Downtown Coeur d’Alene · Lake Coeur d’Alene · Free hiking trail
Tubbs Hill
A free 2.2-mile loop around a 165-acre forested peninsula, with lake views, small beaches and a swinging bridge, starting right beside downtown Coeur d’Alene.
Opens the City of Coeur d’Alene’s Tubbs Hill page, with directions and maps. The hill is free to walk; you pay only to park downtown.
Details checked October 2026
Type
Hiking trail & natural park
City-owned peninsula; leashed dogs welcome
Admission
Free
No entry fee or pass; downtown parking is paid
Hours
Open year-round
The city posts no hours; Google lists 6 am–10 pm.
Time needed
About 1 hour
For the 2.2-mile loop; average is about 52 min
Parking
Paid downtown lots
Oversize (21 ft+) pays $4/hr at McEuen
Size
165 acres
Lake Coeur d’Alene on three sides
What you’ll see
A wild lakeshore walk beside downtown
Tubbs Hill is a city natural park with Lake Coeur d’Alene on its west, south and east sides, crossed by several miles of trail.
Photo: TravelingOtter on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Start here
The 2.2-mile interpretive loop
The main trail leaves from the southwest corner of McEuen Park and circles the whole hill in 2.2 miles, mostly on narrow dirt tread with rocks and roots. It gains about 300 feet, and most people finish in about an hour, with the widest lake views on the south and east sides.
RV tip: the loop isn’t stroller- or wheelchair-friendly, so wear real shoes. In summer, start early: the city counted more than 387,000 visits in 2024, with 6,474 on July 4 alone.
More to see
- The summitSide trails climb to the top of the hill, about 375 feet above the lake, for views over the city, the resort and the bay.
- Beaches and covesSmall beaches and rocky coves line the loop, including a beach on the southwest side that draws swimmers in summer.
- The swinging bridgeA rope suspension bridge along the trail is one of the hill’s best-known photo stops.
- The memorial stonesAt the main entrance, stones honor Art Manley and Scott Reed, who led the long effort to keep the hill public.
Why go
A forest island at the edge of town
Tubbs Hill is named for Tony A. Tubbs, who platted a “Tubbs Hill Addition” here in 1884. The city bought the land piece by piece from 1936 into the 1970s, and a 1974 purchase stopped a plan for condominiums on the summit. Art Manley and later Scott Reed led the push to keep the hill public, and the nonprofit Tubbs Hill Foundation still helps care for it.
For RVers the appeal is how easy it is. The trailhead sits on the edge of downtown, a few minutes from the in-town RV parks, so you can walk the loop in the morning and spend the afternoon on Sherman Avenue or the lake. Leave the rig at camp, though: downtown lots are tight and charge by the hour.
The hill itself is ancient Precambrian rock, shaped by the Missoula floods about 15,000 years ago. May through October is the busy season. Spring and fall are quieter, though rain or snow can make the dirt trail slick.
Photo: David Taylor on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 2.0)
Why it made our list
- Free, with no entry fee or pass
- A 2.2-mile loop with the lake on three sides
- Trailhead right at McEuen Park, downtown
- Rated 4.8 by more than 1,600 Google reviewers
- Leashed dogs welcome
For RVers
Visiting Tubbs Hill on an RV trip
The practical stuff we wished someone had told us before we pulled in.
Bring the tow vehicle, not the rig
There is no posted RV parking near the trailhead, and several city lots are signed “No overnight or RV parking.” Drive in with your tow vehicle or car and leave the motorhome or trailer at camp.
Know the parking rates
The city’s fee schedule (updated July 2025) lists $2 an hour for a regular stall at McEuen and $4 an hour for oversize vehicles, meaning any vehicle or vehicle-and-trailer combination 21 feet or longer. Unattached trailers can’t be parked. The East McEuen lot has 218 free all-day spaces.
Dogs on a leash
Dogs are welcome on Tubbs Hill but must stay on a leash, per the city. If yours needs a run first, there is an off-leash dog park at the base in McEuen Park. On warm days, don’t leave pets in a parked vehicle.
Day use only
Camping, campfires, fireworks, smoking, alcohol, glass, bicycles and motor vehicles are all banned on the hill. The city has been thinning trees to cut wildfire risk, with trail closures on the south side since May 25, 2026, so check cdaid.org for notices before you go.
What visitors say about Tubbs Hill
The visitor report card
We don’t copy other sites’ reviews, but the published scores are worth reading together. Scores checked October 28, 2026.
Tubbs Hill is 165 acres of natural park
City of Coeur d’Alene Parks · cdaid.org
What visitors often mention
Topics in Google’s review summary
Lake viewsTrailsBeach swimmingDog-friendly
Google’s review summary for Tubbs Hill points to the views, the trails, beach swimming, picnicking and how dog- and family-friendly it is. Google doesn’t show counts for these topics. Checked October 28, 2026.
From lake to summit
Elevations in feet, from Wikipedia’s Tubbs Hill article. The perimeter loop gains about 300 feet; the summit trails climb higher.
Good to know
EntryFree no pass needed
McEuen parking$2/hr regular stall
Oversize, 21 ft+$4/hr vehicle or combo
Not allowed on the hillBikesCampfiresAlcohol & glass
Parking rates from the City of Coeur d’Alene fee schedule updated July 15, 2025; rates can differ by season. The East McEuen lot has 218 free all-day spaces, and paid lots take Diamond Parking or ParkMobile.
Know before you go
Plan your visit
Tubbs Hill
- Address210 S. 3rd St., Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814
- HoursOpen year-round
The city posts no hours; Google lists 6 am–10 pm. - Phone(208) 769-2252 (City Parks office, weekdays 8–5)
- EntryFree; no ticket or pass needed
- Getting thereFrom I-90, take Northwest Boulevard south; it curves left and becomes Sherman Avenue. Turn right on 2nd Street, curve left, then turn right into the 3rd Street parking lot.
- TrailheadsWest: the southwest corner of McEuen Park. East: East Tubbs Hill Park at the south end of 10th Street, with a parking-lot trailhead and restrooms.
The city posts trail closures and notices at cdaid.org. After rain or snow the dirt trail can be slick, so check conditions before you head out.
Where to stay nearby
RV parks near Tubbs Hill
These are the Coeur d’Alene parks we have written up that sit closest to the trailhead. Drive times are estimates for a normal day.
Blackwell Island RV Resort
Big riverfront resort where the Spokane River leaves the lake, with 182 full-hookup sites and a swimming beach. Open April to mid-October.
Tamarack RV Park
Shady, family-owned park under tall pines in the middle of town, with full hookups and free Wi-Fi. Open year-round.
Kootenai County Fairgrounds RV Park
39 paved, level full-hookup sites at one flat price beside the fairgrounds. Closes for winter on October 15.
Helpful answers
Frequently asked questions
The questions RVers ask most before pulling in.
Open year-round · Free entry
Ready to walk the loop?
Park downtown or at East McEuen, start at the McEuen Park trailhead and give yourself an hour on the lakeshore.
Thank you to the people behind these photos and this video. Please support them by giving their work a look. Photos via Wikimedia Commons: TravelingOtter (trail and beach; CC BY-SA 2.0), Mkennedystudios (swinging bridge; CC BY-SA 4.0), Natecation (sunset; CC BY-SA 4.0), David Taylor (Tubbs Hill and the lake, Why go; CC BY 2.0) and LibertyLakeAnne (east shore; CC0); the images were resized. Video: Wollertz Photography on YouTube (Tubbs Hill hike). Review-site logos are trademarks of their owners.
Disclaimer
RV-Roundup is an independent, community-based resource created to help RV travelers and to support and promote the places we feature. RV-Roundup is not owned by, operated by, or officially affiliated with the City of Coeur d’Alene or Tubbs Hill unless otherwise stated.
The information on this page was prepared using the most current details available at the time of publication, including the city’s published materials and publicly available sources. Parking rates, rules, closures and other details are set by the city and may change at any time without notice. Before you go, please confirm details directly with the City of Coeur d’Alene Parks Department at cdaid.org or (208) 769-2252. RV-Roundup is not responsible for errors, omissions, or changes made after publication.
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