Local muzzleloading clubs to attend show

If you like history and are interested in the beaver trade era from 1800 to 1840 when Meriwether Lewis and William Clark explored the Pacific Northwest, the 19th annual Coeur d'Alene Muzzleloading Arms and Historical Crafts Show might be a way to spend the weekend.

It's scheduled for Feb. 14-15 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. The entry fee is $5 for adults, with kids 12 and younger free with an adult. The location is the Kootenai County Fairgrounds at 4056 N. Government Way, Coeur d'Alene.

Several local muzzleloading clubs will be on hand to share knowledge of this amazing part of our nation's history.

Members of the Hog Heaven Muzzleloaders, from near Troy, who are experts on the Lewis-Clark expedition, will be on hand to share their knowledge on the historic trip that started in Missouri and ended along the Pacific Coast.

The local club, the Coeur d'Alene Muzzleloaders, will also feature a booth and are also a great resource on this historical era.

Each summer many of these mountain men and women in attendance join together at various rendezvous across the Pacific Northwest, test their shooting and tomahawk throwing skills and gather around campfires to share their knowledge about how to survive in much the same way mountain men of years past did.

The show will feature many vendors with shooting supplies, tomahawks, throwing knifes, powder horns, clothing, muzzleloading accessories, shooting bags and more.

This is a great place for those new and old to the sport to purchase a variety of products and crafts.

One vendor will even feature the Red Hawk line of primitive tents and tepees for order.

For those wanting to learn more about these gatherings and seeking to equip themselves from head-to-toe, this is a great place to get started.