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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883
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Mount Spokane Ski Swap set for next weekend

Mt. Spokane Ski Patrol Ski Swap volunteer Kim Allen checks out downhill skis during a break in the setup, Friday, Oct. 26, 2018, at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center. The 54th annual event, featuring poles, boots, skis, clothes and boards, starts Saturday at 9 a.m. and continues Sunday (Dan Pelle/The Spokesman-Review)
From staff reports

From staff reports

The snow will be here soon, so it’s high time for skiers and snowboarders to ready their gear for the season.

Or to buy new gear.

The Mount Spokane Ski Patrol’s annual ski swap is set for next weekend, opening to shoppers on Saturday and next Sunday at the Spokane Fair & Expo Center.

The event is the largest winter gear sales event in the region. The organization said on Facebook that it expects to offer more than 25,000 items. There will be new and used gear, and just about everything a snow-lover might need – boots, skis, snowboards, clothing, accessories and more.

Equipment for downhill skiing and snowboarding will be available, as will gear for Nordic skiing.

This is the 59th year of the swap, according to the website, and it marks the kickoff to the winter season. Proceeds from the swap fund the Mount Spokane Ski Patrol, which was founded in 1938.

Local ski and snowboard shops will provide some of the items for sale at the swap, and experts will be on hand to help buyers find the right fit for them.

About 30% of the gear at the swap will come from individual sellers.

Those looking to sell their gear at the swap can register and drop off their gear from 3 to 8 p.m. on Friday. Sellers must return to the fairgrounds on Sunday from 2 to 4 p.m. to pick up their checks or unsold gear. The ski swap gets 20% of each sale.

The swap will be open to buyers from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and from 9 a.m. to noon on Sunday. Admission is $5 for adults; children who are 12 and younger get in free.

Chronic wasting disease sample collection ticks up over opening weekend

Washington wildlife officials got a good number of chronic wasting disease testing samples over the opening weekend of the state’s general deer season.

Staci Lehman, a Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife spokesperson, said in an email that WDFW staffers throughout the state’s eastern region collected 105 deer samples. That’s up from 95 samples on opening weekend in 2022.

Most of the samples came from District 3, which covers Asotin, Columbia, Garfield and Walla Walla counties. WDFW collected 65 samples from that area.

The samples, which are lymph nodes taken from a harvested deer, will be checked for chronic wasting disease, an always fatal condition affecting deer, moose and elk. The disease has been found in a few dozen states including Idaho and Montana, but has not been detected in Washington.

WDFW has tested around 1,100 animals for the disease over the past couple of years.

The agency offers free testing, and hunters can submit samples by appointment at a WDFW office or with the Inland Northwest Wildlife Council. Hunters can also submit on their own by dropping off an animal’s head at a self-serve kiosk or removing the lymph nodes and mailing them to WDFW. More information is available on WDFW’s chronic wasting disease surveillance web page. Hunters who do submit samples will be eligible for a special drawing for a multiseason deer tag.

Lehman said WDFW staff felt opening day was fairly slow, and that the weather could have been a factor.

She added that hunters should stop by check stations regardless of whether they’ve taken an animal.