‘Keeping us together’ for miles

Foundation: Centennial Trail kept community connected during coronavirus shutdown

COEUR d’ALENE — As Scott Stephens walked along the Centennial Trail next to Lake Coeur d’Alene, he came face-to-face with Hercules.

The 12-year-old Boston Terrier didn’t give ground as he first stared suspiciously at the stranger, then walked closer for Stephens to pet him.

The Tuesday morning encounter was good reason for Stephens and Hercules’ owner, Debbie Schuelke, to stop and chat.

“I love the trail,” said Schuelke, who was in the midst of a run before taking a break. “It helps keep me distracted, surrounded by all the beauty.”

Stephens, who lives nearby, exercises on the trail daily. He is thankful to have it and does his best to keep it and the shoreline litter-free.

“To see the people get out, families, fresh air, is good,” he said. “It’s just too precious.”

The Centennial Trail was key to the well-being of the community during the coronavirus lockdown, said Tim Keaty, board member with the North Idaho Centennial Trail Foundation.

He and Tabitha Kraack, foundation executive director, spoke on the trail’s physical, social and economic importance during Tuesday’s Coeur d’Alene Chamber of Commerce’s Upbeat Breakfast held via Zoom.

Many live within a few miles and can reach it in just a few minutes, Keaty said. Its use rose when businesses deemed nonessential were ordered to close in late March and people were told to stay home to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

Cyclists, runners, walkers, skaters and sight-seers turned to the trail to stay sharp. It never closed and proved to be “a wonderful outlet during this pandemic thing,” Keaty said.

“The trail is really a jewel that snakes and winds its way through our community,” he added.

Keaty credited the Joint Powers — the cities of Coeur d’Alene and Post Falls, and Kootenai County, for supporting the trail, but he added that the upkeep really “falls on us, the citizens of the community.

“We’re the ones who benefit from the trail,” he said.

The foundation is a guiding force in raising funds to maintain, improve and develop expansion plans for the trail that runs for 23 miles in North Idaho, from Higgens Point to the state line. It passes through parks, neighborhoods, past historic points, and along the Spokane River.

“If you’re on it, you see how beautiful this trail is,” Kraack said.

The trail is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, with a party slated for Oct. 1 at the Innovation Den.

To mark the occasion, Doug Eastwood, foundation board member and former Coeur d’Alene parks director, wrote a book, “The North Idaho Centennial Trail: The Trail That Almost Wasn’t.” Proceeds are going to the foundation.

One of the trail’s main fundraisers, the Coeur d’Alene Marathon, was moved from late May to Aug. 23. Another fundraiser, the Coeur d’Fondo bike ride, is set for Sept. 19.

The trail’s economic impact is estimated at more than $3 million, Kraack said, and more than 400,000 people use the trail each year.

People can get involved through sponsorships, volunteering and becoming a “Friend of the Trail” for $60 a year.

As a nonprofit, the foundation relies on the community.

“If we don’t have your support, we can’t keep this trail world class,” Kraack said.

She challenged people to become foundation members.

The Centennial Trail, throughout the coronavirus business shutdown and stay-home order, was there for everyone to use. And many did.

“The trail has been here for you. It has been open. It has been keeping us together,” Kraack said. “It’s the one thing in our community that has been there the whole entire time.”