Hikes in Washington: The Pine Loop Trail

BASIC INFORMATION

• Name: The Pine Loop Trail
• Where: Haynes Estate Conservation Area
• Distance: 1.7 miles
• Elevation Gain: 269 feet
• Maximum Elevation: 1,877 feet
• Time: 1 hour or less
• Difficulty: Easy
• More Information: Day Hike! Spokane, Coeur d’Alene, and Sandpoint

Google Earth Map of the Trail

Directions

The trailhead is accessed by taking Division Drive to North Spokane.  Once in North Spokane take the right on to Highway 2.  Follow Highway 2 passed the roundabout adjacent to Costco.  Just north of the roundabout exit Highway 2 on to Farwell Road.  Shortly after exiting the highway then make a left hand turn onto Shady Slope Road.  Follow this road for a couple miles until it reaches Leona Dr.  Make a left on to Leona Drive and follow the dirt road to the trailhead.

At the trailhead there is a large signboard that has a trail map of the Haynes Estate Conservation Area:

Parking

At the trailhead there is a large dirt parking lot that can hold probably up to 20 cars.  Parking should not be an issue at this trailhead.  The trailhead also has a porta-potty available as well for anyone that needs it.

Narrative

When it is cold out my kids only like doing short hikes.  So I did some research to find another short hike to do in the Spokane area.  I end up reading about the Pine Loop Trail that is part of the Haynes Estate Conservation Area in northern Spokane.  The conservation area was established in 2002 and includes 97 forested acres of land adjacent to a section of the Little Spokane River.  The trail that goes around the conservation area is called the Pine Loop Trail.  From the trailhead this hike begins by following a wide gravel path:

Follow the gravel path for a short distance until it reaches the River Spur Trail:

Follow this trail down through the pine forest to the Little Spokane River:

The spur trail leads to a really nice view of the Little Spokane River.  There is even a park bench here to sit on to take in the views:

Despite it being a mid-January day when we hike this trail, the Little Spokane River was running very high due to the unusual amount of rainfall that had fallen in recent days:

Here is wider angle view of the river:

After spending a few minutes at the river letting my kids throw rocks in it, we then proceeded to follow the trail back into the forest:

The trail then came to another trailhead at Greenleaf Drive that did have another signboard, but there is very little parking here and thus why I recommend the Leona Drive trailhead instead:

From this trailhead we followed the trail as it skirted the perimeter of the conservation area:

The trail led to this large graffiti covered watertower:

From the watertower the trail looped back around and we followed it into the central section of the conservation area.  Along the way we spotted this large pine tree that had fallen over due to a recent windstorm that downed trees all over the Spokane region:

We found ourselves back on a gravel path and we followed it around the central section of the park:

The gravel path came to asphalt area where an old wagon could be seen:

Out in the trees we could also see an old wooden shed where there was a trail intersection at:

We followed the trail that went up the hillside in front of the wooden shed.  This trail looped around the adjacent hillside.  It is possible to follow another trail to the top of the hill, but it exits the conservation area on to private property.  My kids I just stayed on the trail that looped about halfway up the hill and back down it:

The trail descended off the hillside and led to this small gravel and waste pit:

From the waste pit we then walked back over to the trail intersection near the wooden shed.  We then followed the gravel path back to the trailhead:

Conclusion

The less than 2-mile hike around the Haynes Estate Conservation Area was perfect for my kids on a cold winter day.  They got to throw stones in the Little Spokane River and explore another forest in the Spokane area.  The trails are not well marked in the conservation area, but it is so small it is impossible to get lost.  It was a fun, family friendly hike.