Plenty to do in outdoors this weekend

There’s no shortage of ways for outdoors fanatics to be active this week. For example:

Free-fishing day, an annual event, is set for Saturday in Idaho, and Saturday and Sunday in Washington. No fishing license is needed to wet a line, whether you’re a local or an out-of-stater.

Ten fishing clinics for beginners have been scheduled Saturday in the Panhandle. The earliest runs 7-11 a.m. at Ponderosa Springs Golf Course in Coeur d’Alene. Others run 9 a.m.-noon at City Park Pond in Post Falls, Lucky Friday Pond at Mullan, Round Lake State Park south of Sandpoint, Clark Fork Lodge Pond, Steamboat Pond on the Coeur d’Alene River near Enaville, Calder Pond at Calder, Rathdrum City Park near Rathdrum, and Snow Creek Pond south of Bonners Ferry.

The Priest Lake Golf Course clinic will be 10 a.m.-noon.

Hike to Spar Lake with the Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness on Saturday to enjoy the spring wildflowers and perhaps cast for the some of the lake’s mountain trout. The hike will be led by botanist Mike Arvidson and is co-sponsored by the Native Plant Society. Contact: Joyce Pence (208) 266-1107 or e-mail konjoy@webtv.net.

Spokane RiverFest features a dozen free ways to give or receive from the great outdoors, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m., based at High Bridge Park near the confluence of Hangman Creek and the Spokane River.

Enjoy a fly-fishing demonstration, scale a climbing wall, grab a partner and try out one of the tandem bicycles from the Spokane Parks and Recreation Department or roll up your sleeves for a couple of hours and join the fat-tire trail maintenance group or the weed-pulling volunteers.

Kids have a long list of hands-on science-based activities to choose from throughout the day.

Then everyone can relax starting at 2 p.m. to Indian drumming and live music by Ruby Dee and the Snakehandlers.

Camp at Elk Creek, the newest campground on the Clearwater National Forest. The camp, a mile east of the town of Elk River, has 24 summer sites and 10 in winter, all with full hookups.

Details: Potlatch Ranger Station (208) 875-1131. To reserve a site, call (877) 444-6777 or go online to www.reserveusa.com.

Cruise the St. Joe on a boat and enjoy an ongoing discussion of the area’s wildlife with Idaho Fish and Game Department biologist Carrie Hugo. The Heyburn State Park Cruises boat begins boarding at 5:30 p.m. Saturday for a cruise along the Shadowy St. Joe River from 6-8 p.m. Cost is $10 for adults, $5 for kids ages 6-15 and free for kids 5 and younger. Reservations required: (208) 686-4030.

If you’re indoors

Get active taking a stand on some important local issues by writing a letter on an important outdoor issue.

For example:

Washington State Parks is planning to liquidate 50-100 acres of undeveloped land along the Spokane River in Spokane Valley. The land would be a windfall for developers, but it’s irreplaceable for future generations to have open spaces and access to the river.

A public hearing was held in April and citizens let parks staff know that the land should be kept public, whether managed by the state or local governments.

Washington Parks and Recreation Commission will take up the sale proposal at a June 22 meeting in Spokane Valley.

Comments can be e-mailed to toni@parks.wa.gov, or mailed to Toni Matthews, P.O. Box 42650, Olympia, WA 98502-4650.

Also comment to Spokane Valley Mayor Diana Wilhite, e-mail dwilhite@spokanevalley.org.

“ South Hill Bluff trails, prized by walkers, runners and mountain bikers, are constantly being squeezed, most recently by a proposed development that would build 80-100 condominium units below the steep slope near 57th Avenue and Hatch Road.

Recreationists must wrestle with several issues here.

“The land is private, and the owner has a right to develop if permit requirements are met.

“The edge of the 23-acre parcel is bordered by a trail that’s been used for recreation for many years. Does that mean trail users have established a right to access? Maybe, maybe not.

“This is a good example of the need for preserving important open space and recreational land we take for granted within the city and county before development begins.

(If you’re not a big supporter of the Conservation Futures program, get with it.)

Meanwhile, city officials must be reminded that the proposed development between Blackwood and Quail Ridge would raise havoc with an already congested area at 57th and Hatch. After seeing what upslope excavating on erodable soils did to the condos at Schweitzer, the sandy slope on the bluff is clearly a poor place for another road.

But good sense isn’t always a major factor in development. The land was purchased for $40,000 in 1997 and sold to a developer in 2004 for $405,000. The public had a chance to buy that land at a bargain. But now that the developer has so much invested, the options are considerably reduced.

Send comments to: David Compton, Spokane Planning Department, 808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd., Spokane, WA 99201.