Pend Oreille Bay Trail

After completing the Long Bridge Trail, I took a short ride through the town of Sandpoint to the trail head of the Pend Oreille Bay Trail.  This turned out to be a beautiful ride along the shore, much of it covered in the shady canopy of the trees.  The trail is about 3 miles round-trip, and although it is unpaved, it is very smooth and easily ridable (or walkable, for that matter).  Here's a GPS of the trail.

From the trail head, heading north along the bay.

Into the shady canopy. There were a couple benches along the way to relax and enjoy the view.

End of the line. About 1.5 miles north, you reach private property.

Heading back, with the lake on the left. It was a very pleasant ride all the way.

Took a little detour afterward to the active Sandpoint train station.

Long Bridge Trail

The city of Sandpoint, in the Idaho panhandle, is situated at the north end of Lake Pend Oreille, where the lake then feeds into the Pend Oreille River.  I picked out a couple trails that each start near the downtown area - the Long Bridge Trail and the Pend Oreille Bay Trail.  I'll cover the Long Bridge Trail this time, and the Bay Trail next time.  Here's a GPS trace of the route.

Summary

Also known as the Serenity Lee Trail, this trail crosses a 2-mile bridge that parallels US highway 95.  The bridge itself has quite a history - you can read about it, and see old photos, here.  Although listed as a Rail Trail on TrailLink.com, it is not.  Starting from the north, it does parallel the BNSF Railroad, but it soon diverges as they each cross the water.

I was pleased to find parking in the designated lot.  The bathrooms were open and clean.

Heading south, the railroad diverges from the trail.  There was a lot of rail activity on this day.

Along the shore just south of Sandpoint, ID.

The Long Bridge, which was the old US 95 until they built the new bridge along side.

Looking east, you can see the BNSF railroad bridge in the distance, spanning the bay.

After crossing the bridge, there was a bit of hill-and-dale, with open space on the left.  US 95, on the right, was usually a comfortable distance away.

A fairly typical view looking east, with the Cabinet Mountains in the distance.

Another very nice view looking east.

The trail ends in Sagle, ID (about 5 miles south of Sandpoint) at the Java Bear Espresso.