For my first visit to the northern peninsula of Idaho, I decided to make a stop in the town of…read moreCoeur d'Alene. Coeur d'Alene has a charming downtown waterfront and it's here where you'll find this Tubbs Hill Trail. I believe hiking along Tubbs Hill represents the city of Coeur d'Alene well. It's an easy 2 mile round trip loop that oversees the harbor from a distance. Basically, it's a perfectly fine nature trail. There are 26 or 27 posted marker signs along the trail to guide you (including a halfway point). It's absolutely impossible to get lost, lol. To be specific on where Tubbs Hill Trail officially begins, you can find the starting point right next to the Rotary Harbor House (which looked like a relaxing spot to grab some fish tacos and catch views from the pier). Since the hike is a loop, if you begin by going off to the right hand side, there are spots along the way to descend down the rockside and go swimming in Lake Coeur d'Alene. I noticed a lot of people were relaxing and lounging out on the rocks while taking refreshing breaks in the water. If this sounds enticing, then remember to bring your bathing suit and a towel, lol. The first part of the hike offers panoramic lookouts of not only the boats docked beside the waterfront, but also the historical landmark - Hotel Coeur d'Alene. Eventually you wrap your way around in a circle getting to enjoy the great outdoors. It's a chance to breathe in fresh air from the lake without having to work hard. There's barely any incline/decline along the 2 mile path. It took me one hour to complete the hike. Lastly, parking can be difficult in downtown Coeur d'Alene. Independence Point is a popular area to park, but they do charge by the hour and every spot was occupied when I arrived in the middle of the day. I resorted to parking on a sidestreet next to the Coeur d'Alene shopping district. Though, cars on side streets are only permitted for 2 hour intervals at a time. Overall, Tubbs Hill Trail was a pleasant hiking activity. Pair it with maybe taking a cruise out on the lake or walking around the Boardwalk Marina (the "world's longest floating boardwalk" if you can believe) and you'll discover the best of what Coeur d'Alene has to offer.

Beautiful place to hike near the lake with plenty of scenic views and places to rest.read more

Great area with a huge grass area and covered picnic tables (being used for a birthday party when…read morewe visited). From the parking lot you can walk down to access the river and a rocky beach. Great place to float and swim and get some relief from the summer heat. It was busy with families and quite a few dogs when we went. The river was calm and the water was beautiful-a few eagle sightings completed our day! Definitely recommend taking a beach day and bringing a cooler to enjoy this spot during the summer!

This is a great place to stop with kids or to take a romantic walk with your partner. It's right…read morealong the River and there's lots to view. And it's a nice place to spend a few minutes communing with nature.

Very good trail Flat and not clogged path. And it is not…read morevery difficult. Quite a beautiful for, just right for walks

I hiked Stevens Creek Trail on a hot, weekday evening. Who knew that Spokane could get so hot. It…read moreseemed to be in the 90s for multiple weeks in a row. My theory is that the desert plains of central WA allows hot air to flow north unobstructed by mountain ranges. The heat didn't stop me, it only shortened my hikes. Stevens Creek Trail is another collection of trails that would give an experienced hiker new trails for a full day of hiking. I only hiked to the top, for a view of the protected forest and hay farms below, but the trails headed deeper in the forest along the top of a ridge. I never saw any deer or bears on my hikes in these forest ranges, but this hike in particular had many signs posted to watch out for bears. I think the sign would be more relevant for evening or morning hikes. All the bears are lying down in the shade when it's 95 degrees and sunny, waiting for cooler temperatures before they return to foraging. That doesn't mean that there weren't many animals in the forest. It was a turkey bonanza everywhere around Spokane. There were more turkeys than I'd ever seen in my life. There were turkey packs in the forest, meadow, in front yards, and even at the bus stop across from the grocery store. It was if they knew that the closer they were to civilization, the safer they would be from hunters.

Great park with nicely paved trails appropriate for kids, bikes, those who may be older or have…read moremobility issues, etc. It's currently under construction but still a nice place to get outside. Park space for kids is limited but there are a few swings, a climbing area and a couple of slides. Picnic tables are available and it seems to be a good fishing spot as there were quite a few fishermen about this afternoon!

Beautiful multi-use park and recreation area in Post Falls…read more The park planners did a great job integrating spaces with the landscape. The park has various unique areas, and is well shaded and serene. There's a lot of twists and turns, hidden areas, and elevation changes that make the park feel bigger than it is. There's a restroom, playground, open area for events, fishing pond, and some historic areas/signage, as well as great views of a dam and falls.

Nice and moderate trail suitable for kids ages 4 and up to hike on their own. Can get up and around…read moreand back down again in a couple hours. Good views from the very top. A few sights along the way including rather unimpressive looking depressions in the ground where miners of yore apparently went digging for minerals. Also, a shallow cave representing the same such activities.

We visited during covid times and were looking for a place to get out and about and socially…read moredistance. A server at a local restaurant suggested we check this out. We're always looking for shortish loop hikes and this seemed perfect, although perhaps more elevation gain than my partner preferred. There is a parking lot and bathroom at the bottom, including some trash cans and picnic tables. Plenty of benches along the trail to take a break and admire the scenery. The interpretive activity was too complicated for us to figure out even with the help of our smart phones. A some point you can veer off the trail and peak inside a small cave. When you reach the top you can take some pictures and take in the view. It does seem like it might make any trip to the area complete and is a great way to burn off some excess energy if you feel like you've been stuck in the car for way too long, like me.

We found this state park while driving to Canada. Excellent little campground with trails. The…read moretrail was easy not steep at all. Not gravely either. I am glad we found this place. Very few people were on site when we visited.

We stayed this last weekend at round lake with some friends and family. We rented three sites next…read moreto each other. As soon as we arrived the people in front of us quickly got stuck because of the boulders that are placed everywhere. The people that work there sat in the golf cart and proceeded to watch them for thirty minutes. My spouse had to help with 3 others to jiggle a boulder so they can gain an inch of room. The area where they ask you to put up tents on are white rock filled area next to our fire pit and picnic table. We were asked to not use the "ground" dirt to camp but did point out many tents using this. The rules are ridiculous, no hammocks , and if you are disabled and use a cane like I do good luck maneuvering around the unnecessary costly boulders that are not an improvement but a waste of cost. Never again will I or seventeen others visit again. Enjoy your boulders.

BEAUTIFUL PARK! Recommend it for littles or all ages! Walking Trails for everyone, park for littles…read moreand a sandy beach to put your toes in! And a beautiful lake to view or to swim in even fishing just don't forget to bring your fishing gear! or beach kit so your little could enjoy it the beach!

This place is absolutely gorgeous! We needed a pass to park but were able to get one at the rangers…read morestation.

I have renamed this favorite spot of mine Paranoia Falls. Lean closer and let me tell you the…read morestory of the time me and my sister decided to explore here... Upon researching a map of the area around Kingston Idaho I came upon some interesting waterfalls and decided to further investigate using Google. The photographs although very few were very pleasing and my interest was piqued when someone commented that there was a case behind one of the waterfalls thus the trip was born. I called up my sister and told Maggie that we were going to go on a trip to see some waterfalls so we packed our cameras and set up for this wonderful adventure. After a 50 minute drive down Route 90 we came upon Forest Road nine and proceeded to take that approximately 25 miles until we sold yet another tiny sign which we almost passed that said Shadow Falls. We proceeded up this treacherous array of mountain switchbacks so tiny that at times the tires touched the side of the cliff which was not protected by a guard rail. Clutching the dashboard with eyes wide with terror I watched her every move as we slowly climbed the steep grade and were greeted with logs across a river water was running across the logs so she had to go on it to get across and then the went skiing for about 10 feet and we landed on the other side of this treacherous muddy pass. Several heart pounding moments later we arrived at a vacant car pull off and it was beginning to get dark. A large mousse with a massive horns walked right by us and disappeared into the forest. We proceeded to walk up a path which was promised only 200 yards away and was greeted with waterfall number one the name was fern falls. We enjoyed this first waterfall thoroughly. There is a small foot bridge over it and I got to take many fabulous photographs. Then we proceeded to shadow falls which was promised to be nearby however we got maybe about 50 steps into the darkening forest and were stopped in our tracks by a low rumbling growl which seemed to be coming from all directions. Now here we were alone in the forest. The sounds of much larger mammals was present as we heard the ever growing presence of crackling underbrush and snapping forest floor twigs. It was then that we had a come to Jesus meeting about if we should continue up the hill and yes we did continue and were within eyeshot of shadow falls when all of a sudden a distinct growl not far from us came thundering from the trees and we were instantly paranoid. With no other human being inside and the sun setting unusually fast we tore off running down the hill after a failed test of the bear spray which I had a death grip on. My 250 pounds sister was so scared she blew right by me and like an Olympic runner left me in the dust the only thing I remember at that point was seeing her britches falling off of her and if you have ever dropped a pan of fresh baked bread and dropped it on the floor you will understand what I was now looking at!!!! With my heart pounding at least 180 bpm I caught up with her near the small dark parking spot and I recall slamming open the doors throwing in everything and the next thing I knew the jeep was in reverse. We were gone. Recommendation - do not go alone. Do not go in a small car with low clearance. Go early the sun sets very fast way up in that mountain. Take bear spray and possibly a baseball bat.

A beautiful set of falls with a great setting for family pictures. Go north from Prichard for 15…read moremiles on NFD Rd 208 the on a nice dirt rd travel 4 miles to a parking area for a short hike. The pictures do not do it justice.

It's ok. Not a destination trip by any means, but if you live in and around Spokane it can be a…read moreconvenient and reliable pop-off for hiking or skiing I've heard the skiing is not as great as the nearby competing mountains, and I believe that to be true from my few cross-country experiences this past winter. Winter access means buying a special "Snow Pass" which is something like $80. If you thought your Annual Discover pass would cover you, you're SOL. For someone looking for unfettered access year-round, that's about $115.

Mount Spokane State Park is a 12,000 acre state park with over 100 miles of trails. It takes about…read more45 minutes to get to the trails from downtown Spokane, but it's a picturesque drive that takes you through farms, before transitioning to farm with forest then ending with thick forest. The trees grow denser the farther up the mountain you go. The climate on Mount Spokane is very humid and is cooler that downtown Spokane. The maintains the green vegetation and provides a more comfortable hiking environment when the rest of Spokane is in the high 80s and 90s. Based on our afternoon at Mount Spokane, I could see how the cool, wet climate would make for a great cross country skiing venue. We only hiked on about 4% of the trails but they were very well maintained and had maps at multiple intersections to assist hikers. The maps took a few minutes to decipher but at least they were there. I've been on many hiking and biking trails where you are forced to use instinct and hope that you did some rudimentary maps research before the hike. One side effect of the dense forest is that there are not many vistas available to hikers because you have to look through the dense pine. I suppose this is a drawback to hiking in wet environments rather than in the desert. On the plus side, the dense pine trees mean that there is always enough shade. My wife showed appreciation for this fact. Many runners passed us on the trail. At first I thought it was a trail running club. It was not until the 4th or 5th hiker until we noticed their bibs. I asked one of the next runners about their race and he said that they were running a 50k. That would be an extraordinary distance to run on such a hilly trail. Maybe one day I can reach that distance but I'm still trying to progress beyond my 5k trail runs.

Is there any better way to start off your Saturday than at the beach?…read moreNOPE! Located just north of the city of Coeur D'Alene sits Hayden Lake, perfectly nestled in a quaint neighborhood with hillside homes and shady trees. Although a little small, the beach features plenty of areas to camp out near the shore or up the beach in the shade, and a dock to the right allowing for small watercrafts to launch into the water. We spotted the perfect spot for our party of 7 and set up camp. Docks surround the swimming area which allows for plenty of water depths to swim/float/dive/ect in! It was a beautiful day and the cold water felt amazing. The kids made sandcastles while the adults swam, floated and soaked up the sun. The snack shack features a wide variety of food and cold drinks ranging from sodas, and popsicles to pizzas, corndogs and more. Sure, prices are a little steep for the generic food, when I came back to the umbrella boasting cold popsicles, the kiddos loved it! The only major downside is parking. There isn't a designated lot, but spots line the road for at least a mile, so if you can't snag a spot up close (like we did!) be prepared to walk and schlep all your jazz to the beach. However, when back visiting family, I'd easily return to this quaint slice of paradise!

This little city beach is such a gem! The perfect balance of a small town attraction…read more The floating dock is perfect to dive , fish or just walk around. It enclosed an area for kids to swim around without having to worry about boats. The sandy beach area backs up to a grass. So play or lay in the sand or relax on the grass. Partly shady gives you options to take cover if it's too hot outside. Has a snack bar that is only seasonal. A volleyball area with a few picnic tables. A boat launch area and Bathrooms too. There's also a section with kids life jackets to use at not cost. The place is absolutely gorgeous. It's almost unreal The downside - it can get packed pretty quickly. So not a lot of elbow room on the those summer days when everyone wants to get out. There's not many options for parking. So if you're not lucky enough to snag a spot up close. You could end up parking 1/4 mile away. Still an amazing place to relax and have fun ! A must do !