine arts and crafts by local artisans, including photography, paintings, jewelry, metal and leather work, as well as National Finals official hats, hoodies, and t-shirts onsite.

This event is a community festival and involves hundreds of volunteers. It also benefits the local economy with visitors staying in hotels, dining and shopping in the Roaring Fork Valley. The mission of the non-profit host organization, National Finals Sheepdog Trials, is to protect rural agriculture, encourage sustainable food production, and teach people about our great western heritage. Tickets available at the gate. Proceeds from the daily ticket price of $20 per person, or $40 per carload of 3 or more, benefit CARE -- Colorado Animal Rescue. There will also be a Beer Garden benefiting the Roaring Fork Hounds Pony Club. So plan ahead and mark your calendars for September 27th to October 1st, and join the many people returning to the Strang Ranch for a week of open air and big meadows, the nation’s top sheepdogs and handlers, great food and local life on one of Colorado’s most active and beautiful ranches. Please bring your sun screen, lawn chairs (or sit in the bleachers), and leave your dogs at home! Absolutely NO outside dogs will be allowed to enter the ranch. This is a zero waste event, so please bring your water bottle to fill at the ranch.

For more information on volunteering or sponsoring the event, please visit https://www.carbondalesheepdogfinals.com/