Join us Saturday, September 23 for a rousing community celebration in the little city by the lake – Ponderay.

Celebrating our Connections is the theme of Ponderay Neighbor Day — and we have plenty to celebrate in our little community: Ponderay has an expanding trail and park system and a community transit system (the SPOT bus) that helps keep us connected. Attendees will be asked to give feedback on how to improve these systems in exchange for a chance to win a ride on the hot air balloon.

That’s right! The sky’s the limit! Tethered hot air balloon rides will be raffled off (weather permitting) throughout the event! Rising 75 feet above Ponderay, the balloon will give riders a birds eye view of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail and the area of future expansion for an underpass from the trail under the railroad into Ponderay.

The event also features live music by the Miah Kohal Band, pony rides, carnival games, arts and crafts for kids, tasty food vendors, beer garden, jumpy castle and much, much more! This will be an extraordinary event with free admission for all!

While this family-fun event celebrates Ponderay, our cherished community trail and its immediate neighbors – everyone throughout the region is invited.

The gates open for Ponderay Neighbor Day from 3 to 7 p.m. in the field behind the Hoot Owl. Parking will be off Emerald Industrial Drive and the SPOT bus will operate a special route in Ponderay and Kootenai to bring people to and from the site.

Ponderay Neighbor Day is sponsored by the LOR Foundation, City of Ponderay, Friends of the Pend d’Oreille Bay Trail, Kaniksu Land Trust, Selkirk-Pend Oreille Transit (SPOT Bus), P1FCU