Silver Valley

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For the high school in Yermo, California, see Silver Valley High School.

The Silver Valley is a region of the Coeur d'Alene Mountains in northern Idaho noted for its mining heritage, dating back to the 1880s. The narrow valley, about 40 miles (64 km) in length, comprises a number of small towns along the South Fork of the Coeur d'Alene River (and Interstate 90) between Fourth of July Pass to the west and Lookout Pass on the Montana border.

These towns, all in Shoshone County, include (from west to east) Pinehurst, Smelterville, Kellogg, Wardner, Osburn, Silverton, Wallace, and Mullan. The Silver Valley has also been referred to as the Coeur d'Alene Valley (or Coeur d'Alene mining district).

Although miners were originally lured to the general area by the promise of gold, the primary metals mined in the valley were silver, zinc, and lead. The total quantities produced are impressive: over a billion ounces of silver, 3 million tons of zinc, and 8 million tons of lead, totalling over $6 billion in value, ranking the valley among the top ten mining districts in world history. During the 1970s, nearly half of the nation's silver production came from the Silver Valley.

The area experienced a history of turbulent disputes between miners and mine owners more than a century ago. After nearly a century of vigorous mining & smelting activity, operations were severely curtailed in the early 1980s, resulting in massive unemployment and a significant loss of population. In addition to the economic difficulties, the valley has been saddled with significant environmental challenges.

While some mining operations remain, the Silver Valley has focused its future upon recreational tourism and light manufacturing. The nearest major population center is the city of Spokane, Washington, which is 70 miles west along I-90. The growing recreational city of Coeur d'Alene, Idaho is halfway in between.

[edit] Outdoor Recreation

There are two alpine ski areas in the Silver Valley, both easily accessible from Interstate 90. Lookout Pass is at the east end of the valley on the Montana border adjacent to the freeway. Silver Mountain is thirty miles west, just south of Kellogg, accessed from the Kellogg city limits by the world's longest single-stage passenger gondola, which is a quarter mile (400 m) from the highway.

Mountain biking is fast becoming a key recreational pursuit for both locals and tourists in the Silver Valley, with trails ranging from easy to extreme. In addition to the challenging lift-served trails at Silver Mountain, there are two new major bike trails in the vicinity that use old railroad grades.

Lookout Pass ski area is also a primary staging area for the unique Route of The Hiawatha mountain bike trail, which begins in Montana and runs downhill through tunnels and over trestles to the North Fork of the St. Joe River, 15 miles (24 km) away. The trail is named for the Olympian Hiawatha passenger trains of the Milwaukee Road railroad, on whose abandoned tracks, trestles, and tunnels the gravel trail rests. One of the tunnels (Taft) is over 1.6 miles (2.6 km) in length. When completed, the Route of The Hiawatha will stretch from St. Regis, Montana to the very remote Pearson, Idaho, several miles north of Avery, (equidistantly south of Mullan).

The other trail is the Trail of the Coeur d'Alenes, completed in 2004. The paved bike path runs more than 72 miles (115 km), starting from Mullan in the east. It follows the South Fork of the Coeur d'Alene River down through the Silver Valley to the south end of Lake Coeur d'Alene, passing over an historic bridge, then up to Plummer in northwest Benewah County. The bike trail uses old right-of-way from the Union Pacific railroad.