Discovering Western Idaho: the words from "America the Beautiful" come alive as you gaze at spacious skies, purple-hued mountains, fast-flowing rivers, and fields of golden grain

Travel America, Sept-Oct, 2004 by Pat Woods

During a narrated lake cruise, we saw tugboats moving log booms to a sawmill, mansions built by mining barons, and osprey nests clinging to buoy posts. Since many lakeside homes are inaccessible by roads, trams on rails transport goods up and down the steep embankment. Residents receive their mail by boat.

Pretty waterfront parks flank the resort. Tubbs Hill boasts hiking trails and beaches. Festivals abound here on summer weekends, and visitors enjoy free weekly band concerts and a plethora of cultural options. In June, Coeur d'Alene hosts an Ironman triathlon that attracts 1,700 athletes.

Accommodations range from the world-class Coeur d'Alene Resort to affordable chain motels, the food from hamburgers and huckleberry yogurt to elegant lakeside dining, Our mini-suite at the Shilo Inn came with a small refrigerator, microwave, and access to a 24-hour indoor pool.

Too soon we headed for the Spokane, Washington, airport, where we boarded a Nonstop America west jet for a pleasant Flight home. When I hear "America the Beautiful," I smile as I recall western Idaho.

Contact0: Boise Convention & Visitor Bureau, (800) 635-5240;www.boise.org.

Coeur d'Alene Chamber of Commerce, (877) 782-9232;www.coeurdalene.org.

Idaho Tourism, (800) VISIT ID; www.visited.org.