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Weekend at Heyburn State Park and Biking the Trail of the Coeur d'Alene

4/21/2015

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By Abby McAllister
Picture
We recently took the chance to check out Heyburn State Park in Idaho which is only 1 hour from our home in Spokane Valley, WA.  We've done some exploring around that area but never taken the time to camp out there.  After this weekend, I'm sure glad we finally took the time.  Heyburn State Park is the oldest state park in the Pacific Northwest and it is well worth a visit.  Here are some of the things we loved about it, shared in the hope of inspiring you to get your kids out in beautiful Idaho!
Let me start out with the campground itself.  Nestled in the trees on a hillside rising above Coeur d'Alene Lake is Hawley's Landing campground.  Boasting a horeshoe pit, it's own dock, showers, flush toilets, 42 electrical hook-up sites and 10 tent sites, this campground is a sweet little spot.  There are a few other overnight stay options (info here) but I'm just going to review Hawley's for now.  Even though the campground is just off the "main" road, it seemed much more remote.  Instead of car noise, we heard the honking of geese and the chatter of other waterfowl.  It felt private and close to nature.  

The sites themselves were well spaced, clean and each had a level spot for your tent, chairs, a picnic table and fire pit.  There were water spigots scattered around in most areas to make for easy access to potable water.  We were camped in the loop that was the farthest up the hill, the furthest from the lake.  Still, it only took moments to walk down to the waterfront where our kids enjoyed throwing rocks in the water, walking out on the docks, and trying to identify waterfowl from sight and sound.  Oh, and all those trees make for great hammock hanging!
Visitor center at the entrance to Hawley's landing campground
Entering campground
mom and baby getting hot chocolate ready
example of tent site near waterfront
Evening view of the dock area
sunset from the dock
sunrise from camp
Hammock time!
One of the main attractions of the campground for many people is it's proximity to the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes.  The Friends of the CDA Trail have this to say about it: "The Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes bike path follows the Union Pacific Railroad right-of-way from Mullan, a mountain mining town near the Montana border, to Plummer, a town on the prairie near the Washington border. More than 71 miles of paved path takes you from high mountain splendor, through the historic Silver Valley, into the chain lakes region, along the shore of Lake Coeur d'Alene, over the Chatcolet Bridge to Heyburn State Park, and finally climbs to the Palouse prairie: an adventure for the entire family!"  Now we only did the section from the parking area near the Chatcolet Bridge to Harrison, ID but we agree that it is fun for the whole family!  

You can get on the trail right out of Hawley's Landing campground but we chose to shave off two miles each way by driving the bikes to the parking area in Chatcolet.  From there we headed out on the path toward an intimidating looking bridge.  Because the path is along a former train route it is mostly flat.  This bridge is the only part that deviated from the norm.  It is intimidating to approach but it was constructed with an ingenious method of rises and rests that make it managable.  If you find it to be too steep to ride, you can always dismount and walk to the top.  Other than that it is smooth sailing along the banks of the beautiful Lake CDA.  We rode the approximately 7 miles to Harrison on a gorgeous, sunny early spring day.  The promis of an ice cream stop in Harrison spurred us on when we felt tired (mostly that just refers to me, as my boys never seem to tire out!).  


parking area in Chatcolet
Nice paved trail makes riding easy for young and old
Riding along the shores of beautiful Lake CDA
Peaceful and Private
Views from the top of the bridge
Bridge structure
More lake views
water to all sides!
Wildlife, like these deer, is abundant
After a delightful stop for ice cream in a waterfront shop in Harrison, we mounted up and rode back to camp.  On the way back we rode all the way back to camp in order to stop and check out an interpretive  boardwalk marsh trail.  This is located where the creek enters the lake just to the west of the campground.  There is a blind for viewing waterfowl and the boardwalk goes out further with some interpretive signs along the way. 
To summarize:  Hawley's Landing in Heyburn State Park (Idaho) is a great place to take your kids camping.  Attractions like water, docks, bike paths, grassy play areas, wildlife, waterfowl, and nice campsites make this a place your kids will enjoy.  And we all know, when the kids are having fun, mom and dad can relax and have fun too!
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Hiking Antoine Peak Conservation Area, with some Geocaching on the side

4/12/2015

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by Harley McAllister

With the Spring weather warming up our family is getting anxious to get out on the trails.  Thankfully the Spokane area has plenty of places nearby to get out and enjoy the outdoors - some are Natural Areas, some are Conservation Areas, some are State Parks, or County Parks, etc.  In the coming weeks we'll be reviewing  5 or 6 of our favorites so that you can learn about them and then go experience them for yourselves.

This past weekend we took a quick trip to Antoine Peak Conservation Area for a couple hours in the afternoon.  The trail is easy enough for anyone, the views along the path are fantastic, and it felt good to be outside even if the breeze was a bit on the chilly side.  We also took the time to find 3 of the dozens of geocaches located here, which always serves as extra motivation for the boys to get outside.  We'll be posting more about geocaching in the coming weeks as well.

When we went in early April the wildflowers were just starting, and the Arrowleaf Balsamroot were getting ready to come out in force.  Now is a great time to get out there.

Once we have finished our blog reviews of our favorite spots we will follow that up with more detailed trip reports in that section of our website.  So stay tuned!

Picture of hiking Antoine Peak Conservation Area family kids
Great views from the trail.
Picture of geocaching Antoine Peak Conservation Area
Finding the geocache.
Picture of hiking Antoine Peak with family kids
At the top!
Thank goodness for baby backpacks!
The first cache.
The boys on the trail.
The trail is an access road and so it is easy enough for anyone.
Another cache with fun surprises.
Taking it off-trail.
This is what happens when the boys get tired of having their pictures taken!
Solitude can be found close to town.
Some geocache items have tracking numbers so you can see where they have traveled.
Great views of the valley.
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    Authors

    Harley & Abby McAllister
    We are an adventurous husband and wife duo who drag our 4 feral kids outside with us as often as we can stand it!  Maybe, just maybe, our adventures will help inspire you! 

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