Rediscovering the Centennial Trail
By the hour or by the day, the Spokane River Centennial Trail has been delivering priceless recreation opportunities since 1989.
I was reminded of this Sunday as my daughter and I had a wedge of get-together time Sunday before she would head off with a college friend and I would depart for a scheduled fishing trip.
Exercise is an elixir for down-time and dead-beat moments in our house, and the options around Spokane are endless.
But few are any sweeter than a couple hours of pedaling on the Centennial Trail.
As most locals know, the paved route runs about 37 miles from Nine Mile Falls east to the state line and links with the North Idaho Centennial Trail to continue another 24 miles to Higgens Point on Lake Coeur d’Alene.
Nobody living in the river cities of Spokane, Spokane Valley, Post Falls or Coeur d’Alene is more than a few minutes from this ribbon of recreation through native flora and fauna. Considering the natural beauty and convenience, it’s no surprise the trail attracts something like 1.7 million visits a year.
Just 15 minutes from our house, we were biking the 11-mile stretch from T.J. Meenach Bridge westward through Riverside State Park to Nine Mile Falls. This is the hilliest and perhaps the windiest section of the paved route. The river is a constant companion, with overlooks that beg visitors to stop and ogle at the Bowl and Pitcher and other standout features.
Bicycling, walking, running or in-line skating on pavement void of motor vehicles is a pleasure rivaling a summer trip in Alaska with no mosquitoes.
I thought back to the years I lived in the Spokane Valley and often commuted 16 miles to work by bicycle through busy streets. Nowadays most of that route would be on a trail, where commuters are bringing to work stories of moose, marmots and bunnies instead of brushes with extended mirrors and road rage.
With my pack rod strapped to my bike rack, I’ve easily accessed excellent trout runs via the Centennial Trail. Vehicle shuttles are a cinch for paddlers and rafters on several sections of the river where a bicycle can be left at the take-out for a quick and pleasant return ride to the put-in.
As for last Sunday, even though I’ve been along the Spokane river countless times by foot, bike and canoe, I marveled again watching the river transform from the rushing water at Bowl and Pitcher to mellow willow-draped slackwater downstream from Plese Flats.
You don’t have to be rich to be on this prized real estate.
Hundreds of people volunteer each year to join the Friends of the Centennial Trail to clean up a section of the route and help Riverside State Park managers keep it sparkling for all to enjoy.
I’m surprised the number of volunteers isn’t in the tens of thousands.
“We continue to work to improve the trail,” said Friends group director Kaye Turner. “Our top projects are addressing safety at Mission Street and Argonne areas and working on a connection from downtown to Riverside State Park. Meantime, we’ve painted mileage markers on the trail and we’re looking for more grants and volunteers.”
The route remains a work in progress, worth a little bit of everyone’s attention, whether you’re wielding a broom or a bike.
The only problem with wedging a 22-mile bike ride into less than two hours on the Centennial Trail is that we had to pass up most of the overlooks and the numerous side trails fit for hiking and mountain biking.
Next time, we’ll allow the entire day.