Valleyfest, Trailfest offer fun in many forms

Spokane Valley’s largest yearly festival and parade is this weekend.

About 100 floats, bands and other groups are expected to march in the Valleyfest parade down Sprague at 7 tonight, organizers say. The street will be closed for the event, which starts at City Hall, 11707 E. Sprague Ave., and goes to University Avenue.

At dusk there will be a free outdoor showing of the movie “School of Rock,” at Mirabeau Point Park, where the rest of the Valleyfest events will take place. There also will be a juggler in the park tonight at 8.

Saturday morning, the CenterPlace community center in the park will hold a pancake breakfast from 8 to 11 a.m. The cost is $5 for adults and $4 for children. The building also will house an arts and crafts show from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., which continues Sunday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Also at CenterPlace Saturday, the Hillyard Belles will perform from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., and from 1 to 3 p.m. there will be a dance for seniors.

There will be a classic car show from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the parking lot.

In the park, children 15 and younger can fish for free at the Mirabeau Springs waterfall.

The logging festival – a first for Valleyfest – will take place from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The park will also feature food vendors and free activities for kids until 8 p.m. At dusk there will be an outdoor showing of “The Sandlot.”

Bands will perform all day Saturday and two stages will feature 15 musical groups between 10 a.m. and 6:15 p.m.

For the athletically inclined, a fun run and Trailfest will take place on the Centennial Trail the same weekend as Valleyfest.

At 9 a.m. Saturday, runners and walkers are encouraged to dress and act silly in the annual Valleyfest Fun Run. The three-mile event starts at CenterPlace and benefits the Spokane Valley Food Bank. Participants are asked to bring food or cash donations.

Trailfest, sponsored by Friends of the Centennial Trail, is Sunday from 9:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Mirabeau Point Park. Events include a 21-mile or nine-mile cycling scavenger hunt, a six-mile inline skate and a 5k run and walk. The event also features bike races for kids 11 and younger starting at noon.

Registration for Trailfest is available on-site, and helmets are required for wheeled events.