ROCHELLE — Despite what they say, hay isn’t just for horses.

Creative people like it, too. Give ’em a few cans of paint and some props and they can turn a hay bale into Hei Hei (pronounced, “hay hay,” of course) the Rooster from Disney’s “Moana,” roosting on the side of the road.

The whimsically fowl fella was one of dozens of hay bale creations in Rochelle, where livestock’s lunch is transformed into an annual citywide show of community spirit each October, when the town becomes a hub of artistic activity.

Rochelle’s Haybale Trail featured hay bales designed by local businesses, schools, churches and community organizations. The trail runs mostly through town, with some bales just outside the city.

This year’s works featured animals, Halloween scenes, support for Rochelle High School Hubs sports teams, cartoon characters, food, and other well-rounded creations.

The idea for the agricultural art show started in 2016 when a former Rochelle resident built a Statue of Liberty from straw, City of Rochelle Director of Community Engagement Jenny Thompson said. Since then, it’s just kept on growing.

“We thought it would be fun for the entire community to join in and decorate hay bales, and it really took off from there,” Thompson said. “In the first year we hoped to have around 20 businesses and organizations decorate, and this year we have almost 60. Each year’s creations are better than the year before and it is so much fun to see what everyone comes up with.”

Schoenholz Farms in Paw Paw has supplied the hay for the event for the past five years. The City of Rochelle purchases the bales and drops them off at places that wish to participate during the fall harvest. They are returned to Schoenholz at the end of the month. The people who participate have to come up with their own art supplies.

Right now, the art show is just for fun, but city officials are looking at adding a contest component in the future, Thompson said.

“Visitors to Rochelle love to travel around town to see the different creations,” Thompson said. “We have people who come to Rochelle every fall just to see the bales. While they are here, they visit our restaurants and shops and we’re so thankful for that.”

According to the United States Department of Agriculture’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, in 2024, an estimated total of 445,000 acres were used for hay in Illinois (260,000 for alfalfa and 185,000 for other hay), producing approximately 1.475 million tons of hay (975,000 tons of alfalfa and 500,000 of other hay). Illinois’ average yield for alfalfa hay was 3.75 tons per acre. The average bale is between four and five feet round and weights between 600 and 1,500 pounds.

Sauk Valley Living took a trip on the trail and took photos of some of the bales (more pictures, from this year’s show as well as past years, can be found on the City of Rochelle’s Facebook page).

Who knows, maybe flipping through the photos will inspire you to tell yourself, “Hay — I could do that!”

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Think warm thoughts: As the weather got colder, hot cider became a craving. The Rochelle Area Community Foundation turned its bale flat and added padding that resembles a cup handle and steam. The bale was part of the 2025 Hay Bale Trail in Rochelle throughout October. (Cody Cutter)