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Visitors from across the state will congregate this weekend in central Montana as the 21st annual "What The Hay" event begins Sunday.

The most prominent feature of the festival is the Montana Bale Trail - a 21-mile loop that runs from Hobson through Utica to Windham, with dozens of decorative hay sculptures dotting the roadside.1

There are other features of the What The Hay event, however, including the Hobson book sale and the Utica Day Fair.

What The Hay started between two neighbors, and has grown to be one of the top tourist attractions in the state, and even though the event is light-hearted, there is some good-natured rivalry between the locals.

Local rancher Clint Carr noted, "Everybody gets kind of quiet this time of the year and you don't want to let any secrets out. You get a lot of people here from all over and throughout the year people mention they go to 'What The Hay' all the time and most of them are hooked. They want to come back and see what's going to happen the next year, what crazy ideas are they going to come up with next year."

Visit the MontanaBaleTrail website to learn more, and when you visit the Montana Bale Trail, be sure to look for KRTV's entry!

Here is a promotional video for the event that was created by the Montana Film Office, featuring the Travelocity "Roaming Gnome."

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