PADDLING -- The rain-on-snow event that's making Inland Northwest roads and landscapes a mess is an opportunity to behold for paddlers and rafters. 

E-mails were buzzing today with the possibility of a rare opportunity this weekend to run boatable flows down Hangman Creek and the Palouse River.

If the forecast hold true, the rivers will be running big, brown and ugly with runoff, perfect for skilled paddlers properly dressed in dry suits and PFDs.