FRYEBURG – Most all of the 3,000-plus camping sites at the Fryeburg Fair will be taken by the time the fair opens Sunday.

And those without reservations will be out of luck.

For the first time, reservations are being required of all campers. The reason: The camping area had to be reconfigured to make room for larger campers with slide-out compartments.

“It’s driving us up the wall,” said camping superintendent Glenn Chute of the large and lavish campers and motor homes of today. “They’re getting really carried away.”

Chute said Thursday that a 43-foot long camper with five slide-out compartments arrived this week, taking up several camping spaces.

Dozens of sites have been lost in the redesign to make room for the larger campers. The back corner of the parking lot used to be allowed for overflow camping without hookups. But that area of the parking lot was converted over the past year to camping.

“There is no more overflow,” Chute said. “You must have a reservation in order to get a site.”

He added that there still are a few sites available, “but they’re going fast.”

Camping throughout the eight-day fair is an annual ritual for many people, who return year after year. Chute, who has been the camping superintendent for the past 14 years, always takes reservations the last day of the fair.

“Before I went home on the last day last year I had 1,000 reservations,” he said.

The cost is $20 a day for a normal-size camper, and $25 for the larger sizes. For many annual campers, coming from far-flung places, it’s the one time of the year they get to see each other, he said.

“Every day is different here. There’s something going on all the time,” he said.

More information on camping may be obtained by calling 935-2912. Fair information may be obtained by calling 935-3268 or visiting fryeburgfair.com on the Internet.