Coeur d’Alene, ID: Rocky Mountain High - June 21st - 24th

Lake Couer d'Alene just around sunset

Hello again, Fam and Friends, from Coeur d'Alene, Idaho! 

I have an unusual relationship with Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, rooted in a day of tragedy for our country.   On September 10, 2001 I left Chicago O’Hare on a (very delayed) redeye business trip flight to Vancouver, Canada with three other colleagues from Motorola.   We arrived early on the morning of September 11th (around 2 am) and checked into our hotel.    I remember quite vividly being woken up by my cell phone, with Cindy frantically describing to me the tragedy that was unfolding at the World Trade Center in NYC and Washington DC that day.

As you all might remember, air travel was halted for a few days, and after it was resumed it was very difficult to get on a flight.  So my colleagues and I made the decision to drive our rental car from Vancouver back to Chicago.    On our way, one of the places we passed through was Coeur d’Alene.  I thought it was the most beautiful place I had ever seen, and I promised myself that Cindy and I would get back here someday.    23 years later, here we are, and Coeur d’Alene did not disappoint….

AirBnB kitchen and family room

Since we planned to be here for 3 nights, we opted for an AirBnB instead of a hotel near downtown Coeur d’Alene, the first AirBnB of this trip.  The AirBnB far exceeded our expectations - it was new, expansive and really well appointed, and it was so nice to be able to cook our own meals. 

We were captivated by Coeur d’Alene on the drive in.  It’s hard to capture in pictures the dense forests, turbulent rivers and deep blue lakes that surround this place.   Towering Ponderosa Pines, Yellow Pines and Douglas Firs cover the mountains, and wildflowers are blooming everywhere. 

That first night we went to Tubb’s Hill, a hiking trail right in downtown Coeur d’Alene.  It winds around Lake Coeur D’Alene, and Cindy and I were impressed that there is such a beautiful and interesting hike right in the middle of the downtown area.   This city has made a big investment in its outdoor areas - expansive pedestrian/biking bridges, as well as a vibrant downtown district.   

We cooked our first dinner at the AirBnB: salmon, smashed potatoes and green beans; it was a great to have some home cooking.   

On Saturday, we slept in (that means I got up at 6:30am and Cindy got up at 10am 😀).   It was nice not to have an activity in the morning that we had to rush to.   I had made reservations in the afternoon for us to rent our first E-Bikes in order to traverse a portion of the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes, a 73 mile trail that crosses the lake and goes through some beautiful nature areas.    Cindy and I had never ridden e-bikes before - in fact, we often ridiculed them as being for “cheaters”.     We rented e-bikes at the Cyclehaus - I rented a Rad Rover Power 6 Plus and Cindy rented the Veller Long Range. 

We had a blast on the e-bikes!   They completely transform the biking experience.  Even at the lowest assist level they make a difference pedaling up hills, and we were able to easily ride 30+ miles and not feel tired.   Trying them really changed our minds about e-bikes.   It might be best to have both a regular bike and an e-bike - with the e-bike, it’s very tempting to use the assist whenever the going gets tough, so the cardio benefits of biking might be negated.   But being able to cover a lot more ground and see so much more of a trail is a definite plus. And they are a great equalizer for people that aren’t able to ride bikes for longer distances.

Besides the E-Bikes, the Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes was beautiful.   Lots of wildflowers, rock formations, trees, and the bridge across the lake is very impressive.   The Cyclehaus bike shop is located in Harrison, Idaho, a quaint town of 267 people, and the town had live music, restaurants, bars and a beach.   We took the opportunity to put our feet in the water and cool down in this amazing setting.

After our bike ride, we returned to the AirBnB to make dinner (Greek Salad with Pitas), and then went to a local establishment recommended by our AirBnB host called the Winehouse.   It was karaoke night (we didn’t participate), and it was fun to see the locals out having a great time.

Ironman biking right
outside our door!

On Sunday morning, we awoke to the sounds of the Coeur d’Alene half-Ironman, where the contestants swim 1.2 miles, bike 56 miles and run a half-marathon.   All the streets around our AirBnB were closed, and we could watch the cyclists speeding past our AirBnB and later those same contestants running by.   We walked downtown to watch the finish line, it was really a festive atmosphere.  We sat with the wife of one of the contestants, it was fun to see the excitement on her face (and our faces!) as her husband came into the final stretch and finished.   

We left the Ironman in time to attend a downtown church called Doxa, a church plant here in Coeur d’Alene from the Acts:29 project.   We weren’t familiar with any of that, but based on the church’s website and proximity to our AirBnB it seemed like a good church to visit.   The people were welcoming, it was a very small church (they had just graduated from meeting in the Pastors living room to this location), and we really enjoyed the music,  message and talking to all the wonderful people at this church.

Later that day we hiked the Mineral Ridge Trail, a National Recreation Area.  The hike had about an 800 foot elevation gain and lots of incredible views:

We finished the day with a spinach frittata dinner at our AirBnB, and prepared for leaving the next morning.

When I originally planned our trip to Coeur d’Alene I thought we would stay far outside the city and focus on all the incredible hikes to the north and south, including the Bitterroot Mountains.   I hadn’t even considered all the attractions of the city, but that’s what became the draw us in for this trip - we really enjoyed everything about this city and surrounding area, and we look forward to coming back in the future to explore the surrounding areas and the amazing ecology of Northern Idaho.  

Tomorrow, we head to the Columbia River Gorge National Scenic area, looking forward to another adventure.  Until then….