Sheri's Summer Checklist

by Sheri Boggs


Relive 1977 -- Who could forget the Summer of '77? For me, it was the summer of my best friend moving away and the summer of playing Barbies in the driveway until the sun went down. It was the summer I first read a Lloyd Alexander book, the summer I took the Mish-a-Nock to Camp Neewahlu and the summer I learned to swim (if you could call it that) in the deep end. It was the summer of Laverne & amp; Shirley, King Tut, Star Wars and, most important, Fleetwood Mac.


Fleetwood Mac is coming to the Spokane Arena on Saturday, July 3, at 8 pm. It's too bad the ticket prices ($60-$96) will probably keep me from seeing them because they were the formative band of my youth. Rumors was the album that taught me that rock stars have personal lives -- messy, tangled, tumultuous personal lives that can be written about and sung with the guy you cheated on standing right there playing bass guitar! Entire slumber parties revolved around giggling at Mick Fleetwood's dangling "castanets" on the album cover, while most of us burrowed into our sleeping bags to dream of floating around in black chiffon and having Stevie Nicks' long tousle of honey-colored hair. For that matter, I'm pretty sure my adult Colin Firth fixation has much to do with Lindsey Buckingham, who bears no small resemblance to Pride & amp; Prejudice's Mr. Darcy.


Christine McVie has opted out of this summer's tour as well as their most recent album, but the rest of the core lineup will be there: John McVie, Mick Fleetwood, Stevie Nicks and Lindsey Buckingham.





Eat Fresh -- Moscow rocks. Not only is their downtown a pedestrian priority area with three-hour free street parking, they also have one of the best damn farmers' markets in the entire Northwest. Every Saturday from 8 to noon, they take over Friendship Square and three entire parking lots to bring you your fill of fresh flowers, bedding plants, homegrown veggies, handmade pottery and even mouthwatering grilled roast.


If you're looking for something closer to home, the Spokane Farmers' Market (located in the church parking lot on Second between Division and Browne) is a great place to pick up fresh bread, huckleberries, those awesome "spud nuts" and more. On June 19, they go to being open on Wednesdays as well as Saturdays from 8 am-1 pm. The Spokane Marketplace has spacious new permanent digs north of Riverfront Park on Washington, and they're one of the best places to load up on handmade soap, candles and even handmade jewelry in addition to corn and tomatoes. They're open Wednesday from 9 am-4 pm, and from 9 am-5:30 pm on Fridays and Saturdays year round. Other markets in the area include Liberty Lake (1421 N. Meadowood Lane in Liberty Lake; hours are Saturdays, 9 am-1 pm), Moran Prairie (corner of Regal and Thurston; Sundays from 10:30 am-2:30 pm) and Kootenai County (Hwy. 95 and Prairie Ave.; Saturdays from 8 am-1 pm and Wednesdays from 4:30-6:30 pm).





Check Out the Woodies -- Another thing that happened in the Summer of '77 was that I briefly got to drive a gleaming mahogany twin-engine vintage Kris Kraft on Lake Pend Oreille. The grownups were all pooled in the stern, drinking screwdrivers and trolling for blueback, and the late afternoon sun glimmered on the highly polished brass rails of the boat. Somehow another 10-year-old girl and I were allowed to steer. I don't remember exactly what we did, but I do remember drinks flying, bad words shouted and being grounded in the cabin for 10 minutes for nearly drowning the crew.


Wooden boats are some of the most beautiful things you'll see on a lake in the Inland Northwest -- and some of the most rare. It took us 80 gallons of gas to motor from Bayview to Hope, which means wooden boats -- at least the motorized ones -- aren't for the financially challenged.


This August 20-22, you can see all the wooden boats you want when the Coeur d'Alene Resort hosts its annual Wooden Boat Festival on the boardwalk. Everything from vintage old cabin cruisers to wooden sailboats will be tied to the boardwalk or available for chartered rides. Some rare boats -- maybe even a vintage Kris Kraft -- make an appearance every year. Call (877) 782-9232.





Find a Star Garnet -- You don't go to the Emerald Creek Garnet Area with hopes of finding a large, glittering crystal of the aubergine persuasion, nor do you go there counting on leaving with anything you could set into a ring or a pair of earrings. Nope. The Emerald Creek Garnet Area is all about getting dirty. Basically, you're dumping wet gravel into a screened box and shaking all the mud and tiny rocks out. While Idaho and India are the only two places in the world where 12-sided star garnets are found, the quality of the Emerald Creek site has become depleted in recent years. These days, it's more fun to just go and muck around in the creek and maybe take away a few coffee cans of garnet gravel. (It looks cool in goldfish bowls and on top of houseplant soil.) The state of Idaho is currently researching additional sites; in the meantime, the Emerald Creek digging area is open through Labor Day. Hours are from 9 am-5 pm on Fridays through Tuesdays (they're closed Wednesdays and Thursdays). Permits are required and can be purchased ($10; $5, kids 14 and under) at the A-frame cabin onsite. For more information, call the St. Joe Ranger Station at (208) 245-2531.





Publication date: 06/10/04