Unique digital nomad travel adventures from around the U.S.
Along the western side of Dworshak Reservoir sits Dworshak State Park. Our visit to this park was fraught with challenges thanks to a wildfire (keep reading to learn more about that experience). Since we did not visit the park under the best of circumstances, I …
Round Lake State Park is small but mighty. It is a hidden gem in the Idaho panhandle and a great stop if you are exploring this area. We found it an excellent location to try out geocaching for the first time (without an experienced cacher). …
If you have got good clearance on your car, the views in Mary McCroskey State Park are well worth a visit.
Each state park is unique. But some are more unique than others. Mary McCroskey State Park is one of the more unique parks in the Idaho parks system. You will not find the usual list of park activities. Instead, you will find a forest worth getting lost in and amazing views.
The park has very few amenities. But you’ll find vault toilets, picnics tables and limited campsites. For all of the specifics, check out the parks and rec’s website for Mary McCroskey State Park.
You will probably not see many people during your visit. You won’t necessarily have the park to yourself, but if you are looking for solitude, you will find it.
The park is named after Mary Minerva McCroskey and it is the only state park in Idaho to be named after a woman. The man responsible for this park, Virgil T. McCroskey, named the park in honor of his mother. She was a pioneer woman who, along with her husband and children, established a homestead in nearby Washington. When the park was dedicated in 1955, it was done so in memory of her and other frontier women and the hardships they endured.
Of all the state park histories in Idaho, Mary McCroskey State Park has to be my favorite. We can all thank Virgil for his foresight and dedication. Without him, there would be no McCroskey State Park.
Virgil was a pharmacist and conservationist who bought up 4,400 acres of land endangered by the logging industry with the hopes of preserving it. He basically became a one-man park system. He built a road, cut out viewpoints, built picnic areas and planted flowers all in the hopes of attracting visitors and establishing a state park.
Unfortunately, the Idaho legislature did not share Virgil’s vision. However, they were willing to negotiate and they agreed that if Virgil could maintain the park (at his expense) for the next 15 years, they would accept his gift. Although Virgil was in his late 70s, he accepted the terms. Amazingly, he maintained the park for the next 15 years. Just a couple of weeks before his death at 93, he fulfilled his obligation to the State of Idaho. He also donated $45,000 in a trust to be used for park maintenance. Thank you, Virgil. Thank you.
Our most recent experience at Mary McCroskey State Park was short and sweet. It consisted of a short drive, tasty food and a nature walk. First we picked up lunch from the Moscow Food Co-op. Then we headed to the east entrance of Skyline Drive off of Highway 95. We drove several miles until we found a picnic table. Lunch was enjoyed amidst the sounds of nature.
After lunch, we headed down a nearby trail. You cannot call what we did hiking. We just enjoyed a nice stroll. But it was great to stretch our legs and enjoy the trees. We saw very few people and for the most part, it felt like we had the park to ourselves.
R and I no longer camp, except under unique/unavoidable circumstances. But before we made this decision, we had ourselves a camping experience in this state park. It was a car camping experience, to be specific.
We drove along Skyline Drive for several miles before finding a road-side camp spot (road-side camping is permitted in this state park). After enjoying a picnic dinner, we continued to explore on foot. Unfortunately, the exploration ended when we thought we got into some poison ivy. The plant turned out not to be poison ivy, but by then, we had lost our adventurous spirit and decided to call it a night.
I have no idea how long we slept before we were awakened by one of the fiercest thunder and lightning storms I have ever experienced in Idaho. It was intense and sleeping in a car at the top of a mountain ridge was darn near impossible. Needless to say, it was not a great camping experience and probably contributed to our decision to stop camping altogether.
However, that camping experience did not diminish the experience of driving through the park. Skyline Drive is an 18 mile-long, dirt road with beautiful views of the forest and Palouse country. Warning, this road is rough and you are going to want some clearance. It is also not recommended for large RVs and trailers. But if you have got the right vehicle, the drive is spectacular and I highly recommend it.
Mary McCroskey State Park is quite the unique park. Its Skyline Drive and views of Palouse make it worth a visit if you are ever in central Idaho…and have a suitable rig for driving some rough road.
Note: we visited Mary McCroskey State Park as part of our Idaho State Parks Challenge. The challenge consists of visiting all of Idaho’s state parks in one year. We made up this challenge to see a bit more of our beautiful state and help alleviate the restlessness caused by Covid-19 travel restrictions. Feel free to join the challenge!
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Trail of the Coeur d’Alenes State Park provides 73 miles of scenic views and a smooth ride. It is touted as one of the most spectacular trails in the western United States and I have to say, I agree. State Park Overview For the most …
Lake Cascade State Park is a large park located on a large lake. If you want to camp and/or get out on the water, this park is a good option for you. If you want to be able to find things easily, this park is …
Winchester Lake State Park is a hidden gem in the middle of Idaho. Peaceful, beautiful, and the perfect place to stay for a night.
Winchester Lake State Park is not large. But what it lacks in size it makes up for in peace and serenity. This little park surprised us in the best possible way and stole our hearts. Not surprisingly, we are not the only ones who love this park.
“I don’t have any one favorite thing about our park. I guess I just love all aspects of Winchester Lake State Park, especially the people,” said park ranger Frank Cirimele.
They have restrooms (flush toilets at the visitor center, vault toilets elsewhere) and the usual picnic tables and such. The visitor center looked nice, but it was closed when we were there. For all of the specifics, check out the parks and rec’s website for Winchester Lake State Park.
This is a small park so the crowds will be minimal. Our neighbors in the yurt next door were friendly, but they were the only people we talked to.
Ready for some local folklore? Legend has it that at a public meeting to determine the town’s name, the citizens used rifle ownership to help them make their important decision. It was a race between Remington and Winchester. Since the town is called Winchester, I think we can safely assume that there were more Winchester rifle owners than Remington rifle owners.
Winchester Lake is a man-made lake. The Craig Mountain Lumber Company built a dam on Lapwai Creek in 1910. This created a mill pond that employed 270 workers, provided electric power to Winchester and was the largest of its kind in northern Idaho.
In 1966, the Idaho Department of Fish and Game purchased the lake and turned it over in 1969 to the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation for a state park. Lucky for us.
Winchester Lake State Park is one of the few state parks we have stayed in overnight (we don’t love camping). We stayed here because a yurt was available, not because we had any master plan to stay here. But boy, am I glad it was available! The whole experience was delightful. I particularly enjoyed looking up at the star-filled night sky.
The yurt is good sized and the toilet is close (although it is just a vault toilet, so using it is not a particularly delightful experience). With easy access to drinking water, the yurt had everything we needed for a night. Our yurt neighbors were taking better advantage of their setup by building a campfire and using the grill. Perhaps we will do more of that the next time we visit.
Staying in a yurt means you have access to a canoe. It could not have been easier to get on the water. We grabbed oars and life jackets from the yurt, walked down to the water, unlocked a canoe, wobbled a bit getting in and then we were off. R and I are not very good at canoeing. In fact, we were facing each other for a time. But even we were able to take an enjoyable turn about the lake in our canoe.
While on the water, I could not stop taking pictures. It was dusk and so scenic. There were a lot of geese on this lake, or at least there were when we visited. I’m not going to lie, it was rather fun canoeing towards them and watching them take off.
The highlight of the trip had to be our disembarkment. We were not sure how best to get out of the canoe. So we opted for a speedy trip right up the bank by paddling as hard as we could. To be honest, I didn’t think it would work. But it did! We were both floored when we managed to get the canoe far enough up on the bank that I was able to step out without getting wet and haul R and the rest of the canoe out of the water. If anyone has tips for the correct way to exit a canoe, we would love to hear them.
Fishing is definitely the main thing to do at Winchester Lake State Park and that appeared to be what most people were doing. I used the time to practice my cast since I did not do a minute of research on fly fishing at this lake. But I can tell you that it did not matter. It was a beautiful morning to stand on the dock and practice. I actually have no idea what I would have done had I actually caught something.
There are plenty of trails around the lake. R took a walkabout while I was practicing my cast. She found an information trail with placquards and let me tell you, she learned a lot! In fact, she shared things she had learned for many days after her walkabout.
Before visiting this park, we had never heard of Winchester Lake or Winchester Lake State Park. Now it is one of our favorite parks! It can be enjoyed year-round and is a must-visit if you like to fish, canoe, or stay in a yurt.
Note: we visited Winchester Lake State Park as part of our Idaho State Parks Challenge. The challenge consists of visiting all of Idaho’s state parks in one year. We made up this challenge to see a bit more of our beautiful state and help alleviate the restlessness caused by Covid-19 travel restrictions. Feel free to join the challenge!
Related posts you might like:
Or if you want to see all of our posts, visit Past Posts.
If you visit Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, in the summertime and are looking for a place away from the crowds, head to Coeur d’Alene Parkway State Park. You will find a lakeside trail with lovely views and few people. State Park Overview About 15 minutes south …
Three defining characteristics of southern Idaho are sagebrush, the Snake River and the Oregon Trail. These things combine near Glenns Ferry, Idaho, at Three Island Crossing State Park. Imagine you were a pioneer headed to Oregon. You’ve made it past the Great Plains and the …
I’ve talked to several people about Lake Walcott State Park and the response was the same. “I’ve seen the sign on the freeway, but have never been there.” Now that we have ventured off the freeway to visit, I would summarize it as a nice enough spot, but not necessarily worth the side trip.
Lake Walcott State Park is a small park about 30 minutes north of I-84 near Rupert, Idaho. The drive to the park follows the Snake River and is quite pretty; which explains why there are several mansion-type houses along the way. Lake Walcott is formed by a small dam in the Snake, so one of the main activities is fishing. The lake isn’t that large though, more like a wide part of the river.
Overall, we give this state park two stars.
If you live in the area, I could see coming here a lot. But unless you are really into frisbee golf, I don’t know that you should take time to travel to Lake Walcott State Park.
The park features a frisbee golf course and lots of places to have a BBQ or picnic on the grassy areas. Please check out the Idaho Parks and Rec website for Lake Walcott State Park for a list of all amenities.
When we showed up, we were shocked at the crowd. It turns out we happened upon a large frisbee golf tournament. However, a little away from the festivities we only saw two other families other than a few frisbee golfers on the course. A frisbee golf tournament is most likely not an everyday affair, so we feel confident in recommending this park for non-people people. It doesn’t seem like this you’re going to be ever be overwhelmed by the masses here.
Ummmm….the dam? The frisbee golf course seems like a big draw also.
Lake Walcott was formed by damming the Snake River in 1909. That’s about all the information we could find about this place…and believe me we looked. If you happen to know more about this place, please fill us in.
Google took us a little off the beaten path to get here; in all of our time on the Idaho State Parks Challenge, we’ve been very successful following the brown state park signs. The drive from the freeway didn’t pass any of these, but the route was really pretty as it followed the Snake River up to the Lake Walcott State Park.
We eventually made it to the park and were confused/surprised by people all around. We made a drive through the throngs, just to see what was happening, and discovered a frisbee golf tournament had just happened. I didn’t know frisbee golf tournaments were a thing, but they had booths and t-shirts for sale and a whole slew of people, presumably frisbee golf fans(?).
We continued down the road from the festivities and saw a dramatic decrease in the number of patrons at the park. Our designated activity for this park was a picnic, so we found a nice grassy area with a view of the water and set up shop. It was nearing the golden hour in the evening, so the lighting was pretty and the temperature was just right for a summer evening.
There were some fisherman on a pier just down from where we were eating, and a group of frisbee golfers (didn’t look like the competitive variety) were playing behind us. We saw some barbecue grills, so this would be a nice place to grill and chill. There wasn’t a beach that we saw, so the water here would be more for fishing and looking rather than swimming. We also didn’t see any boats, so maybe the boaters hang out by the camping spots and ramp.
Lake Walcott State Park would be a nice park to visit if you lived near the area. Or maybe it would be a destination if you were into frisbee golf tournaments and that is where it was being held. Since we would pass several other state parks along the way if we were leaving from Boise, I’m not sure it would be worth it to drive all the way to Lake Walcott.
We visited Lake Walcott State Park as part of our Idaho State Parks Challenge. The challenge consists of visiting all of Idaho’s state parks in one year. We made up this challenge to see a bit more of our beautiful state and help alleviate the restlessness caused by Covid-19 travel restrictions. Feel free to join the challenge!
Related posts you might like:
Or if you want to see all of our posts, visit Past Posts.
If you enjoy ranching history, beautiful views and/or recreational activities, Harriman State Park in Idaho will not disappoint. State Park Overview Harriman State Park can be credited with helping to launch Idaho’s official state park system. There is a lot of history at this park. …