Best Hikes in Idaho: The Cougar Bay Loop Trail

BASIC INFORMATION

• Name: The Cougar Bay Loop Trail
• Where: Cougar Bay Preserve, Idaho
• Distance: 2.5 miles
• Elevation Gain: 360 feet
• Max Elevation: 2,447 feet
• Time: 1-2 hours
• Difficulty: Easy
• More Information: Day Hike! Spokane, Coeur d’Alene, and Sandpoint

Google Earth Map of Cougar Bay Loop Trail

Directions

Getting to Cougar Bay Preserve is fairly easy from Spokane.  Just drive east on I-90 to Coeur d’Alene.  In Coeur d’Alene take exit 12 for US-95.  Take a right on to US 95 and follow it through town until it becomes a multi-lane highway.  About 4 miles south of Coeur d’Alene look for the big Cougar Bay Reserve sign on the left side of the road which is where the trailhead is located.  Be careful though making this turn across the road because this is a busy highway.

Parking

At the trailhead there is a fairly large parking lot which should not provide too much of a challenge to find parking at, even on busy weekends.

Narrative

Due to the cold weather my kids and I have been looking for shorter hikes to do and we found one at the Nature Conservancy’s Cougar Bay Preserve.  Since it is located just outside of Coeur d’Alene it is very easy to get to.  This is a short hike that leads to a nice viewpoint of the scenic Lake Coeur d’Alene.  From the parking lot a we had a view looking north across a grassy wetland towards Coeur d’Alene:

From the parking lot we walked across this small bridge that led to the tree line:

Across the bridge we saw the trailhead information sign. The signboard has a map of the trail and a warning to stay on the designated trails since it crosses private property in certain areas:

From the signboard the trail skirts the tree line as it moves northward towards Lake Coeur d’Alene.  The trail had many icy areas so my kids and I had to be very careful while hiking through certain sections:

Along the path there are various signboards that explain the natural environment of the area:

The trail also had a couple of convenient benches available along the trail for walkers to take a break at:

As we continued up the trail we could see the lake just ahead of us:

We next reached a clearing that had an old bulldozer rusting away at for some reason.  My kids though had a fun time climbing on it and checking it out:

After the clearing the trail then begins to ascend up a small hill to the viewpoint:

The trail is well maintained and not very steep:

There are a few arrows along the way to help hikers stay on the right trail:

The ascent was our favorite part of the hike because of the beautiful lush forest we were surrounded by:

After just over 300 feet of elevation gain we found ourselves at the lookout:

The lookout was constructed as an Eagle Scout project by a local Boy Scout from Post Falls.  Great job Josh!:

From the lookout we had a partial view of Coeur d’Alene and its name sake lake.  In the below picture the source of the Spokane river that begins at Lake Coeur d’Alene can be seen:

After spending about a half hour eating a snack at the viewpoint we then headed back down the hill. We soon found ourselves back at the wetland at the base of the hill:

From here we walked back on the icy trail to the trailhead:

Conclusion

Overall this was a really nice 2.5 mile hike that was short enough for my kids to enjoy despite the cold weather.  The only issue we had was the icy portion of the trail along the wetlands that I wish I would have brought microspikes for.  Regardless we all had a good time exploring this scenic corner of Lake Coeur d’Alene and recommend it for families with young kids to check out.