The true “spirit of New Orleans” is making its way north of the 48th parallel this year. A group of fun-loving Sandpoint business owners has been planning more than a year in advance for the first-ever “Madcap Mardi Gras” celebration from Friday, Feb. 28 through Fat Tuesday, March 4.

The party begins with a 12-hole, miniature golf scramble in a variety of downtown businesses and ends with the “Fat Tuesday Finale” in an assortment of local pubs. A highlight of the five-day celebration will be “The Follies,” put on by Angels Over Sandpoint, sure to be a popular crowd-pleaser.

Madcap will serve up many more cures for late winter’s cabin fever. While non-profit participants will benefit from a part of the proceeds, “This is fun-raising, not fund-raising,” said Marsha Ogilvie, committee chairman. “We’re all doing this just to have fun.”

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– Trish Gannon