I wanted to see the Pa. Farm Show’s 1,000-pound butter sculpture for years. It didn’t disappoint.

I drove hours through Saturday’s snowstorm to realize my long-held dreams of viewing a half-ton of butter sculpted into a work of art.

I regret nothing.

I can’t remember when I first fell in love with the Pennsylvania Farm Show’s butter sculpture, but for a long time, I was starry-eyed over the idea of it. For more than two decades as an Inquirer reporter, a press release heralding the 1,000-ton wonder in whatever form it took that year would land in my inbox every January, and I would alert friends and family via social media that it was the “best press release day of the year.”

I’m not exactly sure what fascinated me so: the massive scale? The unusual medium? The sheer novelty for a Philadelphian raised far from farms?

» READ MORE: Conshohocken sculptors find worldwide fame turning 1,000 pounds of butter into art

I cover education, not agriculture, so it wasn’t a natural fit for a story. And though I had long wanted to trek to see the thing in my free time, life always intruded, and I never made it.

But the stars aligned, and a butter pilgrimage fit into my schedule. It was a near-miss — a winter storm was approaching Central Pennsylvania, and my 10-year-old wasn’t feeling well. My husband insisted he had the sick bay under control, though, and my friend, Inquirer producer and dance critic Ellen Dunkel, was game to go with me, despite the iffy weather.

I’ll be honest: I was nervous that after years of hype, the real thing wouldn’t live up to my expectations.

On the way in, I explained my excitement to multiple cheerful Farm Show vendors and employees, all of whom reacted with genuine enthusiasm. Ms. Agriculture USA, one of several young women wearing tiaras and sashes announcing their royal titles, gave me excellent directions through the vast Farm Show complex.

And then, there it was, a shining buttery beacon under fluorescent lights: “A Table for All: Pennsylvania Dairy Connects Communities.” The object of my affection sat enclosed in a climate-controlled glass room and was flanked by American and Pennsylvania flags.

It was majestic. It was massive, with a crowd of dozens gathered around, snapping selfies and marveling at the art carved by Conshohocken sculptors Jim Victor and Marie Pelton, responsible for 22 of the Pennsylvania butter beauties displayed since the mid-1995.

I was so happy. Some of my fellow sculpture viewers looked delighted, others bemused, taking in the details — the smiles on the faces of the buttery family seated around a table, the cabbages gleaming yellow in a crate, the butter pig and butter cow positioned in front of the butter table laden with all kinds of butter food, including a stick of butter. (Very meta.)

I asked the Nuskey family, of Langhorne, what about the sculpture captured their attention. Saturday wasn’t their first Farm Show visit, and the butter sculpture is a perpetual highlight.

“It’s 1,000 pounds of butter, man,” said Mike Nuskey, 58.

“Who came up with this?” wondered Faith Nuskey, 16. “‘Hey, let’s make a sculpture. Out of butter.’” (Actually, they date back to the medieval times, Faith.)

Nate Nuskey, 13, proclaimed the sculpture “good. Solid eight out of 10.”

Nate’s a tough grader; Ellen and I agreed it was a 10 out of 10.

Still, the sculpture is apparently not for everyone. Something about the texture of butter creeps my sister out so much it’s a family joke.

Amy declined to join Ellen and me on our butter pilgrimage, and sent barfing emojis when I texted her a photo.

Nevertheless: the Farm Show was a smashing success, a must-see, and the butter sculpture the unqualified highlight. There was something wholesome and satisfying about a work of art fashioned from 1,000 pounds of butter, a paen to the hard work of the people who power an industry that feeds us.

We also loved seeing horses and alpacas, gaping at huge tractors, and eyeing prizewinning mushrooms, potatoes, apples, and other products of Pennsylvania. And the food!

Farm Show veterans rhapsodized about the milkshakes. Ellen loved her giant baked potato and I had apple cider doughnuts I’m still dreaming of. We saw, but did not have large enough stomachs to consume, goat barbecue, pierogies, deep-fried cheese cubes, savory wild portabella mushroom jerky, berry-battered Oreos, and more.

We easily could have spent all day at the Farm Show, but heavy snow in Harrisburg made us cut our trip short after four hours; we wanted to get back before conditions got too treacherous. No doubt, though — we’ll be back in 2025. I’m bringing my family, too, and we’ll make a beeline straight for the butter sculpture.

The 1,000-pound 2024 Pennsylvania Farm Show sculpture was created by Conshohocken artists Jim Victor and Marie Pelton from butter donated by Land O’Lakes in Cumberland County. It will eventually be recycled, sent to Juniata County-based Reinford Farms, where it will be turned into renewable energy in a methane digester.

The 2024 theme, “A Table for All: Pennsylvania Dairy Connects Communities,” shows “urban and rural Pennsylvanians connecting around a meal of delicious local food against a backdrop of a cityscape and farm skyline,” according to the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

The 2024 Pennsylvania Farm Show runs through Saturday at the Pennsylvania Farm Show Complex and Expo Center in Harrisburg. Admission is free; it costs $15 per vehicle to park.