The events include axe throwing, boom running, bucksawing, chainsaw carving, crosscut sawing, hot sawing, logrolling, obstacle pole racing, relay racing, speed climbing, tree climbing, tree topping, underhand chopping, and woodchopping.

Reviewers praised the show for being entertaining and for teaching about lumberjack history but criticized it for being corny and expensive.

Lumberjacks employed at the mill produced lumber for the Klondike Gold Rush, nearby canneries, and World War II airplanes.

[2] The show has a gift shop that Eric Moya of Travel Weekly said evokes a Cracker Barrel through its "appropriately rustic-Americana aesthetic".

[10][14] The Scheer family lived in Hayward, Wisconsin, where the Lumberjack World Championship is held every year.

[15] Founded by Rob Scheer in Ketchikan, Alaska, the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show was first performed in May 2000.

[16][17] The show is run by the Wisconsin-based Lumberjack Sports International, which has events shown on ABC, ESPN, the Outdoor Life Network, and TNN.

The company employed two groups who traveled in semi-trailer trucks equipped with tree trunks people could scale.

[20][21] Southeastern United States lumberjacks visited Ketchikan in the summers to vie for the title of "King of the Woods".

The Timber Carnival raises money for the Sheila June Scheer Memorial Scholarship, which helps several high school students based in Southeast Alaska.

[30] It features experienced Alaskan lumberjacks displaying a decent amount of theatricality while vying in assorted events including axe throwing, boom running, bucksawing, chainsaw carving, crosscut sawing, hot sawing, logrolling, obstacle pole racing, relay racing, speed climbing, tree climbing, tree topping, underhand chopping, and woodchopping.

[12] People shouting "YoHo", a lumberjack chant, and seated close to the front could receive a reward.

Moya continued that he was uncertain whether lumberjacks usually wore "sleeveless flannel", though there were no reports of discontent regarding the "bare, muscular, ax-wielding arms" visible to the audience.

[46] Fran Wenograd Golden and Gene Sloan of Frommer's said a lot of the character of Ketchikan they had enjoyed had disappeared owing to tourist attractions including the Great Alaskan Lumberjack Show.

[47] Len Testa and his coauthors praised the show, writing, "The lumberjacks impress with their feats of skill, and anyone who appreciates male eye candy will be delighted".

[7] Moon Publications travel writer Lisa Maloney said that although the show was "corny", it was "a true competition that's a ton of fun to watch".

[23] The travel writer Carol Fowler said the show gives likely gives "historical insights" despite being "pure, corny entertainment" that viewers discuss afterwards during dinner.

[38] DK writers Deanna Swaney and Eric Amrine found that there was eager audience participation because of how enthralling the show was.

[9] Insight Guides called the show "light-hearted and engaging", while Fodor's found it "hackneyed but always popular".