Inland Northwest – Our area has a great tradition of small-town festivals and parades, rodeos and car shows. Events that hold a small community together and bring in visitors with money to spend for a day or two.
Last year, COVID canceled all the festivals, and some aren’t coming back until next year, but in Tekoa the group behind Tekoa’s Slippery Gulch Days decided to go ahead with the parade and festival on June 18, 19 and 20th.
“We went back and forth for months, following COVID restrictions that changed all the time,” said Melinda Wilkins, who’s on the board of Slippery Gulch Days. “A couple of weeks ago we decided to just go ahead and do something.”
Slippery Gulch Days has been celebrated every year for more than 90 years and it’s always on third weekend of June. The parade is on June 19 at 11 a.m.
“We have extended the distance of the parade, so people don’t gather too closely together,” Wilkins said. “We are following all the COVID guidelines and most of our activities are outdoors.”
A car show, volleyball and softball tournaments, and fireworks on Saturday evening makes for a full day.
“We will also have kids’ games at the lower park. There will be fun things for everyone to do,” Wilkins said, adding that she believes C & D’s Tekoa Bar & Grill will be open, along with Eclair’s Coffee and Milk N Honey Cakery. “We have a great group of people behind Slippery Gulch Days. Everyone just pulls together.”
Also happening on June 19 (and again on August 28) are the Webb’s Slough Boat Races in St. John.
In Coeur d’Alene, the annual classic car show and cruise Car d’Lane is on June 18-19 with lots of fun for car lovers of all ages. The classic car cruise is the largest of its kind in Idaho and it takes place on June 18 from 6-9 p.m. The Red Hot Mamas open the cruise at 5 p.m.
On June 12, Fairfield celebrates Flag Day with vendors, a parade and a car show and lots of family fun.
It is impossible to mention all these great community events, but it is so nice to see many of them come back this summer – I sure missed them last year.
So go ahead and look up your favorite small-town celebration or rodeo, you may be pleasantly surprised to discover that yes, it’s happening again this year.
We love road trips here at Local Treasures with Pia – please let us know if you have a good destination, big or small, in the Inland Northwest and we will check it out.
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