On the outskirts of the Coeur d'Alene metropolitan area is Spirit Lake, a quiet town named for the nearby Spirit Lake body of water in Idaho. The name for Spirit Lake itself came from the legend of a Native American woman who drowned herself in the lake water. To honor her spirit, the lake was named Spirit Lake.
The town of Spirit Lake was founded in 1907 by a group of engineers that hailed from Pennsylvania, and the first residents to the town moved in after 1910. In the beginning, houses were built only on the lakeshore of Spirit Lake, and the town became a getaway for the wealthy who wanted to spend time closer to nature. Soon enough, though, a sawmill was built nearby, and Spirit Lake became a place for a popular railroad station running to and from the sawmill and nearby Spokane, Washington. The sawmill was known to produce up to 125,000 feet of lumber daily until 1939, when a fire destroyed the mill and forced the production to come to a close.
Spirit Lake continued to be a popular place for summer residents to vacation along the lakeshore well through the rest of the 20th century, and today, more year-round residents are living in the area as well as those returning summer visitors.
The lake of the town itself is a unique destination because it is one of only two lakes in the world with a sealed bottom. Geologists have theorized that this is possible because the lake was formed by the remnants of a glacier that covered the state of Idaho during the Paleozoic Age, and the sealed bottom was already formed before the glacier melted and filled the lake with water.
Spirit Lake Annual Holiday Bazaar - Hosted yearly in November, the Annual Holiday Bazaar can be found at Spirit Lake Middle School. This event always shows the best of the town with local vendors and small businesses that sell crafts, arts, and bakes.
Annual Mac & Cheese Festival - Hosted by Coeur d'Alene in January, the annual Mac & Cheese Festival celebrates mac and cheese with variations of the dish made by local chefs that compete for the Golden Noodle Award.
Spokane Pig Out in the Park - Every year in August, Spokane, Washington hosts a music and food festival dedicated to saying goodbye to summer and hello to autumn. Spokane Pig Out in the Park is hosted in Riverside Park and has been a yearly event since the 1980s.
Glacier National Park in Montana is a huge park that is made up of over a million acres of land full of local wildlife and forests. Just outside of the park are several small towns and villages that host small businesses, and inside the park are countless activities to try, from mountain biking to fly fishing and even rock climbing on the park's mountains.
North Cascades National Park is located in nearby Washington and hosts 312 glaciers. Hiking is especially popular in this park, and if you make the trek up Sourdough Mountain, you'll be rewarded with stunning views at the Sourdough Mountain Lookout.
Mount Rainier National Park is home to Mount Rainier, a place that's near Washington's largest ski resort. Inside the park are trails that range in distance from 3 miles to 93 miles, though all give hikers the chance to see the incredible Washington mountains from different angles.
Farragut State Park in Idaho is the perfect place to park your RV for a week's worth of outdoor activities. Inside this park, there are options for swimming, horseback riding, and even disc golfing. Another option for a short stay is Round Lake State Park, also in Idaho, which is home to Round Lake, a great place for fishing in the summer and ice skating in the winter. You may also want to check out Riverside State Park, located just outside Spokane, Washington, where forests are abundant, and bird watching is the most popular activity.
A couple of the top landmarks to see in Idaho are located nearby Spirit Lake. For one, there's the Coeur d'Alene's Old Mission Sites right outside of Coeur d'Alene, a great place to learn the history of Catholic missionaries who first came to this area. You may also want to check out the Bonner County Historical Society and Museum in Sandpoint, which shows exhibits of the first Native Americans, early farmers, and loggers, all from the Idaho panhandle. The remnants of the historic Oregon Trail can be seen near Boise too.
Lake Coeur d'Alene RV Resort offers access to the lake as well to a golfing island in the middle of the lake. RVers love this campground because it also hosts its own private beaches, basketball courts, and volleyball nets. Another great campground nearby is Tamarack RV Park, which offers campsites in a wooded area that feel more primitive, though you still have access to all of the RV hookups you need. You may also consider Wolf Lodge Campground, which is part of a mountainside resort that offers activities like skiing, biking, canoeing, and kayaking.
Motorhomes are divided into Class A, B, and C vehicles. On average expect to pay $185 per night for Class A, $149 per night for Class B and $179 per night for Class C. Towable RVs include 5th Wheel, Travel Trailers, Popups, and Toy Hauler. On average, in Spirit Lake, ID, the 5th Wheel trailer starts at $70 per night. Pricing for the Travel Trailer begins at $60 per night, and the Popup Trailer starts at $65 per night.
Do you need to be a certain age to rent an RV in Spirit Lake?Yes. The minimum age is 25 to be eligible to get an RV Rental in Spirit Lake from RVshare.
Does RVshare have emergency roadside assistance?Yes. Every RV rental booked through RVshare receives 24/7 emergency roadside assistance.
Does RVshare offer one way RV rentals in Spirit Lake?Yes. Prior to renting any RV, check with the owner since not all will offer this particular option.
