Category Archives: Soon

Events, entertainment, fun stuff scheduled pretty soon.

Day Trips, Events, Places to See, Soon, To Dos

Spring Canyon offers activities

canoe-tourIMG_4955

 

Spring Canyon campground is beautiful campground near Grand Coulee in the Lake Roosevelt National Recreation Area.

Several activities are planned by park staff in the near future. Here’s the schedule:

 

What: Spring Canyon Ranger-Conducted Activities

Hands-on activities, Junior Ranger Activities, brochures and park information!

Where: Spring Canyon Exploration Center

Open 1:30-3:30 Saturday and Sunday

All Activities meet in the Spring Canyon Exploration Center unless otherwise noted.

 

Saturday July 12, 2014

Sunday   July 13, 2014

Sunday   July 20, 2014

4:30 PMGuided Bird Walk. 

Join Ranger Deborah on a walk through the campground area and Bunchgrass Nature Trail of Spring Canyon to discover and experience the area’s birds. We will be walking about a mile while observing the birds. We will also be talking about why birds are so important. Please meet at the Bunchgrass Nature Trailhead. 45-60 minutes.

  • Please bring a bottle of water and apply sunscreen.
  • This is a very active bee and wasp area. Please no bare feet and have epinephrine if highly allergic.

 

Saturday July 19, 2014

6:00 PM Crescent Bay Canoe Trip

Join Ranger Deborah for a free canoe trip exploring the wonders of Crescent Bay Lake. We

supply the canoes, paddles, life jackets and instruction. Beginners are welcome but an adult must

accompany children under 16.

  • The trip is limited to 17-19 people, so reservations are strongly encouraged. Please make your reservations in person at the Spring Canyon Exploration Center on Saturday July 19, 2014 between 1:30-3:30.
  • You must have your own transportation for the 10 minute drive to Crescent Bay Lake.
  • Bring water.
  • Approximately 2 ½ hours, including drive time. 
Events, Soon

July 4th celebration plans inside

It may not be a patriotic duty, but it certainly is a patriotic privilege to attend the Festival of America this Friday and Saturday, July 4-5, 2014, at the park below the Visitor Center.
For the complete schedule, see The Star’s Festival of America special section below. Or pick one up at any store or the Chamber of Commerce’s booth in the park.
There’s a little bit of everything for everyone and a whole lot of fun for the lot, in the two-day celebration.
The festival offers free music, food, a craft fair, a new laser light show and on Friday night, fireworks over Grand Coulee Dam.
The craft and food fair kicks off each day from 11 a.m. and continues to 9:45 p.m.
Free, live music on both days starting at 5 p.m. and going until 9:30 p.m.
Fireworks will light up the sky over Grand Coulee Dam at 10:30 on July 4.

Events, Soon, To Dos

Magic and fun festival coming up for kids

Kid-powered boat
Kids power a peddle boat during the 2013 Koulee Kids Fest in the Grand Coulee Dam Area.

The upcoming weekend’s Koulee Kids Fest offers a passport for fun that will keep parents and kids entertained for hours, plus offer a chance to win some really great prizes.

Catching a fish at Kids Fest
Catching a fish is pretty much a guarantee at the fish pond provided by the Colville Tribal Fish and Wildlife Department.

 

To participate this Saturday, June 14, kids pick up passports at the Grand Coulee Dam Visitor Center, Saturday Market or Coulee Hardware. All the information will be provided when they pick up their passport.

Old car show is fun
Tons of fun at the Coulee Cruizers’ car show.

Kids and their parents take part in at least six featured events and show up at the Grand Gallery Theatre at 3 p.m. for the drawing for a Kindle Fire, an iPod and a lot more. Winners must be present and 12 or under to win.

And they can stay for a free magic show, starring Dick Frost, a 45-minute event billed to fascinate young and old alike.

At last count, venues for passport entries included:

• catching a fish at the huge tribal tank next to the museum;

• riding a paddle boat at Coulee Playland;

• stopping by the Coulee Cruizers’ Car Show and Shine event at North Dam Park to vote on your favorite car;

• buying a burger or hot dog at the Lions Club BBQ at North Dam Park;

• visiting the Visitor Center at Grand Coulee Dam, finding “Rosie” and coloring your favorite quilt blocks;

• playing disc golf at North Dam Park;

• geocache fun at Funzee’s in Grand Coulee;

• creating chalk art at the Skate Park;

• checking out the inside of a fire truck;

• getting free ice cream from the Coulee Creamery at North Dam Park between noon and 3 pm;

• slingshoting a stuffed pig at the Tropical Pig in Electric City;

• stopping by Saturday Market for a free cookie; and

• playing a round of mini-golf at Sunbanks Lake Resort in Electric City.

Here’s a link to a map of events

For more on the Koulee Kids Fest, see the Grand Coulee Dam Area Chamber of Commerce’s website.

Events, Soon, Uncategorized

Lasers, bulls, wild horses and the best Memorial Day service in the state

There’s so much happening in the Grand Coulee Dam Area this Memorial Day weekend, it’s hard to know where to start.

Isle of Flags

The Isle of Flags honors veterans on Memorial Day.
The Isle of Flags honors veterans on Memorial Day.

But rightfully, that has to be an annual service called the Isle of Flags. It’s a tribute to local veterans who’ve passed on, but anybody from anywhere would find this simple, 40-minute ceremony overlooking Lake Roosevelt to be inspiring. More than 500 U.S. flags will fly in tribute at Spring Canyon Cemetery, along with those about to be dedicated.

The Isle of Flags ceremony starts at 11 a.m. Monday.

Cleatis Lacy Memorial Bull Riding and Wild Horse Race

Saturday, May 24 at 4 p.m. at the site of the best rodeo in the state, cheers will echo off the the coulee wall as cowboys take on the toughest 8 seconds in all of sports, riding bulls who know how to throw them like rag dolls. This event will also feature a wild horse race in which teams of three try to harness, saddle and ride through barrels horse so spirited they refuse to be “broke” in the old cowboy sense of the word. Admission is $10, or $8 for students. Kids under 10 get in free. And if you don’t have your kids with you, feel free to watch from the Ridge Riders’ whiskey and beer garden.

A bullrider holds on during the 2012 Cleatis Lacey Bullarama in Grand Coulee.
A bullrider holds on during the 2012 Cleatis Lacey Bullarama in Grand Coulee.

Largest laser show in North America debuts Saturday at 10 p.m.

On Saturday night at 10 p.m., the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation will debut its new laser light show on the face of Grand Coulee Dam. At more than a mile wide and as high as the Washington Monument, it’s the largest laser light show in North America. And it’s free.

This new show features all-new content on the history of the Columbia River, its people, the dam and its effects on the region and nation. The production and equipment to show it cost $1.6 million and replaces the original show that ran for 25 years.

I’ve seen some preview clips on the Internet, but I’m not going to post them here. Those do the show a disservice, because you cannot get the same effect reducing a mile-wide spectacle to a tiny screen. Just come and see it. The best place to watch it is at the Visitor Center at the dam or in the park just below the VC. But below is photo of people watching the show that ran for 25 years.

Visitors watch the Laser Light Show on the face of Grand Coulee Dam.
Visitors watch the old Laser Light Show on the face of Grand Coulee Dam.

 

Astounding Facts, Events, Soon, To Dos

Welcome Athletes!

Saturday, the area is treated to the display of some of the most amazing, determined seekers of perfection ever, triathletes competing in the three-pronged race that makes good use of hundreds of local miles and awesome scenery.

The Grand Columbian Triathlon’s 10th race in the coulee will bring up to a couple hundred athletes to the swim-bike-run events.

It all starts on Friday night with a spaghetti feed put on by the Rotary Club at the Church of the Nazarene from 4 to 7:30. But that’s the easy part.

The real competition starts at Spring Canyon early Saturday morning. Check out the details inside our special section below.