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Today's activities include a community church service at 8 a.m. at the ballpark, Lions Club pancake breakfast, mud volleyball, Southeast Webster Grand alumni coed slow pitch, and the River Days raffle drawing will be at 11 a.m. The library book sale will continue from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

LEHIGH - The parade celebrating the 28th annual Lehigh River Days could be heard downtown way before anyone standing on the sidewalks in the business district could see it.

The wail of fire truck sirens carried well across the river, letting those on the west side of the river know that on the east side, the parade was under way.

One of those standing in the shade waiting for the floats to come by was Mike Lane, of Fort Dodge. It had taken him and hour and a half to get there on his bike.

"I elected to stay and watch the parade," he said. "I like to see the veterans and the bands and watch the kids go after the candy."

As an added bonus, he got to wave at some of his friends who were riding on floats before pedaling back to Fort Dodge.

Bill Murray, of Dayton, found a shady spot by the bridge to watch the parade go by, something he's done more than a few times before.

"I've been to about every one they've had," he said.

Murray said he has a special fondness for horses and likes to see them in the parade. He was a little disappointed with the number of equines represented, and tractors were a poor substitute for him.

"Them tractors," he said, "I've sat on them too long to love them too much."

Kevin Griffith, of Lehigh, enjoyed a shady seat on the bridge while the parade went by. The event is his favorite of the various activities the River Days celebration has to offer.

"It's the only place that gives out free candy," he said, while checking out a nearly full bag of goodies, "If it makes it through the weekend I'll be lucky."

Griffith said he enjoys the annual celebration and proudly admitted it's an event he looks forward to.

Following the parade there were several events in the ballpark including a flea market, talent show, car show and games along with chain-saw carving.

Olivia Mitchell, 9, of Evanston, was dividing her time between playing the 4-H games and helping with them. She particularly liked one game that would prove popular as they day grew warmer - seeing how many pennies she could take from the bottom of a 5-gallon bucket filled to the brim with ice water.

Sadie Hoare, 5, of Lehigh, was enjoying the day as she carried an inflatable Scooby-Doo doll that was almost as tall as she was around the flea market. She was pretty happy that not only did she get to celebrate River Days, it was also her birthday.

Mike Coleson, of Lehigh, helped out a friend with his tables at the flea market. He also did a little shopping from the other vendors and in spite of looking over several items and half a dozen hats, he didn't quite locate anything he couldn't live without.

"At least not yet," he said, before moving on to another table.

A number of people brought along their dancing, singing and other entertainment skills to take part in the talent contest. One of those, Lena Gripp, 12, of Webster City, danced along to the song "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing," which apparently, it did.

"I like the song," she said. "Plus I know all the parts."

She explained that she likes to dance because it uses up a lot of energy.

For Coral O'Hearn, whose front yard faces the ballpark activities, Saturday morning and early afternoon was spent cleaning out her shop building. She took advantage of the traffic flow in front of her home to place a few surplus items on the curb with a free sign.

"I hope they take it," she said.

Melanie Murray, the director of the Lehigh Public Library, was keeping busy with its annual book sale being held in the fire station. Besides the many book selections, she was also trying to get a few copies of the Lehigh Cookbook published in 1994 out the door at the bargain basement price of $3 a copy.

"I still have 22 boxes," she said. "Please come down and buy them."

The book features Italian recipes from the Gardini sisters, Sparky and Blackie, who ran a grocery store in Lehigh and for those with a sense of adventure, a recipe for beer and squirrel.

The public can do that today as the sale continues in the fire station.

Other events on the slate include a community church service at the ballpark at 8 a.m., Lions Club pancake breakfast, mud volleyball and the Southeast Webster Grand alumni coed slow pitch softball game and the River Days raffle drawing at 11 a.m.

Contact Hans Madsen at (515) 573-2141 or hmadsen@messengernews.net