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2025 Alaska Homestead

Expo

Vendors, workshops, and speakers for homesteading subjects including raising and processing livestock, canning, cooking with whole foods, gardening, holistic living, herbalism, and so much more! 

April 4-6, 2025

Menard Sports Center, Wasilla, AK

THE SECOND ANNUAL ALASKA HOMESTEAD EXPO

Mark your calendars for April 4-6, 2025 because you do NOT want to miss this!

If you have any interest in learning traditional skills like raising and butchering livestock, food preservation, making and using natural fibers, living off-grid, feeding your family from your own garden or orchard, herbalism and natural living, or more - join us at the Alaska Homestead Expo.

If you want to dive deep into pig or chicken butchering and processing, we've got you covered! Back by popular demand, Andy from Hand Hewn Farm will be here to teach you how to use and process everything but the squeal, including salt curing, smoke curing, and dry curing. Go beyond ham and bacon to utilize and feed your family a full variety foods from your pig. Not only will they be talking about processing pigs but they will also go into detail about other livestock and even wild game. There's a TON to learn here! 

If you aren't interested in animal processing, no problem! We've got something for everyone!

We have more than 30 workshops for adults and there's a kids track (Kids ages 5-12) and a youth track (kids ages 12 and up) so the whole family can learn and have fun the entire weekend!

Tickets are $85/per person (earlybird sale through January 26) and $99 for regular price and kids tickets (limited number) are $25 if they plan to attend the kids/youth classes. 

Your ticket covers the entire expo so spend all three days there if you want to! Attend as many workshops as you want to. One ticket gives you admittance for the entire weekend. (Price excludes food truck and vendor purchases)

What will be happening at this Expo? I’m so glad you asked!

Sponsored by:

Common Ground Alaska
CGB Logo
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GENERAL SCHEDULE OF EVENTS:

FRIDAY APRIL 4

9 AM - 6 PM
Workshops, Animal Processing Courses, Food Trucks, Vendor Hall, and Demonstrations

12-1 PM
Lady Homesteaders of Alaska VIP Lunch (Free for all members of Lady Homesteaders of AK)

SUNDAY APRIL 6

10 AM - Noon
LIVE Bluegrass Gospel Music & Message from Joel Salatin

Noon - 2 pm
Joel Salatin: 
WEALTH WITHOUT MONEY
The number one deathbed confession is “I wish I’d had the courage to do what I really wanted to do.” What keeps us from doing what’s in our hearts, our dreams? 

2-4 pm
SQUARE DANCING LESSONS FOR THE WHOLE FAMILY

Learn to square dance as a family! The lessons are free and will end with a bit of time square dancing. This is such a fun way to end the weekend - learn a new skill as a family! 

2-4 pm
Joel Salatin:
BUILDING COMMUNITY THROUGH FARM CLUSTERS AND THE APPRENTICESHIP PROGRAM
Perhaps the most detrimental ideas embraced by farmers is “I want to do it myself” and “I don’t want my life complicated with people.” The better approach is collaborative food clusters, selling regionally available food but sharing customers, distribution, and infrastructure.

**NOTE: There is no vendor hall on Sunday - Any purchases will need to be made on Friday or Saturday. 

SATURDAY APRIL 5

9 AM - 6 PM
Workshops, Animal Processing Courses, Food Trucks, Vendor Hall, and Demonstrations

1-2:30
Ice Cream Social 

GENERAL INFORMATION

Animal Processing
Hand Hewn Farms is coming back up to teach folks how to process a pig from snout to tail including curing and preserving - but they are also going to talk about more than just processing a pig. They are also going to talk about processing wild game and livestock. This is a full two-day course. The cost is included with your ticket. 

Kidsteaders Program
The kidsteaders program is going to be amazing! With separate stations, the kids will move throughout the upstairs track and learn their own homestead skills. The kidsteader classes are for ages 4-11 and they must have a ticket to get into the program. There are only 200 tickets available. 

Youth Program
The youth program is also going to be super amazing. We're still lining up classes but once we have a schedule we will put that out to everyone. I do know Kelli Foreman is going to teach them to make goat milk lotion and we also have a business class scheduled for them. There is much more to come! This is for ages 12-18 and they also must have a ticket to participate. There are only 150 youth tickets available. 

WORKSHOP SPEAKERS

More To Come - Keep Watching!

Joel Salatin

Joel Salatin

  • Preaching for the Church Service
  • Wealth Without Money
  • Building Community Through Farm Clusters and the Apprenticeship Program

Sunday Only

Ana White

Ana White

  • You CAN Build!
Shawn & Beth Dougherty

Shawn & Beth Dougherty

  • The Why of Farming
  • Homestead Education
  • Gardening for Subsistence and Resilience
  • Feeding the farm from the farm, Growing Your Homestead, and The Farm Economy
Darryl Patton - The Southern Herbalist (and former Alaskan)

Darryl Patton - The Southern Herbalist (and former Alaskan)

  • Herbs for Pandemics; Past, Present, and Future
  • Medicinal Mushrooms
  • Special Herbal Formulas for Common Ailments
  • Modern and Folk Medicine - how Chemistry Validates Traditional Remedies
Holistic Hilda (Hilda Labrada Gore)

Holistic Hilda (Hilda Labrada Gore)

  • It Helps to Be Healthy to Homestead: Wisdom from the Past for Alaskans Today
  • Secrets for Strength and Resilience for Alaskan Homesteaders
David Stelzer of Azure Standard

David Stelzer of Azure Standard

  • Farming & Soil Health
  • Faith over Fear
Dr. Sina McCullough

Dr. Sina McCullough

  • Rewiring the Nervous System to Reverse Disease, Reduce Anxiety & Boost Your Energy
  • Unlock your Body's Natural Ability to Thrive
Jeff Mattocks of Fertrell Feed

Jeff Mattocks of Fertrell Feed

  • The Science of Making Your Own Animal Feed
  • How to use what Alaska Provides for a Truly Sustainable Farm
Sam Knapp - Local Author & Owner of Offbeet Farm

Sam Knapp - Local Author & Owner of Offbeet Farm

  • Longterm Food Storage & Root Cellars in Alaska
Kelly Foreman - Kodiak Farmer - The Last Small Farm

Kelly Foreman - Kodiak Farmer - The Last Small Farm

  • KEYNOTE: SATURDAY ICE CREAM SOCIAL - 
    The Realities of Farming In Alaska - Stories That Will Make You Think
Ellen VandeVisse - Good Earth Garden School

Ellen VandeVisse - Good Earth Garden School

  • Hands-On Lab! Make Your Own Organic Fertilizer (limit 20 students) She is teaching this class twice
Graham Oakes

Graham Oakes

  • Humane Animal Slaughtering - This class will be taught first thing Friday, prior to Hand Hewn Farms starting their processing demonstration.
Haylee Kurka

Haylee Kurka

  • Homestead Finances
Margaret Loew

Margaret Loew

  • Cooking with Whole Grains
Suzy Crosby

Suzy Crosby

  • Raising Dairy Goats in Alaska
  • Making Birch Syrup in your Instant Pot - Easy Peasy!

ice cream social 

Saturday afternoon is our ice cream social featuring LOCAL ice cream from Big Dipper Ice Cream and a keynote local farmer Kelli Foreman

First, we will enjoy a keynote speech by Kelli Foreman titled "The Realities of Farming in Alaska: Stories That Will Make You Think" When Kelli is done speaking, it's ice cream time! You'll have about 45 minutes to enjoy your treat and mingle with your new friends. 

*This event is part of your admission to the expo and is free for all paid attendees. 

Kelli Foreman

Kelli Foreman

The Last Small Farm

2024 FULL COURSE: 
ANIMAL PROCESSING

  • HAND HEWN FARM

    Andy and Doug from Hand Hewn Farm will be here to spend two full days teaching us all aspects of butchering and preparing pork from nose to tail including bacon, hams, charcuterie, and even how to use lesser known portions like head meat, cheeks, and more! 
    PLUS - they are going to also share tips for butchering wild game and other livestock. This comprehensive two-say class is included with the price of your admission. 

  • THE HUMANE ANIMAL SLAUGHTER

    To go along with the course being offered by Andy & Doug, local mobile slaughter business owner Graham Oakes is going to show how to slaughter your animal quickly and humanely. 

Each year we will have a featured skill that we dig deep and offer full comprehensive courses. This year our featured skill is animal processing specific to pigs and chickens. Thank you to Hand Hewn Farms and Polaris Poultry for taking the time to teach us this valuable craft that we can all use on our homesteads. 

  • THE HUMANE SLAUGHTER

    Graham Oakes, local mobile slaughter truck owner, is going to go through the steps of the humane slaughter. Here's the truth - no one looks forward to this part of farm life, right? But if we take time to learn the proper techniques, we can make it quick and humane for the animal. 

2025 FULL SCHEDULE COMING SOON!

Kidsteader and Youth Class Schedule & Descriptions Coming Soon!

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Attend as many workshops as you want and attend as many days as you’d like. Each ticket is for the full event so you can attend every day if you’d like to!

Ticket prices do not include vendor booth items or food from the food trucks. 

Convenient Location

Menard Sports Center
Wasilla, AK

1001 S Clapp St
Wasilla, AK 99654

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Vendors

We will have vendors for products and services that emphasize community building, sustainable living, and living the homestead lifestyle.

There will also be food trucks and coffee stands with food and drink for purchase so plan to stay all day!

Come visit our amazing vendors at the second annual Alaska Homestead Expo!

If you are interested in a vendor booth apply here!

  • Common Ground Bladesmith

  • Viking Iron Works

  • Wild Moose

  • Common Ground Alaska Farm

  • Freeze Dried Alaska

  • Wholy Living

NOTE: We are adding vendors regularly so keep checking back to see if your favorite homesteading business will be there! 

If you know someone who owns a business that would be a great fit, please be sure to share this with them! 

What are you waiting for?

Space is Limited!

Tickets are currently only $85 for the early bird sale for the entire weekend!

Time is running out to reserve your spot for the expo!

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