White Pine Scenic Byway

White Pine Scenic Byway. . , Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes , Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes is a 73 mile long bike trail built on the original Union Pacific railroad grade. During 1884 silver was discovered in the valley. During 1888, construction began on a rail line between Plummer and Harrison to support the mining and timber industries in the valley. Today, Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes follows much of that original rail line taking bikers along one of America’s most scenic bike trails. , Mullan Trail Park , Mullan Park located in St. Maries honors Army Officer Lt. John Mullan, an engineer who surveyed and built a wagon trail (circa 1859) between Walla Walla, Washington and Fort Benton, Montana. The three acre park has six native species of coniferous trees found in Northern Idaho. The park also has on display turn-of-the-century logging memorabilia along with a steam-powered three-spool Willamette donkey engine. , Cataldo Mission , Cataldo Mission, “The Old Mission of the Scared Heart,” is the oldest standing building in Idaho. The Greek revival style mission was built under the direction of Father Antonio Ravalli, S.J. who was the chief architect and construction supervisor. Fr. Ravalli completed the mission during 1853. Fr. Joseph M. Cataldo, founded numerous churches in the territory, and made the old mission his headquarters in 1877. , St. Maries , St. Maries dates back more than a hundred years, when the first pioneers looking for logging opportunities traveled up the St. Joe River from Coeur d’Alene. Among them, was Joseph Fisher, and his three brothers who built their first sawmill during 1889. St. Maries quickly became a hard-working lumberjack town, and was also renowned for the paddle wheelers that ferried people and supplies to Coeur d’Alene. Today, St. Maries is a lumber mill town producing plywood, and related wood products. , White Pine Drive , White Pine Drive is a 12-mile section of Idaho 6 bordered on both sides of the roadway with old-growth forest. Located at the Giant White Pine Campground, a fallen 600 year-old giant white pine is on display. The tree measured nearly six feet in diameter and was nearly 188 feet tall. The campground has a walking path among nearly 400 year-old western white pine, and red cedar. , Palouse Divide , The Palouse Divide Nordic Ski Trails is one of Idaho’s Park N’ Ski recreation areas. The trail system includes 9 miles of marked and groomed trails, and more than 25 miles of backcountry trails. Summer time activities include hiking and camping opportunities in a rugged mountain setting. , Historic Potlatch , The Town of Potlatch was established during 1905 when Frederick Weyerhaeuser opened the largest white pine mill in the world. Artifacts from the early mining and logging days are on display at the Potlatch City Hall. Located at Scenic Six Park is a vintage Washington Idaho and Montana locomotive along with historic white pine logging memorabilia. , Laird Park , Laird Park is located in the Palouse River drainage. The area offers abundant recreation opportunities including camping, swimming, horseback riding, rock hounding, and gold panning. Encompassing more than 100 square miles, the region dates back to when gold was discovered during the mid-1800’s along the Palouse River. Evidence of early mining activity is still visible along the north fork of the Palouse River. , Old Sampson Trail , The Old Sampson Trailhead is located in the Giant White Pine Campground. Named after Charles Sampson, a Boise businessman, the trail leads to a stand of mature white pine. Sampson maintained the trail which, extended from the Canadian Border to Southern Idaho. During 1933, the governor officially designated the trail to recognize its historical significance of being the first attempt to maintain a large-scale transportation corridor in Idaho.