Becky Kramer

Tugboats are one of Lake Coeur d'Alene's most enduring icons. For decades, the trim green-and-white boats have corralled logs from the timber-rich St. Joe region, and delivered them to local mills in a marine version of a cattle drive. But in a sign of changing times, Foss Maritime's 12-tug fleet is being purchased by a developer.

SANDPOINT – More than 20 years ago, a pilot flying grain to starving refugees in the West African nation of Mali started dreaming about his ideal airplane. The single-engine plane would be versatile enough to haul people or heavy cargo loads. It would land on short, grass runways. It would operate on jet fuel, not expensive aviation gas.

All pre-planned notions of a Power Ranger Halloween costume fled from Maria Alderman's mind last week when she spied a saucy little officer's hat at a Spokane costume shop. Oh, the possibilities!

POST FALLS — John Hatcher likes to show off how fast his Dodge accelerates. His diesel truck glides from zero to 70 mph with an ease his friends envy. Even when he's pulling an 18-foot trailer loaded down with electrical equipment, the Rathdrum contractor says he can zip up hills without losing power and accelerate quickly enough to merge smoothly onto the freeway.

Looking for work in Kootenai County? Your task is getting easier. Employers posted a record 600 job openings at the Idaho Commerce and Labor Department office in Coeur d'Alene in September.

Every morning around 7 o'clock, the windows start to rattle at Vaagen Brothers Lumber Co. When Duane Vaagen looks out, he sees a string of railcars rushing by. Each car is piled high with Canadian lumber. It's a disconcerting sight for Vaagen, president of a family-owned sawmill in Colville. "They're just kind of in our face," he said.

Consumers who rely on Friday's deposit to cover Wednesday's rent check are losing their grace period. Beginning Oct. 28, new federal regulations will allow more banks to send checks electronically, reducing "float time" — the lag between when checks are deposited, and when the money is subtracted from the check-writer's account.

The Silver Strand Mine – reportedly discovered by a logger with a pendulum in the 1960s – is about to get a new lease on life from modern prospectors. New Jersey Mining Co. plans to reopen the small silver mine on the Coeur d'Alene River Ranger District as early as next year. The company's chief goal is to find out what lies below a 200-foot drift driven by earlier miners.

PONDERAY, Idaho – Farmers sink years into growing choice coffee beans. Roasters get approximately 15 minutes to execute their craft. Whether the bean is an evenly roasted specimen, full of flavor, or a half-charred, half-green reject, depends on the skill of the coffee roaster – and the machine itself, of course.

A federal land swap benefiting an Alaska gold mine proposed by Coeur d'Alene Mines Corp. created a fracas last week at the nation's capital. Senate Democrats walked out of an Energy Committee hearing to keep the Cape Fox Land Exchange from coming to a vote. While environmentalists hailed the move, the bill's sponsor – Alaska Sen. Lisa Murkowski – was livid.

Sandpoint's dreams of commercial air service were dashed last week, when McCall Aviation announced it would cease flights to Boise and Seattle's Boeing Field on Oct. 15. The fledgling air service was barely three months old.

ST. MARIES – Cowgirl Pinto Annie stepped into the fray with steely resolve. The day before, self-righteous town folk had run all the prostitutes out of Dodge. Now, the girls were back, claiming vengeance. The entire saloon was in an uproar, and the fighting spilled onto the street.

Bill Percival exhibited the tell-tale signs of a tourist as he strolled through downtown Coeur d'Alene last week — a Nikon camera bumping against his chest and a shopping bag clutched under his arm. The 46-year-old architect from North Carolina was midway into a 19-day jaunt around the West. He spent six months researching the trip, including places to visit in the Inland Northwest. Historic homes by Spokane architect Kirtland Cutter were on his list. So were other local icons.