A fun day for kids

The 2008 Irrigation Festival Kids Day is 11 a.m.-

3 p.m. Saturday, May 3, at the Boys & Girls Club, 400 W. Fir St., Sequim. Prior to the Kids Day is the Kids Parade. The lineup for the parade begins at 10 a.m. at the Sequim High School auditorium parking lot. The parade starts at 10:30 a.m. and travels down Fir Street to the Boys & Girls Club. The parade is for children 12 and younger. Awards are given in the following categories – cartoon character,

storybook character, historical figure, best-dressed pet and, new this year, best costume related to the Irrigation Festival theme, "Set Sail and Discover the Treasure of Sequim." Prizes will be awarded during the Kids Day celebration. For more information, go to kidsday@irrigationfestival.com.

Benches for bid

Olympic Theatre Arts has asked several Sequim-area businesses to sponsor and decorate 10 benches – and they will be up for bidding beginning at the Sequim Irrigation Festival Arts and Crafts Fair from May 3-4. The bidding will continue the following weekend at the Irrigation Festival and will end at the OTA gala on May 20.

For more information, contact OTA at 683-7326.

Reckless driving:

More than just driving fast

The Washington State Patrol is concerned with the number of vehicles traveling at high speeds and weaving in and out of traffic. When the speeds start to reach 90 mph or more, it is not just a speeding ticket.

People may not realize the penalty for driving that fast isn’t just a more expensive speeding ticket, it could be jail time. Reckless driving is dangerous and has the potential to cause tremendous property damage and loss of life. According to the Washington Traffic Safety Commission, excessive speed is the second-most commonly cited driver error, accounting for 38 percent of all fatal crashes over the past five years in the state. In Washington, reckless driving is a criminal traffic offense punishable by a fine of up to $5,000 and jail time not to exceed one year. In addition to the penalties assessed by the courts, the offender also will have to pay the tow and storage bill to get the vehicle out of impound.

Ferry peak season begins May 1

The peak season officially begins for Washington State Ferries on Thursday, May 1, with an additional 25-percent surcharge applied generally to full fare vehicle/driver tickets. For more information about ferry fares or schedules, go to www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries or call 888-808-7977.

Put on your dancing shoes

Nash Huber’s spring barn dance begins with a community potluck at 6 p.m., Saturday, May 3, at 1865 E. Anderson Road. Bring a dish to share and dance to the Delta Rays. Adults are $10, children free.

Snow delays campground opening

Two feet of snow on the ground, along with recent and predicted snowfall, has delayed opening of the Sol Duc campground again. The campground had been scheduled to open April 18 but is now estimated to open by May 23 for the Memorial Day weekend.

The Sol Duc Road is open as far as the Sol Duc Hot Springs Resort; the resort is open. Many park campgrounds are already open, including Heart O’ The Hills, Elwha, Fairholme, Mora, Ozette, Hoh and Kalaloch.

More information about Olympic National Park roads and campgrounds is available at the park’s Web site, www.nps.gov/olym/.

Store and senior center sponsor crop

Doodlebugs Scrapbooking Store in Sequim and the Sequim Senior Activity Center are sponsoring a 12-hour scrapbooking "crop" event from 9 a.m.-

9 p.m., Saturday, May 3, at the senior center, 921 E. Hammond St.

The Clayton M. Schaill Guild hosts the event as a benefit for uncompensated care at Children’s Hospital and Medical Center in Seattle.

The price is $75 each or $60 each for a group of three or more.

Continental breakfast, lunch and a light dinner will be included.

Attendees receive goodie bags compliments of Doodlebugs.

Jackie Pavlak from Creative Memories will be on hand to give demonstrations.

Door prizes may be won and there will be a silent auction.

Registration is available at Doodlebugs, 138 W. Washington St. or 681-6284.

First new Hood Canal bridge

transition span complete

WSDOT has marked another milestone as crews at Oregon Iron Works completed construction of the Hood Canal bridge’s new west transition span. The span – or truss – is one of two that will connect the floating bridge’s pontoons to state Route 104 approach spans in Kitsap and Jefferson counties.

Oregon Iron Works, based in Vancouver, Wash., started assembling the 270-foot-long, 70-foot-wide, 35-foot-tall trusses in 2007. Fabrication work on the structure’s individual pipe sections began in 2004.

The new transition span is large enough to hold a wingless Boeing 727 and is 30 feet wider than the existing west half of the bridge. It will match the new east half, which is being constructed, and improve safety by providing more room for drivers and bicyclists.

The truss work is being done in conjunction with the ongoing state Route 104 Hood Canal bridge retrofit and replacement project, which will improve the existing structure, making it wider, safer and more reliable. The bridge will close for six weeks during May-June 2009 to allow WSDOT and contractors from Kiewit-General to remove and replace its eastern half. For more information, visit www.HoodCanalBridge.com.

Working the trail

The Peninsula Trails Coalition will be holding two Second Saturday work parties from 10 a.m.-noon, on Saturday, May 10. In Port Angeles, work includes pulling the noxious weed yellow archangel near the Morse Creek trestle. Bring work gloves and a sharp digging tool. Meet at the trestle. For more information, contact Reed, 452-4631. In Blyn the group will work on site enhancement at the West Sequim Bay trestle off Barker Road. Lunch will be provided at both sites. Please RSVP to the group leader by noon, Thursday, May 8.

For more information, contact Chuck, 683-4549, chuckpreble@msn.com.

WSP hosts Kiwanis youth law camp

Applications are being accepted for the 30th annual Washington State Patrol-Kiwanis Youth Law Enforcement Career Camp to be held at the WSP Academy in Shelton from July 19-25. Applications can be downloaded from the Internet on the WSP home page at www.wsp.wa.gov under "In the Community." The purpose of the camp is to provide selected high school juniors and seniors, with an interest in law enforcement, an opportunity to explore the various job opportunities in that field. It offers exposure to problems encountered by law enforcement officers on a daily basis and shows how to handle these situations in a professional manner. Many students who attend the academy go on to have careers in the criminal justice field.

Youth symphony plans concert

The North Olympic Youth Symphony will perform a concert of classical music at 3 p.m., Sunday, May 4, at the Port Angeles High School auditorium. This concert features the beginning, intermediate and advanced orchestras with students from Port Angeles, Sequim and Joyce. The Northwinds

Homeschool Band will join the advanced orchestra. The program is free and the public is welcome. Please enter the auditorium through the lobby and pick up a program.