Hikes In Washington: The Deep Creek Loop Trail

Basic Information

• Name: The Deep Creek Loop Trail
• Where: Riverside State Park
• Distance: 4.2 miles
• Elevation Gain: 620 feet
• Maximum Elevation: 2,041
• Time: 2-3 hours
• Difficulty: Medium
• More Information: Day Hike! Spokane, Coeur d’Alene, and Sandpoint

Terrain Map

Google Earth Map of the Trail

Directions

To get to the Deep Creek Trailhead from Spokane, go north on Division Street and then make a left on to Francis Avenue.  As Francis Avenue travels west it will eventually automatically turn into Nine Mile Road.  Make a left on to Seven Mile Road and travel across the bridge over the Spokane River.  After crossing the bridge travel up the hill and immediately look for the Riverside State Park sign on the right  side of the road.  After making the turn, travel a short distance down the dirt road to the trailhead.

Parking

There is a large dirt parking lot at the trailhead that provides plenty of parking even on busy weekends.  Since this trailhead is within Riverside State Park you will need a Washington State Discover Pass in order to park here.  The annual pass costs $30 and is a great investment for anyone that frequents Washington’s outdoors.

Narrative

Riverside State Park remains one of my go to areas to hike with my kids.  It is a huge park with a number of trails that are great for kids.  The latest trail I took my kids on was the Deep Creek Loop Trail.  This trail provides a little bit of everything that can be seen in Riverside State Park, the trees, the Spokane River, and volcanic cliffs.  From the trailhead we followed a dirt road into the park:

About a half-mile down the road we reached the Deep Creek Overlook:

The overlook is located on a volcanic basalt cliff that provides one of the best views in Riverside State Park of the many volcanic rock outcrops in this area.  These cliffs are composed of basalt rock that was formed millions of years ago when the hot spot currently at Yellowstone National Park erupted here and poured lava that covered most of Eastern Washington.  These lava flows are up to two miles thick in some areas. The Great Ice Age Floods that occurred 15,000-13,000 years ago carved out the lava flows creating the dramatic shapes seen today.

From the lookout we also had an obscured view of the Spokane River located just below us:

After taking in the views we walked back to the dirt road and followed it down hill towards the river:

We followed the dirt road for a short distance until it intersected with the paved Centennial Trail that follows adjacent to the Spokane River.  Here we made a left and followed the Centennial Trail to the north:

On the Centennial Trail we saw a lot more people, especially bicyclists using the trail.  About a mile and a half into the hike we reached the Deep Creek Bridge that had a large amount of people there who were either swimming or watching others swim in the river:

Just after passing the bridge we spotted our next turn on the left.  The trail is located next to a bench and is barely noticeable and easy to miss:

Once we made this turn we left the crowds of the Centennial Trail and entered into a section of park with far fewer hikers.  The rest of the day we saw only three other people.  From the Centennial Trail, this access trail ascends up into the volcanic cliffs above Deep Creek:

This area is truly an incredible world of lava rock:

Below us we could look down into the Deep Creek gorge:

Across from us we could see the lookout on the other side of the Deep Creek gorge that we had previously been at near the start of the hike:

We could also see the Deep Creek Bridge we had crossed over earlier in the hike below us:

The trail next came to this very impressive volcanic rock wall:

My son loves rocks and had fun checking out the various rocks in the cliff face:

Here is a panorama view of the scene:

After passing the large cliff face we next made a turn on to Trail #25:

A short distance later after ascending through a thick forest we then made a left on to Trail #401:

This section of trail ascends a short distance into the forest above the lava cliffs:

Trail #401 took us back to another portion of Trail #25 which we followed in a southernly direction:

This section of the trail traversed across the opposite side of Deep Creek:

Across from us we could see the trailhead where we parked at:

From our lofty vantage point we could also look towards the northeast and see the high hills where we had previously hiked the Knothead Loop Trail which is one of our favorite hikes in the Spokane area:

Here is a panorama of the view from the opposite side of the gorge:

After taking in the views, we continued to follow the trail towards the south through the thick forest:

As we walked we made sure to stop and admire the impressive lava rock cliffs that loomed just above us:

We came to another opening in the forest that provided views to the south where we could here the ATVs racing around the outdoor recreational vehicle area that Riverside Park maintains:

Here is a panorama picture of the view:

Trail #25 eventually does a quick descent off of the cliff line and comes to a dirt road where we had to make a left at:

We followed the dirt road across a bridge that crossed over Deep Creek:

Here is the view into Deep Creek which during the summer is dry:

At the end of the dirt road we came to another trailhead at Riverside State Park:

From this trailhead we followed Trail #400 back towards the Deep Creek Trailhead:

The trail passed over another dry creek bed:

On the other side of the dry creek bed the trail took us up to the Deep Creek Trailhead to conclude our hike:

Conclusion

The Deep Creek Loop Trail is one of my two favorite hikes in Riverside State Park.  This trail and the Bowl and Pitcher Lower Loop Trail are both great family hikes with views of the Spokane River and interesting volcanic rock formations.  The Deep Creek Loop Trail though also has wide views of the surrounding area since it ascends up the cliff side.  I highly recommend checking out both of these great hikes in beautiful Riverside State Park.