Biking the Idaho Panhandle on Rails to Trails

Wallace

Bicycling

Small Group

Best Value

Wishlist Enroll Now

Spend three days biking the renowned Hiawatha trail, learning about regional history, diverse wildlife and the fascinating story of the Idaho Panhandle as you go!

Rating (5)

Moderately Challenging

Program No. 20762RJ

Length

7 days

Starts at

1,349

7 days

6 nights

15 meals

6B 5L 4D

Wallace, ID

Getting There

See travel details and required documents

At a Glance

Former railroad trestles stretched across fir-filled valleys and train tunnels plunging into rocky mountainsides form the milieu for a cycling adventure in northern Idaho’s panhandle. On the Couer D’Lane, Hiawatha and Centennial Rails to Trails routes — all of them top-notch recreational bike trails — pedal through charming villages and areas of fascinating history, unique geology and diverse ecology with interpretation by local experts.

Activity Level

Moderately Challenging

Bike 10–30 miles at a leisurely pace on streets with minimal traffic and elevation gains. Many rides offer varying distance options. Several bike paths above 3,000 feet.

Small Group

Love to learn and explore in a small-group setting? These adventures offer small, personal experiences with groups of 10 to 24 participants.

Best of all, you'll ...

Learn about and take in the small-town ambiance of local mining towns Wallace and Kellogg.
Bike the Hiawatha trail, crown jewel of our nation’s Rails to Trails routes, through nine train tunnels and across seven trestles with views of the towering Bitterroot Mountains.
While you bike, observe moose, deer, eagles, osprey, turtles and plants along the way.

General Notes

Comfort bike and helmet provided. Recommended are padded bike pants/shorts, bike gloves, comfortable bike shoes (no cleats), handlebar bag, rain gear. Program requires signed liability release waiver. Due to the nature of this program, listening devices are not available.

Suggested Reading List

View 4 books

The Mullan Road: Carving a Passage through the Frontier Northwest. 1859-62

by Paul D. McDermott and Ronald E. Grin

Focuses on John Mullan as he worked in the Idaho Panhandle from 1859-62. Book available at Amazon.com

John Mullan: The Tumultuous Life of a Western Road Builder

by Keith Peterson

Portrays the history of the area in 1850-1870's. Book available at Amazon.com

Silver Linings

by KSPS-PBS

We recommend you watch Silver Linings a 60 minute video produced by KSPS-PBS which provides a good historical perspective of the Silver Valley where we will biking and visiting during our program. Here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UOaC3OzpkT0

The Big Burn

by Timothy Egan

Describes the beginning of the National Forest Service in preserving much of our natural area as well as the 1910 forest fire that burned much of the area.

Print All

Map details are not available for this location.

View Map

Expand All

7 days

6 nights

15 meals

6 B 5 L 4 D

Getting There

See travel details and required documents

DAY

Welcome to the historic town of Wallace. Get to know your fellow bicyclists and learn about the upcoming week.

Wallace, ID

Wallace Inn

Activity note: While at our lodging, we will get to know each other as we learn about the week ahead.

Afternoon: 5:45 PM Group socializing activities - Meet your fellow Road Scholars.

Dinner: Dinner at 6:15 pm at Wallace Inn restaurant. Our goal is to provide healthy meals with options for special diet requests. People requesting special diets may need to supplement the meals with their personal items to ensure they meet their dietary needs.

Evening: 7:15 pm Evening orientation and introductions/discussion until 9:00 pm.

DAY

Enjoy biking The Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes.

Wallace, ID

B,L,D

Wallace Inn

Activity note: Pick up our bikes before biking 15 - 35 miles along paved roads and bike paths. Minimal elevation gains.

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodging restaurant.

Morning: Size and pick up our bikes. Then we drive to town of Mullan before riding back to Kellogg for our lunch stop.

Lunch: Sack lunch in town of Kellogg

Afternoon: Continue biking on Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes between Kellogg and Cataldo. Railroad museum and presentation.

Dinner: Dinner at a restaurant.in town of Wallace.

Evening: Evening program on local history.

DAY

Bike along a different section of the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes and enjoy the abundant wildlife.

Wallace, ID

B,L,D

Wallace Inn

Activity note: Bike 10 - 30 miles along paved roads and bike paths. Minimal elevation gain.

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodging restaurant.

Morning: Shuttle to the trailhead at Plummer and bike from Plummer to Harrison on the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes.

Lunch: Sack lunch eaten in town of Harrison with optional ice cream (extra cost) and swim in Lake Coeur D' Alene

Afternoon: Finish biking to Medimont and be shuttled back to Wallace. Walking tour of Wallace.

Dinner: Dinner at restaurant in town of Wallace.

Evening: Evening program on local history.

DAY

Bike Trail of Hiawatha, the Crown Jewel of the Rails to Trails system. Ride through several train tunnels and across several trestles.

Wallace, ID

B,L

Wallace Inn

Activity note: Bike 15-30 miles along hard packed gravel and dirt roads with gentle continuous elevation loss and gain.

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodging restaurant.

Morning: Shuttle to the trailhead and starting to Ride the Trail of Hiawatha.

Lunch: Sack lunch on the trail.

Afternoon: Finish riding the Trail of Hiawatha then shuttle back to Wallace. Optional Silver mine tour (additional cost) during your afternoon free time.

Dinner: Dinner on your own in Wallace as you choose between many eateries.

Evening: No evening program. Relax and enjoy this historic area.

DAY

Visit town of Coeur d'Alene and bike along its waterfront.

Wallace, ID

B,L

Wallace Inn

Activity note: Bike 10 - 30 miles along paved roads and bike paths. One hill (~200 ft.). Explore town.

Breakfast: Breakfast at lodging restaurant.

Morning: Shuttled to the town of Coeur d'Alene and start biking the North Idaho Centennial trail along the lake.

Lunch: Sack lunch outdoors.

Afternoon: Short bike ride of the historic Coeur d'Alene. Optional additional bike ride to Post Falls or spend some free time on your own exploring the town of Coeur d'Alene. Walk the local hills or take a boat ride on the lake.

Dinner: Dinner on your own; choose between several nearby eateries in the town of Coeur d'Alene.

Evening: No evening program since we will be in transit back to lodging.

DAY

Finish biking the length of the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes from Medimont to Cataldo Mission.

Wallace, ID

B,L,D

Wallace Inn

Activity note: Bike on paved path 26.7 miles

Breakfast: Breakfast at Lodging restaurant.

Morning: Shuttle to Medimont trailhead. Bike from Medimont to Cataldo Mission.

Lunch: Sack lunch along bike trail.

Afternoon: Visit the historic Cataldo mission (oldest building in Idaho), Optional bike or shuttled to Kellogg to return the bikes prior to being shuttled back to Wallace.

Dinner: Dinner at our Wallace Inn.

Evening: Share stories, photos and experiences from the week during a closing program that ends by 9:00 pm

DAY

Our program ends with fond memories.

Wallace, ID

Activity note: No scheduled group activities today.

Breakfast: Breakfast will be eaten at our lodging.

Morning: Free time on your own. Airport shuttle departs at 8:15 am. Need to check out of your rooms by 11:00 am.

Meals

15 Meals

6 Breakfasts

5 Lunches

4 Dinners

The following choices may be available when requested in advance: Low Fat, Low Salt

Lodging

Lodgings may differ by date. Select a date to see the lodgings specific to that date.

Display

Sep 16, 2018 - Sep 22, 2018

Jun 10, 2018 - Jun 16, 2018
Jun 17, 2018 - Jun 23, 2018
Sep 09, 2018 - Sep 15, 2018
Sep 16, 2018 - Sep 22, 2018

Wallace Inn

6 nights

Wallace

Wallace Inn is within easy walking to historic town of Wallace. Rails to Trails bike trail is across street from Inn.

TripAdvisor Reviews

See All Lodging Options

13 Reviews

Sort by

Most Recent

Most Recent
Most Favorable
Least Favorable

5 Average

Earline

Class of 2017

Oregon City, OR

(5) 16 days ago

This was our first Roads Scholar program but it won't be our last! It was well-organized and fun. The bike trails in Idaho are beautiful but this bike ride would have been much harder to do without being on a tour.

John

Class of 2017

Goleta, CA

(5) a month ago

Program was FUN! Rides were interesting and challenging. Guides were excellent. Food and accommodations were very good. This was my first Road Scholar experience. I will be back!

Bryan

Class of 2016

Greeley, CO

(5) a month ago

This trip is awesome and awe inspiring. Riding on three different trails, we saw a wide range of scenery, experienced a variety of trail types/difficulty, and enjoyed what was probably the most beautiful, pleasant day on the trail I have ever had. We went primarily for the Hiawatha Trail, but our 2nd day on the Trail of the Couer D'Alenes (4th day of our ride)was breathtakingly beautiful. Absolutely stunning!!And because of the way Ken arranges the trip, he maximizes the pleasure for riders of almost every ability.

Janice

Class of 2017

San Antonio, TX

(5) a month ago

The Idaho Cycling Program was a great experience. My husband and I attended 6/10-6/17/2017. It was truly a great program with 5 days of cycling on beautiful, scenic trails. The weather was great as long as you are prepared for some cold in the high mountain tunnels and possible rain. The rental bikes were high quality Trek hybrid bikes. I was happy with the lodging and the meals.

Sydney

Class of 2016

Seattle, WA

(5) a month ago

The views are amazing. The equipment provided is in excellent condition. The program has built in flexibilty for different ability levels. If you cycle regularly and own your own gear you will do fine. If you are a recreational biker, (or last rode a bike around college as I did) you will be stretched, but you can do it.

Amnon

Class of 2011

Seattle, WA

(5) a month ago

This is really a wonderful program. Ken is a fantastic group leader, finding the perfect balance between maintaining enough structure and order to keep everything together and participants safe and secure, while allowing enough flexibility to satisfy the needs of bike riders of all abilities. The Wallace Hotel is very comfortable, and town of Wallace is charming and has surprisingly good restaurant options for such a small town. The Hiawatha Trail is really a unique and breathtaking bicycling experience, and the Trail of the Cour D'Alene is one of the great rail to trail bike paths in this country.

Lorraine

Class of 2013

Bridgewater, VA

(5) 11 months ago

The wildlife and bird sightings were exciting - a highlight was spotting a mother moose with twin calves nursing just a few yards off our trail. The Hiawatha Trail was one of the most scenic trails we have every biked. Wallace provides interesting opportunities for exploring, and was a fascinating area. We were delighted with the program!

Tom

Class of 2016

Bellevue, WA

(5) a year ago

Great bike trip. Logistics were well thought out and accommodations excellent.

Jody

Class of 2005

Fresno, CA

(5) a year ago

The combination of good leadership, beautiful scenery, unique history, and gentle bike paths made this a memorable and fun week. Highly recommend!

Judy

Class of 2015

Lewes, DE

(5) a year ago

I highly recommend this trip. Much of the biking is downhill and the scenery is stunning. Our accommodations were comfortable; food was good. Our personable and fun guide, Ken, explained each day's events so we had no worries. I'd never been to northern Idaho but I plan to return

Deborah

Class of 2016

Olympia, WA

(5) a year ago

All the riding days were very enjoying, even the last day when I chose to cycle 18 miles in the rain. (Not a requirement; the sag wagon was there to pick up riders who wanted to skip the rain.) If you like to bird or view wildlife, be sure to take along your binoculars for the chain of lakes sections of the Coeur d'Alene trail. We saw a variety of birds we do not normally get to see where we live. If you can fit it in, do also take the hike to the Pulaskii Tunnel. It is a lovely hike along a creek with many wildflowers.

Patricia

Class of 2016

Henderson, NV

(5) a year ago

This was a delightful tour through spectacular mountains and forests, along lakes and marshes teeming with wildlife. I had no idea Idaho was so breathtakingly beautiful. We saw moose, osprey, a bald eagle and other aquatic birds. Ken and Rich are expert guides and cyclists who made the riding and off-bike activities fun and educational. The Wallace Inn and the town of Wallace are very hospitable. I am glad I did it, and would do it again!

Caroline

Class of 2009

Sparks, NV

(5) a year ago

I really enjoyed this bike trip. The trails were superb, and all were paved except the Hiawatha Trail. The Hiawatha Trail is SO much fun with all the tunnels and trestles. The scenery along the way was beautiful and we seldom biked near traffic. The accommodations and food were very good and the leadership excellent. Rick and Ken work with the participants to give them the best trip experience, whether it be riding WITH the wind, or DOWN the hill instead of up. I highly recommend this trip.