Kayaking the Spokane River from Post Falls to Coeur d’Alene

Over two trips I kayaked on the Spokane River from Qemilin Park next to the Post Falls dam to Johnson Mill River Park in Coeur d’Alene. Here are a few photos and a description of the journey(s).

A couple of weeks ago, I paddled the stretch between Johnson Mill River Park to the Ross Point Baptist Camp and back. Johnson Mill River Park is owned and maintained by the City of Coeur d’Alene. As you can see Coeur d’Alene has an active public art program. This guy is waving at me to begin the trip.

This park is incredibly busy on warm summer days and if you want to get a parking spot you need to get there early. It has limited parking.

Across the wide Spokane River from the launch site is an area of marshland with a protected channel. One of the drawbacks of this kayaking place is the heavy boat traffic in the summer, especially on weekends. Anyplace buffered from the jet skis and wake boarders is a welcomed respite from the waves.

Just downstream of the marshland channel you can cut through the backside of Harbor Island, another refuge from boat traffic.

This channel separating the island from the south bank of the river is a treat. One bridge connects this residential neighborhood to the mainland.

Half way between the marshland and Harbor Island the south shore drops into the river using a steep rocky bluff. In the far background is Canfield Butte on the east edge of Coeur d’Alene. The city and U.S. Forest Service both maintain recreational trails on this small mountain.

Even with the boat traffic this is a pretty ride. The banks of the Spokane River are mostly developed with permanent and vacation houses from basic cabins to mega mansions but there are several public parks, church retreats and unbuildable spots to give nature a place to shine.

On that sunny day a couple of weeks ago I turned around at the Ross Point Baptist Camp. We were only on the river for a couple of leisurely hours.

So today I decided to launch at Qemilin Park and head upstream to the Ross Point Baptist Camp. Qemilin Park is across the river from “downtown” Post Falls and just upstream from the Post Falls dam.

Right next to the boat ramp there are barriers and warning signs. The ramp is closed when the gates to the dam are open, usually from the end of September to July 4th. I read that years ago there was a tragic accident where a boat was swept over the spillway resulting in fatalities and since then the city and Avista Power, the owners of the dam, have worked to make sure that never happens again.

I don’t think weeping willows are part of the natural habitat but they can be a beautiful background never the less.

There are all styles of houses along the river. Some of them I would love to live in. It’s always nice to day dream.

And some are beautiful displays of wealth. This one had two small rocky islands right off of it.

And some, well lets just say some folks don’t know when to stop. This one is locally known as the Amway House. I assume someone in the DeVos family once owned it. They’re the same folks that owned the Orlando Magic back in the day.

Some even make there own water falls. I know its fake, but it’s still pretty and sounds nice so thanks whoever you are.

The little rocky islands are a highlight of this section of the river. They are posted which I get. I couldn’t imagine how trashed they would be if party boaters were allowed to land and do their thing.

Here’s a small view of the islands. Today was a Sunday but it was overcast and after Labor Day so I had the river almost to myself. It’s amazing the difference a couple of weeks make.

Just after the rocky islands the north shore of the river is protected by Black Bay Park, a City of Post Falls park. The city is currently making improvements to this site and hopefully it will include dedicated kayaking access.

After Black Bay and the Amway House, the next section of shoreline is part of Camp White, another church campground. Along the river there are several places with old stumps from before the Post Falls dam raised the water level well over a hundred years ago. It takes a long time for cedar stumps to rot away.

The north bank of the river is in Post Falls. The south bank is in unincorporated Kootenai County and is somewhat less developed. Some of the places on this side get a lot of visitors.

Kootenai County does have a couple of public access sites along the river. This one is easy to overlook unless you know its there. This small site has parking so you could launch here. It also has picnic tables and grills and a port-a-potty conveniently located about an hour and a half upstream from Qemilin Park..

By Camp White I came across a murder of crows. Yes that’s what a group of crows are called.

Of course there’s always water fowl too. These are in the bay at Ross Point.

I arrived at the cove at the Ross Point Baptist Camp. This bay is deep enough to get out of sight from the river. The shoreline is private property but it is still a nice place to linger and a good turn around point.

The Spokane River is a convenient place to kill a few hours paddling on the water. Upstream from Johnson Mill River Park to the lake is another mile or so. If you can time your trip to avoid the worst of the wake boarders and jet skis, it’s an incredibly enjoyable experience. Although the river supports extensive residential development there are numerous public places to launch, take out and to stop and rest thanks to our local government agencies.