Spokane backpacker gets away from it all without leaving town

The front porch of my house became a trailhead recently for a three-day backpack trip through the forests and woods around Spokane.

While working on a guide to hiking areas close to Spokane and Coeur d’Alene, I’ve discovered an extensive system of protected areas close to town.

With many of them adjacent to one another or separated by a walkable distance, I came up with a 53-mile loop that took me to Spokane’s southern city limits, then north past Nine Mile Dam, that started and finished at my porch.

On a gray, wet morning, I walked 3 miles from my home just west of the NorthTown Mall to the T.J. Meenach Bridge, jumping on a trail that follows the river below Summit Drive. The thick underbrush soaked my pants, and as I approached downtown, I wondered if passersby thought I was a drifter who spent the night camped along the river.

I crossed the river at the Sandifur Bridge and took a trail that parallels Latah Creek. Passing under High Bridge and the Interstate-90 bridge, I got onto a path that leads to the extensive trail system below High Drive.

Though a weekday, I encountered runners, mountain bikers and a few walkers as I headed south, keeping high on the bluff. Eventually I came to a spur trail that leads to High Drive near the Rocket Market on 43rd. I did what few backpackers can claim doing while on a trail – I stopped at a coffee shop and had a mocha and pastry.

Leaving The Rocket recharged, I took the spur trail back down and continued south.

I skirted Qualchan Golf Course and met a woman warning me she had two dogs and a cat on the trail. The dogs trotted by and bringing up the rear was a cat, hustling to catch up, reminiscent of the movie “Homeward Bound.”

I followed trails southward downhill on one of several trails heading down to Latah Creek overlooking the Campion Natural Area, which runs up to U.S. Highway 195 and Hatch Road.

Then I eased northward again, staying on a lower trail below the South Hill bluffs this time. Several trails parallel each other in this city-owned area. They have connecting paths and multiple access points from High Drive and are popular with hikers, runners, bikers and dog walkers.

The volunteer-made paths converge the farther north you go and the closer you get to downtown until there’s just one trail. I retraced my steps and after passing under High Bridge, took a trail that climbs the hillside and ends at Browne’s Addition.

A friend who lives on the bluff overlooking Latah Creek let me put up a tent in her yard for the night.

At 21 miles, I figured it was a decent first-day start to my urban backpacking loop.

After visiting with my host, I climbed into the tent and woke at 2 a.m. to heed nature’s call, just as I would in the wilderness. When I knelt to crawl back inside, I had another wilderness experience as an animal frantically raced inside, searching for an exit. The rain fly prevented me seeing what it was. I sat back, and a moment later it burst past me.

It was Max, my friend’s cat.

I got up early and I walked to the neighborhood coffee shop. On my way back to the tent, a man in the street pushed an empty shopping cart. Probably a homeless guy starting his morning rounds. As we passed, I saw it was an old friend who got some tomato plants from me only a week earlier.

He’s an attorney, and it struck me that things must have gone bad for him real quick. I called out his name. Turns out he was pushing the cart back to the grocery store. His office was only a couple of blocks away.

After taking down the tent, I walked a mile and a half on the roadside to The Palisades, another city-owned natural area. At the top I paused to watch low-flying planes on their final approach to Spokane International Airport. The former Rimrock Road is now gated and closed to motorized vehicles, providing a pleasant path for walking and biking with abundant views of downtown and beyond.

I descended Rimrock at the north end, crossed Government Way, and arrived at the Veterans Cemetery Trailhead. I followed the Centennial Trail about a quarter mile before branching off on a dirt trail.

I walked off-trail a bit before encountering a group of horse riders. One horse backed away, on the verge of being out of control. The rider shouted urgently, “Say hello!” When I yelled out, the horse immediately calmed.

Wearing a large backpack made me look like an unfamiliar creature, the rider said. Saying hello lets the horse know I’m a human.

It reminded me of a similar situation in reverse. When the Aztecs first saw mounted Spanish conquistadors in the 16th century, they thought horse and rider were one animal.

I passed the Bowl and Pitcher and got onto a trail on the west bank of the Spokane River. I paused where a bunch of cedar waxwings were snagging insects in midair like bats, but with much less agility. With their fine, delicate feathers, unusual coloring, and pointed head, cedar waxwings are one of the most beautiful of our native birds.

As I skirted Deep Creek Canyon north of Seven Mile, I caught sight of a deer bedded down close to the trail. I expected him to trot off. Instead he and I stayed put as if waiting to see who’d blink first.

I snapped a couple of photos before the deer tore off some bunch grass while still bedded down like he was in it for the long haul.

I didn’t care if I blocked trail traffic for a week – I would not capitulate. Eventually he got up and ambled off. I gave myself a pat on the back. I may not have the speed of a deer, but when it comes to patience, I’m superior.

I arrived at the Nine Mile Recreation Area Campground on Long Lake. All the tent sites were full, so I was put up in the overflow parking area. It was grassy, secluded and quiet. Perfect.

I was up at 5:15 the next morning and took trails through the Nine Mile Recreation Area to State Route 291. After a mile walk along the highway, I took the Indian Painted Rocks trail, crossed Rutter Parkway, and found a birder scoping out some prime habitat.

We chatted for a bit and I learned the identity of the bird I saw cavorting with the cedar waxwings the day before.

I walked out of the Little Spokane Natural Area near the fish hatchery on Waikiki with a 6-mile hike through residential streets to reach home.

I got some odd looks and a few chuckles as I tramped with my backpack through city streets. I finished just before noon and felt proud to say I’d done a 15-mile hike and was home in time for lunch.

My return to civilization after a not-so-remote but still wild adventure meant getting used to people and an urban environment again.

The adjustment wasn’t that hard.