Centennial Trail

I spent Labor Day weekend hiking the Spokane River Centennial Trail between Spokane and Coeur d'Alene. The whole Centennial Trail is more than 60 miles long: a paved trail that starts about ten miles west of Spokane and ends about eight miles east of Coeur d'Alene. I didn't hike the whole 60 miles last weekend, only about 38 miles, which, done over three days, wasn't too bad. Since the trail basically runs through a metro area, there are hotels and restaurants along the way (not right on the trail but not too far away), which meant that I wouldn't have to carry a sleeping bag or tent or anything like that. I have to admit that was the major allure of the trail--one of my coworkers pointed out that a person could hike for days carrying nothing but a credit card.



I started from work (near downtown Spokane) on Friday afternoon and hiked about 8 miles that night, staying overnight in Spokane Valley. This section of the trail ran along busy Upriver Drive, mostly just on the shoulder of the road. Being that close to the traffic wasn't always pleasant; plenty of what I assume (and hope!) were high school kids honked or yelled out their windows as they drove by (because we all know how hilarious it is to frighten a pedestrian). But I had faith that the second day would be better, and it was.

I hiked about 18 miles on Saturday, from the Valley into Post Falls. This was the prettiest part of the trail. About two miles in, the trail left the major roads completely and just followed the river through the backcountry (or as close to backcountry as you can get when you're about three miles from a mall). There were lots of people using the trail: joggers, bikers, skaters, and families out for a stroll. The view was beautiful, with the Spokane hills looming above us and the river winding its way through the valley. The Canadian geese seem to think it's time for winter already (and I hope they're wrong!!!) because flocks of them flew overhead all day. I couldn't imagine a more pleasant day for hiking.

This picture on the right is a monument that commemorates the slaughter of 800 horses on that spot. I had to read through it a few times to make sure it really said what I thought it said. Yep, 800 horses were killed right here, to make sure the Indians didn't go to war. Seems like a weird thing to commemorate. Maybe if I had grown up in Washington and studied Washington history, I'd understand why this slaughter was a good thing.


After about 8 or 9 miles of hiking through the magnificent countryside, the trail joined up with the freeway. It wasn't right on the freeway, of course. There was a whole ten feet of space (and a chain-link fence) separating me from the cars that were thundering down the road at 80 mph. The rest of the way into Post Falls, the trail would meander farther away from the freeway (which was lovely) and then back again (which wasn't). I'm sure there was a reason the trail had to be that close to the freeway, but it's a shame, especially with all the beautiful country nearby.

I slept HARD that night, and started out the next day for Coeur d'Alene. I haven't spent much time in Post Falls, so I was happy to see that the trail went through the older parts of town. It was picturesque, with a public square, some little shops, and a diner. There were even some kids running a lemonade stand! All too soon, the trail re-joined the freeway and followed the freeway the rest of the way into Coeur d'Alene. The trail had left the river at the Idaho border, so the view at this point was basically the freeway on one side and various warehouses or lumberyards on the other side. The mountains in the distance were pretty, though. I stayed overnight and took the Greyhound back to Spokane the next morning.

So since I've now hiked most of the Centennial Trail, on this trip and other trips, here's a quick review for others who might want to hike it. In my opinion, the prettiest parts are: north of Riverside State Park (miles 31-37 in Washington), between downtown Spokane and Mission park (approx. miles 20-23 in Washington), and miles 3-12 in Washington (the part I described above, between Post Falls and Spokane Valley). Coincidentally (or not so coincidentally), these are the parts where the trail doesn't follow a major road. I've been told that the trail east of Coeur d'Alene is very pretty too, but I haven't hiked it yet.

There are long stretches where there's not a separate trail and it just follows city streets. In Washington, the trail along these streets is well-marked and easy to follow. On the Idaho side, however, they seem to assume you've bought a map before starting out (I got mine for $3.50 at REI). In Post Falls especially, the trail winds back and forth along several city streets, and without a map it would be difficult to know where to turn.

It was fun. It was beautiful. I was tired when I got done, and I'm still tired. I'd do sections of it again, but probably not the whole thing.