Sandpoint, ID

My New Year’s resolution was to get out and enjoy the area I live in. I have lived in the Sandpoint area for awhile, however I do not really feel like I have done much in the area and I am a little embarrassed by that. For me it was time to start exploring, so I talked to my dad, one who is always on the go, and told him that I wanted to go on an adventure. I arrived at my dad’s house in Hope, where he hopped into my truck and told me to head towards Clark Fork. About 15 miles later my dad told me to take a left on a unmarked rocky dirt road. At first I was unsure about this road, but my dad reassured me that it was in fact a road, so I continued to drive. The road was very narrow and had large gravely rocks on it with lots of brush along side the road. We did have to pass one truck as we climbed up the mountain road. The truck coming down the road, which luckily we passed each other where there was enough room for two vehicles to pass, was pulling a small fishing boat. I started to wondered what we were going to find at the end of the road. After about a mile and a half from the highway we arrived at Antelope Lake.

I parked my truck and my dad and I walked out to the shoreline. There were a few cars parked in the lot and one fishing boat in the small lake. Fishermen lined the shore and right when we arrived a fishermen near the parking lot pulled out about a two pound fish. The fisherman told us that he and his friend had caught four fish that day, which looked like cutthroat trout when he showed them to us. I checked the Idaho Fish and Game website when I got home and found that Antelope lake had two species in it, cutthroat and rainbow trout. After we took in the beauty of the lake which was surrounded by a rocky mountain and trees we walked around the roads which looked like old logging roads. We found a great view of the valley floor, where you could see Lake Pend Oreille and Schweitzer mountain.

After we enjoyed the scenic views we continued to walked along the shoreline until we reached a creek that was overflowing out of the lake. With the large snow pack and the warm weather this year the creek was flowing fast so we decided not to cross it. As we walked back to the truck my dad asked me if I had remembered the lake. He told me that he and my mom had taken me there when I was about 3 or 4 years old. I told him I did not remember and when we got home he showed me a photo of my mom and I in the canoe enjoying Antelope Lake. It was fun going to the lake with my dad and I knew it was a start to a great summer full of exploring.

Directions to Antelope Lake: From Sandpoint head east on Highway 200 for about 27.8 miles, or a 0.10 mile past milepost 57. The road is unmarked, but is the next left after milepost 57. A map and a brief description of Antelope Lake can be found on the fish and game website at http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/cms/fish/family/FamFishPan2.pdf. There are no facilities at Antelope Lake, however the town of Clark Fork is about 4 miles away from the lake, with restaurants and gas stations if you need any supplies or food while you are visiting.