Chewelah Farmers Market: A Local Tradition Since 2008. With Cherry Splats and Boats of Zucchini

Chewelah Farmers Market manager Brad Shaffer is my guest for this episode.

Brad shares with us stories about the Chewelah Farmers Market. Since 2008 Chewelah Farmers Market has helped build community in Chewelah. 

Find out about vendors who bring their goods to the market from all around the region. Learn about the dairy farm that is bringing organic, high quality dairy products and is making a difference in the community.

In this episode you will find out about some of the fun activities you can participate in at the market.

• Cherry Splat Contest
• Zucchini Regatta
• Apple Pie Eating Contest
• Pumpkin Bowling 

and much more. 

Brad also talks about the North East quadrant of Washington State and other things you can do when you visit Stevens County.

Chewelah Farmers Market Brad Shaffer Episode Transcript

Brad Shaffer [00:00:00]:

Everyone lines up, and, we have a a slingshot and a target. And, it’s all

Scott Cowan [00:00:27]:

Welcome to the Exploring Washington State podcast. Here’s your host, Scott Cowan.

Scott Cowan [00:00:33]:

Well, welcome to this episode of the Exploring Washington State podcast. My guest today is Brad Shaffer. Brad is the market manager for the Chewelah Farmers Market. Brad, welcome. Thank you for taking the time to do this. Why don’t you give the audience just a little bit of your backstory? And, you know, most importantly, how did you end up in Chewelah?

Brad Shaffer [00:00:55]:

Scott, I wanna thank you so much for having having me on and for featuring the area of Northeast Washington. My my roots in this area go back a long ways. My great grandparents, at about nineteen o five, my my great grandfather was assistant county assessor and had heard about some land up here. Like most of our ancestors back then, they all came, from farm stock. And so, yeah, he had been a teenage farmer in Illinois and had come out here with his folks. And so as the assistant county assessor, then he had heard about this land up here, in the beautiful area of Northeast Washington, these these rolling hills and and, kinda flat river valleys with prairies stretching from side to side. And so, ended up with a quarter section. And, through the years, it’s been whittled down, and I have 15 acres up here.

Brad Shaffer [00:01:53]:

K. I I had been born and raised nearby down in Spokane Valley and had moved to Western Washington for school and then had a career over there with a large coffee company that we won’t mention. And and, and then, yeah, my my mom is, she’s still alive and, is in her nineties now. So I took an early retirement and came back to this area, and and, it was kind of a a no brainer to put myself on the family land up here. It had been my my great grandfather tried to dry farm it for years and years, and it became more of a vacation place. So I’m living here now and and, have a couple of family members. My son and nephew live here with me. And and, so, I ended up back up here, and love it.

Brad Shaffer [00:02:45]:

It’s, the, the your typical rural community, a very diverse community that, I’m sure we’ll be talking about in a bit.

Scott Cowan [00:02:53]:

Yeah. For for I’m gonna guess the majority of our audience. How far is Chewelah, say, from Spokane?

Brad Shaffer [00:03:01]:

It’s,

Scott Cowan [00:03:01]:

We won’t know that answer.

Brad Shaffer [00:03:03]:

Yeah. Mileage mileage wise, it’s about 45 miles, from the the northern end of town. And then you head towards the Canadian border on Highway 395, which is, probably well, it is the main arterial, that heads north, out of Spokane into the the kinda Tri County area as we call it. I’m up here in Stevens County. And, so it it but in reality, it’s about an hour, to get up here, particularly with the way traffic has grown over over time.

Scott Cowan [00:03:35]:

Where did you go to school? Did you go

Brad Shaffer [00:03:38]:

Yeah. I went to, to Western Washington University up in Bellingham. Little little bit of time down in Olympia at Evergreen. But Okay. When I finished up, I got my degree from Western. I was an English major with a minor in psychology and a a concentration in writing. So communication has, has been, a talent that I’ve had. I’m I’m also a people person and a talker.

Brad Shaffer [00:04:03]:

So, so my communication skills have, have really given me a a lot of success when it comes to my career.

Scott Cowan [00:04:12]:

They moved back. How did you get involved with the farmer’s market?

Brad Shaffer [00:04:19]:

So I, I’ve always you know, I had a a corporate job, working in the legal area, and, I needed a a creative option. And I’ve I’ve always been fascinated with with wood and construction. I I had, of course, before I had my, my career at Starbucks.

Scott Cowan [00:04:44]:

I We’re gonna mention them. Remember, we were gonna keep that on the down low, but it it spoiled it.

Brad Shaffer [00:04:50]:

You can always you can always, bleep that out.

Scott Cowan [00:04:52]:

We’ll leave that in because everyone knows I work there too, so it’s okay.

Brad Shaffer [00:04:58]:

And so, so, anyway, I I love working with Wood. So, me and a buddy, we we formed a little, I guess you could call it a company, and we called it Waits Lake Rustic because I live, on on the shores of Waits Lake. And, and we we did kinda stick furniture, log furniture, that you put together. And and so I I started vending when I moved up here. I I thought, hey. It’s kind of a no brainer. I got 15 acres full of full of beautiful timber and and, so started building rustic furniture and, and told my buddy, hey. It’s it’s you know, let’s let’s do the farmers market.

Brad Shaffer [00:05:42]:

So we joined the farmer’s market, and, I vended there for a couple of years and did a, I guess, I I volunteered for the board because, I would say the vast majority I only know of one privately owned farmer’s market, but the vast majority are nonprofits, supported by the the community. And and, you know, if you know the structure of nonprofits, you have to have boards. And and so I joined the board, and and, I was going to become the secretary to the board, but, I did a a gig. 

We have a Christmas market every early December, and I was the greeter and and worked with people. And and they witnessed my people skills and and how well I worked with people. And so at the the next board meeting when I expected to be, inducted as the secretary, they asked me if I would be interested in being the market manager. At the time, I wasn’t doing any other work. I was was full on retired, and so I, I thought about it for at least a month because I knew it was gonna be a a lot of of time and and energy that would have to go into that and ended up, accepting the position.

Brad Shaffer [00:07:00]:

And so this this will be my third year coming up then as the market manager for the Chiwela Farmers Market.

Scott Cowan [00:07:07]:

Alright. So let’s talk about the market. I’m gonna come back to your your your job, but I wanna let’s talk about the market. How long has the market been, in existence?

Brad Shaffer [00:07:18]:

You know, on our on our, logo, it says since 02/2008. But, getting to know I mean, that’s been a a wonderful part of of becoming, part of the farmers market is is integrating myself into the community. I I’ve ended up on four different boards and and I’ve really gotten to know a lot of a lot of the movers and shakers and and those who aren’t movers and shakers, in the community. And, and so, what was the question again? I’ve kinda wandered off.

Scott Cowan [00:07:53]:

How so the market the logo says 02/2008.

Brad Shaffer [00:07:56]:

Oh, yeah. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So so getting to know people then, everybody well, I’ve heard several different stories as far as, well, I I created the farmer’s market or I founded it or that there was some rendition of it before 02/2008. I I think there was a collective of folks that got together, for the the marketing and and selling power of being together like that. But but officially, with a board and and as a nonprofit corporation in the state of Washington, since 02/2008. So fifteen years.

Scott Cowan [00:08:32]:

And I know this question’s challenging because of the pandemic and all of that, but how many vendors are typically at the market?

Brad Shaffer [00:08:42]:

We, we’ve been growing every year, for the five plus years I’ve been involved with the market. It has expanded from somewhere in the high teens, low twenties to last year. We hit a vendor count high sometime in July of about I think we had, like, 33 35. Vendors. Yeah. It it it can vary week to week depending on how smoky the skies are and how hot the temperatures are. Some product will do well in the heat. And some, some folks, you know, have issues where they can’t sit in in the smoke.

Brad Shaffer [00:09:25]:

So

Scott Cowan [00:09:27]:

How okay. Okay. So Wenatchee during the summer, we get we get hot. You get you get hot there too. I didn’t think about the smoke, though. That’s just, you know, admittedly an oversight on my part, but I guess you guys would get a lot if Canada’s got a wildfire going on. It’s gonna come your direction or anything in the over there. I didn’t think about that.

Brad Shaffer [00:09:50]:

Yeah. It’s it’s becoming it’s become an issue. And, the prevailing the prevailing winds, because most of the weather, across The US goes west to east, and, most of our weather comes from the Southwest. So any kind of fires that are taking place, almost anywhere in the state of Washington, the smoke, can really drift around. And and, yeah, the the last couple of years, it’s it’s been pretty intense. It’s it’s almost becoming an annual event, and anyone that, that lives in Eastern Washington can probably attest to that. And even I mean, when I lived in Seattle, the skies over Seattle would frequently become, like the skies of mortar. It it’s, yeah.

Scott Cowan [00:10:37]:

I should laugh, but yeah.

Brad Shaffer [00:10:39]:

Yeah. Yeah. Ho hopefully yeah. I hopefully, that, you know, change is taking place and and, as more fire sweeps through the forest, there’ll be less fires that occur. But, it’s something that we, we’ve learned to deal with, almost as as regularly as we deal with the snow up here.

Scott Cowan [00:11:01]:

Yeah. Would we, I can’t remember what year it was. I think our first summer here was fine, but the second summer here, I thought I’d lived in Los Angeles. The air quality was so bad. Yeah.

Brad Shaffer [00:11:12]:

It just looked like that.

Scott Cowan [00:11:12]:

The month of August was just yeah. The month of August was was unfair. You didn’t wanna go you didn’t go outside. You you wouldn’t do anything.

Brad Shaffer [00:11:19]:

Yeah. View beautiful sunsets. So

Scott Cowan [00:11:23]:

yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So let’s talk about the market. So it’s on Fridays, and your your market runs, what, mid May to mid October. Right?

Brad Shaffer [00:11:35]:

Yeah. This year, we’re we’re opening on Friday May and, running to exactly I think it’s the October 14. And then we we run one Christmas market. Large you know, the the markets that are in the the larger urban areas, they can they have the customer base to support sometimes a year round market, particularly, well, in in this area of the country, you’d you’d have to be indoors, in the wintertime. And so, there’s there’s at least a couple of indoor markets down in the Spokane area that that if they’re not year round, they’re trying to go year round. They they have, like, holiday markets, Christmas markets that, Waits Lake Rustic has participated in.

Scott Cowan [00:12:23]:

Okay. So first off in May, what sort of what sort of how do your vendors change throughout the season? So You

Brad Shaffer [00:12:32]:

know, that is an excellent question. We start out because I I talk about a market high of vendors around 35. We start out the market usually in the low twenties. We’ll have 20 to 25 vendors. And, we have, like most markets, it’s split between farmers and, and those who produce, farm type goods and then artisan and crafters. And, so at the beginning of the market, I’d say we’re yeah. You know, it’s it’s usually split pretty evenly, even throughout the year. Although, when the harvest really begins to come in to chug along in June and July, certainly, the farm the farms, have a lot of product, but early in the season.

Brad Shaffer [00:13:26]:

So, I mean, right now, talking to our biggest farm vendor, Front Porch Farm, up in Adi, They, they obviously have a lot of plants in the ground right now.

Scott Cowan [00:13:39]:

K.

Brad Shaffer [00:13:40]:

And when I say in the ground, it’s it’s, you know, they have various berries and things that’ll be outdoors, but a vast majority, tomatoes, lettuces, squashes, and things, those are are started indoors, under lights, and then moved into a greenhouse. Although I’ve seen their greenhouses planted out too. And, you know, I’m not a farmer, but, I’m I’m a fairly robust gardener. And and living up here, I’ve, I’ve established a pretty good sized garden, and and I’m picking these guys’ brains all the time. And that’s one of the wonderful things about a farmer’s market, just the the conversations that go on. You know? Even even recipes, you can talk with these guys. You know? You get this big, weird looking blue winter squash, and it’s like, well, how do I prepare this? And and there’s a thousand ways to prepare those, and and they are more than happy to share recipes at our at our operations booth. We we keep a stack of recipes for various things.

Brad Shaffer [00:14:45]:

So early in the season, it’s it’s a lot of your your more cold weather crops, things like kale, Swiss chard, lettuces. There might be, yeah, I’m trying to think of of what other produce because down in in your area, things come in a little bit sooner. We we have our market rules and regs. We we keep everything local, and everything has to be either crafted by yourself or grown by yourself. So, but we do allow, resellers. So somebody might have jars of honey that are produced locally, and they’re able to resell them. You know, the hives might be kept at particularly with the farmers. Of course, you want the the bees around to pollinate your crops.

Brad Shaffer [00:15:34]:

So a lot of farmers have hives there that they may be maintained by third parties, but they’re on their property. And then as part of their agreements, they’ll package up that honey and resell it for them. So some of the farmers reach out and they’ll they’ll get early season, well, cherries and and some of the stone fruits that usually don’t come until mid summer. They’ll get them earlier than they would be naturally growing, in the Chewelah Valley and and surrounding areas. So some of that begins to show up after a while, but a lot of plant starts. A lot of folks coming in, the ones who, who didn’t get their garden in or get their greenhouse planted out, they will come in and buy something that’s already a foot tall, particularly with tomatoes, because tomatoes, you gotta get in pretty early. Garlic is always a confusing one, although it it’s, not done until later in the summer, but it’s where you gotta plant it in the fall. And not everybody remembers to go out late October, early November and and get your garlic in and covered up and mulched for the wintertime.

Brad Shaffer [00:16:46]:

I’ve been growing some really good garlic, I I’m proud to say. But, yeah. So so you get more of the the cold weather crops, not not as as abundant, but still with with the diversity of the farmers we have, there’s, there’s plenty of of veggies to go around. The fruits are the things that they usually come in. They they’ve gotta ripen up, and so they come in later in the season. And then again, the number of vendors. We start out somewhat low, and then it it grows, as and usually mainly on the farmer side because some some folks so we got a guy that specialize in in berries and garlic, and he used to not start the market until June sometime usually when he actually had something to sell. But I gotta say he’s he’s famous for his garlic and his berries, around here, and people seek him out when he does show up the market.

Scott Cowan [00:17:46]:

Alright. Let’s well, let’s bounce around here. So how do people so you said they’re local. So what do you have a geographic restriction as to where the vendors must come from, or how do you how does the market decide there?

Brad Shaffer [00:18:02]:

No. There’s, some markets are are pretty strict as far as vetting their vendors. We, I mean, obviously, no you know, I mean, it it has to be produced by yourself. It can be it can be a packaged product, but it’s it needs to be packaged by you, or be a product that that that inside the package is something that you grew or created. And and, of course, then their standards is if it’s a consumable that goes in your mouth, then it has to be produced in a commercial kitchen. And so so we you know, where the vendor is from doesn’t matter, but, you know, they have to travel every Friday to get to Chewelah to be able to to sell this this produce. So I and and if they’re growing it on their own land, well, then they’re within that, you know, 200 mile restriction. Basically, you know, pretty much anything East Of The Cascades, is acceptable, to us.

Brad Shaffer [00:19:05]:

But we have vendors that, that come from near the Idaho border. We have, vendors that come from, close to the Canadian border. And it’s it’s, it’s because we’re uniquely geographically located fairly close to those borders. So it it’s not prohibitive for a vendor to drive that far, but they have to be somewhat dedicated, and they have to I mean, it’s it’s the vagaries of selling. You don’t know how much you’re going to make. And my my favorite line to vendors at the end of the day is that I hope you made your gas money to get back home. And and most of them, you know, have, obviously, a big smile on their face, and and, they’ve they’ve made plenty of money for gas money to get back home. But if you’re driving as far from the Canadian border, you’re obviously gonna wanna return on your dollars.

Brad Shaffer [00:20:02]:

Sure. For Now

Scott Cowan [00:20:03]:

this year, it might be harder with gas prices though.

Brad Shaffer [00:20:06]:

Yes. Yeah. I know. I drive an f one fifty and, yeah. It’s, you know, it’s crazy. Yeah. Yeah. I try I try not to drive anywhere except just to the market and back home again.

Scott Cowan [00:20:18]:

There you go. I’m looking at your market events, and I I wanna go through these because I’m I’m kinda chuckling here. The cherry splat contest.

Brad Shaffer [00:20:28]:

That is a lot of fun. Though those days, I, I really like to shine on those days. I’m I’m a perpetually optimistic and and happy person. And on those days, that kinda ramps up. And so the cherry splat is, it’s, of course, it’s the advent of the cherry season. So to celebrate, because cherries, you know, they’re suit you know, I’d assume they’re super popular everywhere. I don’t know who anyone who wouldn’t like a a fresh cherry. So when the cherry crop comes in and we time that event with that, we have then a contest where folks can sign up during the day and then at a particular time in the afternoon, and and you it’s probably on our website.

Brad Shaffer [00:21:15]:

I don’t have that in front of me. But, 02:00. Two o’clock in the afternoon

Scott Cowan [00:21:20]:

there. 02:00.

Brad Shaffer [00:21:22]:

Everyone lines up, and, we have a a slingshot and a target. And, it yeah. Folks, you know, depending we have different age categories, because, you know, we want the the four year olds, not to be happy to compete with mom and dad. So, so depending on your age, you you stand at a particular distance from the target and then use the slingshot to to hurl the cherry at this, you know, usually a white target, and it splats. And, then you mark that, and and then, we have various prizes that we hand out for those, for the winners, whoever gets closest to the bull’s eye. And and usually, it’s a a collection. I mean, I I just I I can’t say enough about my vendors and and how much I love the market because I’ll go around at the beginning of the day and and, you know, just ask for donations for the the prizes for the cherry splat and come back with, you know, baskets full of of soaps and lotions and fruits and veggies and cheeses and and all sorts of delicious things. So it’s a lot of fun.

Brad Shaffer [00:22:30]:

People just really enjoy it, and I and I really enjoy being the emcee for that.

Scott Cowan [00:22:36]:

Alright. So you’re the emcee. Okay.

Brad Shaffer [00:22:38]:

Oh, yeah.

Scott Cowan [00:22:38]:

Are you the emcee for the zucchini regatta?

Brad Shaffer [00:22:41]:

Yes. I am. And that’s another fun one, obviously, again. So it it’s so cool to work for a farmer’s market. It’s time then with the, the in influx of zucchinis out of everyone’s garden. And, we, provide you you can bring your own zucchini. You can work on it for a week beforehand, or you can just, you know, on a spur of the moment, with inspiration, carve your zucchini and create your boat there. One of the beautiful things about our market is that we are located in the Chewelah City Park, which is, gosh.

Brad Shaffer [00:23:18]:

It’s gotta be, you know, you know, 10 acres. It’s it’s a it’s a good sized park with all these big, beautiful trees. And, we are on the north end of the park, and Chewelah Creek goes it it flows right through the park. So, we have the perfect place to have a zucchini regatta. But, yeah, folks, I mean, you know, you can imagine it’s pretty difficult to to make a zucchini where it’s actually gonna float on the water. So they come up with all sorts of clever ideas. I mean, there’s there’s, there’s no restrictions as far as putting a sail on your boat or creating, you know, pontoons on the side so that it doesn’t roll over. And, and it I get you know, again, we break it down by age categories, and and it’s just the it’s it’s generally I’m trying to think if I’ve I’ve had an adult participate.

Brad Shaffer [00:24:14]:

Usually, there’s might be one or two parents that jump in, but but, no, the kids all stand in in Chewelah Creek. Of course, it’s the middle of summer, and the creek is, nice and refreshing at that point. And, yeah, on the on the word go, they launch their boats, and whoever makes it to a particular, a particular point in the the creek then is the winner and and the same basket of goodies that we hand out. So just a a lot of

Scott Cowan [00:24:39]:

So that’s just that’s in August. Okay. Alright. That’s that I was I was chuckling at that. That was that’s pretty cool. So I’m wondering if you have a a spin on your apple pie eating contest because all it says here is are you the next winner, which is pretty vague.

Brad Shaffer [00:24:56]:

Like, do

Scott Cowan [00:24:56]:

you are you blindfolded? You you know, what yeah.

Brad Shaffer [00:25:00]:

No. You, so we we provide, the apple pies, and, and it’s just, you know, your your traditional that’s that’s a thought. Blindfolded would make it even harder, but it’s the the hands behind the back, the piece of pie in front

Scott Cowan [00:25:18]:

of you.

Brad Shaffer [00:25:19]:

And, I you know, some people, you know, think it’s it’s, slightly on the messy, I I won’t say disgusting side, but, you know, it it’s and and we have, yeah, all sorts of kids and adults, and and it’s it’s a very mixed group that usually sits down at the table for for, eating these apple pies. But, yeah, it’s, you have to have your plate clean enough where if you lift it in the air, not too much falls off of it. And so, yeah, it’s usually half of it’s on people’s faces and half of it’s in their their stomachs. So it’s a lot of fun. I I I don’t think I I think of the fairs I’ve been to or whatnot, if I’ve ever been to an apple or pie eating contest, outside of the Chewelah Farmers Market, and I can’t think of one I’ve witnessed, live. So now just another fun event that, that that the kids, you know, it it’s we’re we’re really family and kid oriented. It’s it’s easygoing, you know, beautiful sunny days in Chewelah, and, there’s there’s nothing bad about it. So that’s a lot of fun.

Scott Cowan [00:26:30]:

And you wrap up the season. This one cracked me up too because it seems so obvious, and I’ve never thought of it before until I read it. I was like, oh, that’s brilliant. Pumpkin bowling.

Brad Shaffer [00:26:40]:

Yes.

Scott Cowan [00:26:40]:

So in October, we’re gonna go bowling with pumpkins.

Brad Shaffer [00:26:45]:

That is a lot of fun also. Again, timed with, with the, with the yeah. Come to think of it, you know, all four events that you brought up are timed with particular crops because the apple pie eating, obviously, with the apple crops. So, yeah, the pumpkins come in and and, usually, the last market day, we, have our our pumpkin bowling competition. We’ve got nine pins that we set up, and and, and then, you know, I I don’t know. I I think probably the roundest pumpkins, do the best, And you can use we we provide a a collection of pumpkins, or you can bring your own pumpkin. Perhaps you’ve grown one and made sure it’s just nice and round. And you of course, you can bust the stem off and whatnot.

Brad Shaffer [00:27:35]:

But, yeah, it’s, you know, age categories and and, you wanna use a pump big enough to actually because these are these are actual, bowling lane pins. So so they’re decently heavy, and and so you wanna knock down as many as possible. And, yeah, three rolls, and, see if you get a strike or not.

Scott Cowan [00:27:56]:

So historically speaking, how how are we, are people drilling holes in the pumpkin and put their fingers in it like a bowling ball or what are they?

Brad Shaffer [00:28:07]:

That’s, that’s a thought. I mean, they, they, you can do that if you want. But usually they just, you know, they, they cup it and just, and just throw it like that.

Scott Cowan [00:28:18]:

And how far how far are the pins away from where we’re rolling these from?

Brad Shaffer [00:28:22]:

You know, for the, you know, for the for the very young set, I think it was, like, you know, eight eight to 10 feet. And then I I think I don’t think we go further than 15 feet because as you can imagine, you know, it knows you practice a lot. You’re not gonna get a pumpkin to roll very straight. So so which is which is good. And, you know, you can’t throw it. It actually has to roll on the ground. But, yeah. Yep.

Brad Shaffer [00:28:51]:

Okay. Good. So are

Scott Cowan [00:28:53]:

you like, do you have straw bales or something to as to keep it in a lane, or it just can these go randomly wherever?

Brad Shaffer [00:29:00]:

No. We don’t we don’t have those bumper guards or anything. Nope. It’s it

Scott Cowan [00:29:03]:

can

Brad Shaffer [00:29:04]:

go it can go wherever. So

Scott Cowan [00:29:06]:

I I could that that would be kind of comical to watch. I think that would be

Brad Shaffer [00:29:10]:

Oh, all all all of those events are are just a lot of fun, and and, we like to to keep it that way. That’s why we have them. Another another big event that, isn’t isn’t necessarily on that, it’s it’s the the cherry splat and and fourth of July are somewhat, in conjunction. Because on the July 4, we have a a very traditional small town fourth of July celebration. This this coming year, our our new mayor, Greg McGahn, is gonna be, there as our featured speaker. We usually have, someone who has served in the military. Last year, we had a complete reading of the declaration of independence

Scott Cowan [00:29:54]:

Oh, okay.

Brad Shaffer [00:29:54]:

Put on by a class. We set up a stage. We have music, playing there. And and, again, another, great event that that really draws people in that that pretty much the the height of our season. July and August are are really the the busiest months.

Scott Cowan [00:30:13]:

Mhmm. So give me some examples of types of vendors that I’m gonna see there throughout the season. Like, you mentioned, you know, you mentioned, you know, root vegetables, and we’re gonna have fruit and all that. What else but you you said a word that seems to me that farmers market should have more of, but I’m not finding and cheese. I mean, do you have a local cheese producer that’s showing up?

Brad Shaffer [00:30:34]:

Oh, I I could go on and on about, our dairy at the market. We, a couple years ago, a couple, who had met in the coast guard and shared a love of dairy of cows and dairy farms, Stacy and, Virginia, Thompson, they joined our market as a small dairy farm, and they immediately went organic. So Yeah. We are extremely lucky because you won’t you won’t find that at at most farmers’ markets. You’re not gonna find a an organic dairy, and and you may you you may not even find dairy at at a farmer’s market. We’re very lucky to have Stacy and Virginia at our market, and they run Clover Mountain Dairy and and produce, only whole milk. They Okay. They they are very much one of the most popular booths, at the market, and they have over the years then experimented and and gone into yogurts and, and cheeses.

Brad Shaffer [00:31:46]:

Yeah. They make a great Gouda. They they do a pepper jack. I’m trying to think if they’ve done some cheddars. Their yogurt, is pretty spectacular, and then their milk is is great too. It comes in glass bottles, and, they have these, wooden carriers that, their customers use. And so, yeah, folks, every week, people will be showing up and and get several gallons of their milk and and some of their cheeses. They’ve, yeah, they’re we’re we’re extremely lucky to have them there.

Brad Shaffer [00:32:20]:

I’d like to expound a little bit more about them. In the early sixties in this area, there were literally hundreds of small dairy farms. Like a lot of farming over the last sixty, seventy years, big agriculture has come in and and, and, sort of taken over the the industries. And so, you have, we have Dairigold in this area that, that, consumed or or subsumed. I don’t know what word I’m looking for. A lot of the the dairy, in the area. And, and there’s you know, where there were, you know, two or 300 small dairy farms, back in the early sixties. I I think for some reason, there’s a lot of data from, like, 63 or 64.

Brad Shaffer [00:33:17]:

Now we’re down to about eight, small dairies, and small being, you know, you know, 50 cows down to Clover Mountain, which, they’ve got well, they you know, it varies because they got calves on the way, and they’re they’ve been growing their herd. And I I think they have five or six cows now that that are milk producing, and and I think they’ve got three or four calves, on the way. So I’m looking forward to those being born because that’s when they’ll start lactating again, and and the milk will start flowing again. They go through a dry period for about two or three months. And this this you know, the story continues because and this shows the power of a farmer’s market where, Stacy and Virginia as small organic dairy, they are they’re really concerned about the the the small farmers and, and the dairies in particular, which farmers markets, they’re just they’re just made for small farmers and and small dairies. And so, we have created, with them spearheading the effort, a nonprofit, the Eastern Washington Community Dairy, and we are actively seeking funding to build a local creamery. And this creamery then will be used to process, milk and, and then sell it to the public, as a nonprofit and to also provide technical assistance for local dairy farmers, who may, want to go organic, because they that’s that’s one of their, you know, that’s important to them and and, important, to this area as far as being organic. So, so it, you know, it just shows you again that power, to support the economics of farming in this area, particularly with within that group of the focus on on dairy.

Brad Shaffer [00:35:23]:

But, yeah, wonderful wonderful folks, and we’re just so so lucky to have them at the Chewelah Farmers Market. When when everybody comes, that’s listening to this podcast, make sure you visit their booth and say hello.

Scott Cowan [00:35:38]:

K. What else? Tell us about some of the other vendors at the market.

Brad Shaffer [00:35:43]:

You know, I’ll I’ll, move on to the next most unique vendor we have, which is a local blacksmith. I’ve, as I’ve integrated into the area, it, it is well, you know, now that I know the area, it’s not surprising, but it surprised me how many metal workers there were up here. And, John Huffstetter, the, the blacksmith who runs Quail Side Forge, he’s been at the market for many years, and, and I was happy to see his application come in recently. He’s gonna be with us again this year. And, yeah, he has a small forge and anvil. I mean, it it’s quite the chore to unload such weighty equipment and get it set up, but he actually runs his forge right there. And, he Wow. Yeah.

Brad Shaffer [00:36:34]:

He smiths right in front of you and and and has a a collection of, of things. You know, I’ve he’s made me some some custom candlesticks before. I, last year, I bought a, got a a a really nice looking fire poker. I’d I’d show it to the audience, but they they wouldn’t be able to see it. But he does he does really great work. And and, again, it’s it’s something unique to Chewelah. You’re not gonna, you know, find in in the urban areas of Spokane a a blacksmith at, at a farmer’s market. So that’s another

Scott Cowan [00:37:10]:

Probably not.

Brad Shaffer [00:37:11]:

Yeah. Another one of our unique vendors. The farmers, I I mean, we we’ve touched on them a bit, but they, there is a tendency I mean, some of the bigger ones, front porch usually has quite a a spectrum of of fruits and veggies to offer. We have others. Well, I mentioned, Stranger Creek Farm and Paul Lupke who who specializes in berries and garlic and is is famous for his berries and garlic. And, and, others that that have you know, they try to carve a niche, where we have a new vendor this year that’s going to be selling seeds, and we haven’t had anyone selling seeds before. So, and then, another, another excellent vendor that, that we are so lucky to have is, a vendor called The Breadbox. They run, a bakery in Chewelah, obviously called The Breadbox.

Brad Shaffer [00:38:09]:

And and they set up at our market, and they have all sorts of amazing baked goods. Their pies, are are incredible. I’ve I’ve, consumed many, many of those. I mean, pies, cookies, breads, pasta. I’ve been trying to talk them into bringing some some of their spices into the market, and because you can you can pick them up, at their their store in town, but, but they haven’t brought spices to the market. But I’m a I’m a spice guy. I I love to cook. And, so we’re we’re super lucky to have the bread box, a really high end bakery there.

Brad Shaffer [00:38:50]:

And then we have a vendor called Waterfall Red who he does hand carved wooden spoons. My my kitchen is adorned with all sorts of hand carved wooden spoons that that Bob has, has made, and he uses all sorts of different types of wood. I I, I have I bought one last year that’s made out of wenge, which is a, it’s a somewhat rare African hardwood. They they make, anyone who plays marimba, knows that a lot of marimba keys are made out of the wenge wood. So, it’s gorgeous. And he carves them with the handles where you have the push pull on the oven racks. You know, you got the hook where you can pull the rack out, and then, it’s kind of a heart shape, and then you put you can push the rack back in without using oven mitts, I guess. And, so there, he’s he’s popular for his wooden spoons.

Brad Shaffer [00:39:50]:

We have the, the little lavender company specializing in in all things lavender, including lavender bouquets. They they make, they make both men’s men’s products and and women’s, so I buy a lot of soap from them. They have, some some lotions and body spray called Whiskey Kiss, which, both my son and I, it’s one of our favorites. He usually sprays up quite heavily before he goes into work. And, so and then other vendors, who who also do kind of the lotion and potion stuff, not you know, the the few soaps, soap manufacturers. Again, everything just handmade by the vendors that you meet. And, and then we have some family businesses. We have this, this, on-site, pizza pizza group that the family that it’s called Conscious Crave.

Brad Shaffer [00:40:50]:

They were the ones who come from up near the Canadian border, drive all the way down with some pretty good sized equipment, and, they and and and it’s the family that does it. You know, it’s mom and dad, and the kids are there. There’s another family that does, drinks. They do different types of lemonades, and then they also specialize in tie dye. And and and it’s, you know, mom and dad and the kids and and, you know, they’re they’re very, they they they consider at that particular booth, they consider it the kids booth. And so as far as doing, you know, the adding and subtracting and figuring out, the money and everything, the kids do it. And and, you know, it it’s a learning experience. They they’re learning how to run a business and

Scott Cowan [00:41:35]:

Oh, it’s great.

Brad Shaffer [00:41:36]:

The kind of effort it takes, and I I assume they’re also pocketing a little bit of the money once they’ve paid for their materials. You know, we have a lot of fabric, fabric folks. We had a couple of tie dye folks last year, that family, and then another vendor who did tie dye. We have wild rose acres specializing in everything, crocheted everything from shawls to hats. Back to the farmers, microgreens. I don’t know how many in the audience have heard of microgreens, but, they’re basically just, you know, the the real baby kind of plants, and they’re nutrient dense. So, so they’re they’re great on salads. They’re great on on sandwiches.

Brad Shaffer [00:42:29]:

And, and we have two microgreen vendors at the market, and they’re both coming back this year. And and, yeah, it’s I think everybody’s coming back. I tell you, this market’s just grown and grown and grown. You know, the the pandemic has, brought in, we call them pandemic expats, folks that don’t wanna yeah. Folks, you know, they don’t wanna live in in in clustered, you know, clustered so closely together necessarily with other humans. They want some space around them. And, so quite a few folks have have moved into this area. It was a it’s always been a growing area, but, more so, a lot of of people moving into the area, particularly ones that can work remotely, web developers.

Brad Shaffer [00:43:19]:

And, it’s it’s a surprisingly creative area. The the our craft vendors are are pretty high end. A lot of artists, the the the city itself, we’ve got well, we’re one of the very few, rural creative districts, designated so by the Arts Commission for the State of Washington. And I think we were, if not the first, we were the second, creative district in the state and the the very first of the rural creative districts. And it it was a nod towards the amount of the number of artists and the creativity that, that goes on here. One one interesting factoid when it comes to artists and and back to kind of the metalworking that goes on, there is a a famous artist, Govidair, who, anyone who’s driven through Vantage on I 90 and is on the the eastern side, they glance up and see the the wild horses up on the ridge, and and I’ve hiked up to those several times and taken pictures and things. That was a Govardaire piece in Spokane in the the park, Riverside Park. There is the the famous Bloomsday runners, made out of metal, and that was another Govardere piece.

Brad Shaffer [00:44:36]:

You can find his work all over the world, and, super lucky to have him in the community. We have a even have a mural on one of our buildings in town, that was painted by Govardere. Sadly, he recently passed away just a few months ago. And, so we lost a a real great artist in the area, but his son, it sounds like he’s picking up, some of the work and is continuing with, those artistic endeavors. So

Scott Cowan [00:45:07]:

Okay.

Brad Shaffer [00:45:07]:

Yeah.

Scott Cowan [00:45:09]:

So the market sounds amazing. And I know nothing about here I am, the Exploring Washington State podcast. I’m gonna say I know nothing about something in Washington State and there’s plenty of things I don’t know anything about. So I joke, but what else? Let’s let’s go off. Let’s let’s let’s move away from the farmer’s market. Tell me a little bit more about Chewelah.

Brad Shaffer [00:45:36]:

Yeah. Chewelah, I mean, it’s it’s been I don’t know when they consider the the town having been established. We are the the second largest town in the Tri County area, which includes Pend Oreille Ferry and Stevens Counties, which make up the the Northeast quadrant of Washington state. And, Calville was formerly known as Fort Calville. If anyone who’s I I’m fascinated by the West, by the myths of the West, by the stories of the West, and and, of course, my my heart and roots are in Washington state here. So I’ve done a lot of reading, historical reading on the Columbia River and the development, of this area, including Western Washington. And so Fort Colville has been there for a long time. The I I can’t recall exactly when it was established, but I think at least, mid eighteen hundreds, if not slightly earlier.

Brad Shaffer [00:46:45]:

There’s stories of, of, I’m trying to think of who the fur trapper was. He worked for Hudson Bay, but came down from the North. And, he he went to the Colville area, and there’s a place called Kettle Falls there, which there’s there are no more falls since Grand Coulee was built. It inundated, the falls, but those falls were sort of the stopping point for a lot of the salmon coming up from from the sea. They they made it all the way up there. And, so it was a yearly gathering spot for the native tribes, and they would spend, weeks, during the the salmon the salmon runs. The the shamans would go down to the river and watch they they they wouldn’t allow any kind of fishing or fish being taken out of the the river until they had confirmed that enough fish had gone by to supply for future generations. And Okay.

Brad Shaffer [00:47:48]:

And then the fishing would begin, and it was, you know, this huge celebration, this amazing abundance of food. And, so this trapper came down and was able to witness this. He meeting some of the natives, they some of them carried these coins around. And this was, I think, about five years, you know, probably eighteen, ten, eighteen, twelve after Lewis and Clark had passed through. And these coins had been handed out by Lewis and Clark to the natives and and been used to barter and trade. So some of the natives had those coins, which then alerted, of course, this guy was was, coming down from Canada, alerted him that other explorers had been in the area before he had gotten there because I I just it it’s I as I travel through these valleys and and mountains, I try to imagine what it was like back then. But so so Fort Colville was established, and and it, yeah, it wasn’t soon after as a as a farming, as a farming town, as a resource for blacksmiths and other other things. It became a a bit of a hub then for the locals in in what is somewhat the, I guess, southern part of this valley.

Brad Shaffer [00:49:02]:

I don’t know if I you’d call it the Colville Valley or the Chewelah Valley. I suppose if you live in Chewelah, it’s the Chewelah Valley and call it the Colville Valley, but it’s it’s a gorgeous, gorgeous drive about thirty minutes, between Colville, which sits to the north of Chewelah. And, it reminds me in the fall, it it used to be folks would bail their their hay, and nowadays, it’s those big gigantic wheels of hay. And as I drive through in the fall and it’s the golden hour and and, it it just it reminds me of the South Of France. And it’s it’s an area that I won’t say it’s waiting to be discovered, but it’s because it has been discovered and and, you know, with with and more and more people are coming here. I I won’t say it’s crowded. You know, I I get back into Western Washington, and and I I don’t know if it’s because I’ve become older or or just the the contrast between the two, but the the density and and the the freeways and things just can can, make me rather tense and anxious. And and around here, yeah, it’s just the human density is is so much less, but, gorgeous area.

Brad Shaffer [00:50:21]:

So, yeah, Chewelah, you know, it it’s been around, you know, at least the the late eighteen hundreds and and mainly as a resource extraction, you know, growing growing food, farming, livestock, and, then, of course, timber extraction. And mining has been, has been quite popular over the centuries or over the decades. We had excuse me. There’s a, a mine, and I’m I’m I’m trying to remember what they mined out of there. I think it was was it bauxite? But it was during during World War two, the the major producers of this particular mineral mineral, and I think it was bauxite, they happen to be on the other side of the war. And so, so those imports obviously weren’t happening anymore. And one of the the major, places where this mineral exists is here in the Chewelah Valley up in the the Huckleberry Mountains. So this huge mine went in and, and operated for many, many years.

Brad Shaffer [00:51:32]:

It’s the material that they use when you’re, pouring iron and and steel and whatnot. They they line and I don’t know anything about steel manufacturing, but this this apparently, it it has these properties where they would line these kilns with it. And, and that way, you can produce your iron. And you could imagine that for for a war effort, in order to produce all the metal for ships and planes and whatnot, it was it was quite important. So that really, I mean, it it’s that has since closed down. And in fact, there’s not a lot of mineral extraction that goes on around here now. A lot of timber. We got some, some pretty good sized timber companies around.

Brad Shaffer [00:52:19]:

And but but it’s you know, there’s there’s I I’m happy to say because I I wear an environmentalist hat. And so, I’m I’m happy to say that there’s a coalition of forces here that sit on panels and steering committees, and and the logging companies are actively a part of those groups. So, you know, when it comes to riparian zones or clear cutting and whatnot, it’s done with as sustainable practices as possible while still keeping the local population employed. And and, you know, I I personally know a lot of loggers and and truckers and, and, yeah, very noble, noble folks. So yeah.

Scott Cowan [00:53:07]:

Okay. I always ask this question. Are you a coffee drinker?

Brad Shaffer [00:53:12]:

I I yes. I’m I’m all jacked up on it right now. I don’t know if you can tell, but yeah. No. I I drink coffee all the time. That’s one of the the wonderful things about Starbucks. If you work there for a long enough period of time and retire from the company, then you are given what they call your mark out for life. They they wanna share the joy of coffee.

Brad Shaffer [00:53:37]:

So, as an employee of Starbucks, you qualify for a free pound of coffee every week. They, you know, assume you’re gonna take that, share it with friends, and and introduce the the love and magic of coffee. And so having reached that age, been with that company a long time and retired from it, I qualified for that. So so, unfortunately, up here, there’s there’s not many Starbucks. My closest Starbucks is is down in the Northern edge of Spokane, which is, you know, again, it’s about an hour drive to get down there to pick up a a pound of coffee. So, when I when I get into town to to be with mom, which is is frequently once a week, I get to pick up my pound of coffee. So, yeah, I’m a I’m a dark roast guy, you know, Sumatras, and, and some of those darker roasts are are my Okay. Drink of choice.

Scott Cowan [00:54:36]:

When you’re not drinking Starbucks, any good coffee up there? Any good coffee in Chewelah?

Brad Shaffer [00:54:41]:

Yes. There we have, we are able to support two different coffee shops, the the Flowery Trail coffee shop, and, and one that just opened up called the Yale Press, which is is more more upscale. It’s it’s a flowery trail is is, I mean, they they have these amazing scones, these, orange orange scones that they make. That’s that’s my favorite when I go in there, but it’s been exciting to, to see the Yale press go in and and, where you can buy a Bodum press, and, and get get pressed coffee and and and actual espresso too because, that’s one thing Flowery. No. That’s not that. I take that back. Flowery Trail, they do have, an espresso machine.

Brad Shaffer [00:55:31]:

So, yeah, we’ve k. You know, the Chewelah area, just to expound on that a bit, when I think of the Flowery Trail Road, so there’s, so the valley sits in between a couple of mountain ranges, and and it’s the Selkirks that that kinda come down from Northern Idaho and spread across this area, which is a mountain range that is quite a bit older than the Cascades. The Cascades are youngsters compared to the mountains here. Mountains aren’t as high. They’re a bit more rounded, but but plenty of they’re really you find a lot of basalt cliffs, and it’s very basaltic. And most of the the, land here that gets farmed is glacial till intermixed with the local clays and sedimentary dirts that are deposited by the the rivers and creeks. And, so, so we’re between the Huckleberry. I I love telling people I live in the Huckleberry Mountains, the Huckleberry Ridge.

Brad Shaffer [00:56:36]:

In fact, I’m looking at it right now out my backdoor. Beautiful ridge that, that I drive up to, and and you could for them from the top of that ridge, you can look to the west and look down and see Lake Roosevelt, which is, the lake backed up behind Grand Coulee Dam. Then on the other side of Lake Roosevelt is the Kettle Range, which, used to boast the only, lower 48, herd of Caribou, Woodland Caribou. That that that herd has struggled over the years, particularly as the the wolf and cougar population has increased. They they’ve struggled. And and I think, you know, the changing climate, lower snow packs and whatnot, although this last winter, I I couldn’t say that. But, so so beautiful mountains here. A lot of great hiking.

Brad Shaffer [00:57:31]:

And then on the other side of the valley from the Huckleberry Range is the Colville National Forest and and the Selkirk Range. To cut across and get over to Lake Pend Oreille and the Pend Oreille River, you have to get over that those Selkirk Mountains. And there are few roads that that go through there. One of which, however, is the Flowery Trail, and and it it goes directly from Chewelah and goes over and then hits the Pend Oreille River, at a town called Usk, U S K. And, it’s it’s a beautiful road to travel on. Halfway along that road at the top of the mountains is, a wonderful ski area, called 49 Degrees North. It’s gotten more and more popular. They just put in a high speed quad this year, and they had a great season because of of the snowpack here.

Brad Shaffer [00:58:26]:

So, so, yeah, it’s, it’s, yeah, geographically and environmentally, it’s it’s gorgeous up here.

Scott Cowan [00:58:37]:

Well, one of the things we’ll do is we’ll put links to the farmer’s market in the show notes, but I always wrap up with this question. What didn’t I ask you that I should have asked you?

Brad Shaffer [00:58:50]:

Probably, you know, as far as diversity in the area, I’m I’m a a proponent of diversity. I feel there’s more power with different perspectives, And I mean both, you know, political opinions, you know, racial, ethnic backgrounds, and, and there’s a great spectrum here in in the area. And, I love I mean, I you know, coming coming out of I I mean, I was, you know, middle class suburbia in Spokane Valley. It was more American graffiti than Green Acres, and and then I ended up in Western Washington at a at a pretty liberal, company and, and, you know, met a lot of diverse folks, at that company. And and certainly in a big metropolis like Seattle, an international city, you meet a lot of different people. But Seattle is, notoriously a fairly liberal city. And so, you know, my my liberal views, everybody was singing the same chorus around me. And it’s been a wonderful experience to move to this area and to be able to to not have everybody singing that song and not being challenged on my views and opinions.

Brad Shaffer [01:00:18]:

And and I’ve enjoyed then the diversity of the the, political opinion and and, ideas, you know, both I mean, you know, from religious to sexual orientation to everything, and and you’ll find you find a little bit of everything in, in this area. It’s, you know, it’s just traditionally been conservative. I I would call it a bit of a bible belt. A lot of evangelical, churches in the area, and also, you know, traditional Methodist and and Catholic. And and, the Mormons have a huge place, right on 395, and one of my neighbors, attends there. So so the diversity, I’ve I’ve really enjoyed that. And and, frankly, it’s it’s bent some of my views, and I’ve become, I think, a much more centrist individual than I was before, which I think is, you know, is that kind of centrism. I I I see it as our saving grace unless folks can be more open, to allowing people to have different opinions.

Brad Shaffer [01:01:28]:

You know? You know? It’s not to me, it’s not about winning or losing. It’s it’s about all of us being together and enjoying this amazing place that we live, enjoying a wonderful farmer’s market. I’ll I’ll add here that we don’t allow any, you know, overt political statements, you know, no no guns or drugs, at the at the market. And and, again, it’s very family oriented. So, we we wanna make sure that, that that everyone gets along with everybody. It’s I’m like I say, I’m a I’m a positive person, and I I see the humanity and love in in everyone’s eyes around me. And and, I I make sure that I move myself through life, knowing knowing that and recognizing that humanity and the people around me.

Scott Cowan [01:02:24]:

I know one question I didn’t ask about the farmer’s market. Are dogs allowed?

Brad Shaffer [01:02:29]:

Yes. As as long as, you know, I’ll say as long as they’re leashed and decently behaved. There’s been some unleashed ones there, that, that were well behaved and others that I’ve, you know, had to ask owners a couple of times and then actually chase, find a piece of rope and then chase the dog down and tie it up and hand it to the hand it to the owner. But, no, we we love our dogs. I’ve I’ve you know, my dog’s sleeping on the couch right now, and and so yeah. No. We’re very animal friendly. I would I’ve one thing I’ve always wanted to have is, like, a a small petting zoo, you know, get get some little, porky pigs and some little sheep, something there, but that’s a a step we we haven’t taken yet.

Brad Shaffer [01:03:18]:

It’d be a a bit more challenging, I guess.

Scott Cowan [01:03:22]:

Yeah. I mean, markets could go in so many different directions, and, you know, that’s that’s awesome. So I’m looking forward to I’m gonna get out I’m gonna get out that way this summer. I’ve got we’re we’re building a road trip agenda around the state, which is pretty daunting, but it’s gonna be a lot of fun. And I have not ever been to Chewelah, so I’m looking forward to Yes. Coming up there and checking it out. Yeah.

Brad Shaffer [01:03:44]:

Try to try to time it with a Friday, and I’d love to meet face to face and, show you around my my market. So and that goes for

Scott Cowan [01:03:53]:

I I would love that.

Brad Shaffer [01:03:54]:

Yeah. Anybody who’s listening to this, look me up at the market and, and I’ll expound even more, more about all its good good aspects.

Scott Cowan [01:04:04]:

Perfect. Well, Brad, thank you so much for taking the time to share with us the Chewelahs market and the area around, the market. I have a I am looking forward to coming up there this summer. It’s gonna be hot. I know that, but it’s hot and windy, so it won’t be any different. Yeah.

Brad Shaffer [01:04:21]:

Well, we have we have lots of lakes and rivers to jump in. You could come up to my lake here, Waits Lake, and, and jump in. So yep.

Scott Cowan [01:04:28]:

There we go.

Brad Shaffer [01:04:29]:

Yeah. Awesome. I can’t thank you enough for for having me on the show.

Scott Cowan [01:04:34]:

Oh, it’s my pleasure. Thank you so much. You bet.

Scott Cowan [01:04:45]:

Join us next time for another episode of the exploring Washington state podcast.