Coeur D'alene: Nature, Trails, and History

On a trip to Coeur D'alene, you can explore nature, trails, a swimming beach, and regional history as distinct highlights. To help plan your stay, first consider what kind of experience you’re looking for: time on hiking trails, a longer trail route, a swimming beach, or insights into the history of North Idaho. If you’re looking for a hotel, you can decide on this priority before comparing specific options.

Tubbs Hill: Nature Park and Hiking Trails

Tubbs Hill is a 165-acre nature park. Lake Coeur d'Alene borders the park to the west, south, and east. Together, the park’s size and its three-sided boundary with the lake give you a clear sense of the landscape at Tubbs Hill.

Tubbs Hill has several miles of hiking trails. A 2.2-mile interpretive trail also runs along the edge of the park. These two figures refer to different scales: several miles describes the trail network as a whole, while 2.2 miles refers to a specific trail along the edge. If you’d like to include a single trail in your plans, the interpretive trail has a stated length; the larger figure describes the entire hiking trail network.

The North Idaho Centennial Trail

The North Idaho Centennial Trail covers a longer distance. It is 23 miles long and extends from the Idaho-Washington border to Higgins Point, 6 miles east of Coeur d'Alene. At the state border, it connects with the Spokane River Centennial Trail. These named endpoints and the connection at the border make its route clear. Compared with the several miles of hiking trails at Tubbs Hill and the 2.2-mile interpretive trail, the 23-mile figure describes a longer route with clearly specified endpoints.

Swimming Beach and Regional History

Coeur d'Alene City Park has a swimming beach. This offers a distinct option alongside the hiking trails. Whereas Tubbs Hill and the North Idaho Centennial Trail are defined by their trails, the swimming beach at City Park offers a place to swim. When deciding on your trip, you can therefore consider whether to prioritize trails or a place with a swimming beach.

The Museum of North Idaho preserves and shares the history of North Idaho. Its focus is on the people, places, and stories that have shaped this unique community. This is different from the nature and trail experiences: here, the focus is on regional history and community, while the other highlights mentioned are a nature park, trails, or a swimming beach. The museum also offers tours that bring history to life. Availability may vary; check before your trip to see whether a tour is offered during your dates.

Discover more destinations: Hayden, Bayview, Post Falls, Hayden Lake, Rathdrum, Huetter, Worley, Cataldo

For the main travel overview: Kootenai County.