Awesome Camping Activities at Farragut State Park

Looking for summer activities? Camping with your family is a relaxing way to enjoy the great outdoors and spend some time together. Our family loves camping because it’s an inexpensive way to explore. We can easily fill our days with hiking, swimming and playing. We live close to Farragut State Park near Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. This beautiful state park offers many camp sites, hiking trails and easy access to Lake Pend Oreille. For our family, these fun camping activities at Farragut State Park are a great way to enjoy North Idaho.

Riding Bikes

Bringing bikes on a camping trip is a great idea. Riding bikes is at the top of our list of things to do with kids at Farragut State Park. When we stay at a traditional campground with paved roads, our kids love biking around the camping loops. Also, our family can go on a longer bike ride together along a bike path or a forest trail. Ultimately, riding bikes is an easy way to fill an afternoon while camping. Conveniently, bikes are pretty easy to bring on a camping trip, using a truck or vehicle bike rack.

Playing Frisbee Golf

Kids and adults will enjoy competing against each other in a lively game of disc golf. This game helps you burn energy as you trek through the forest. Kids can take turns throwing small Frisbees to hit the disc golf targets. Some Frisbee golf courses are quite sprawling, with 9 or 18 “targets” throughout the woods that can be par 3 to par 6 or more. Disc golf rules are typically similar to traditional golf rules, except players throw discs at a basket-like target. Farragut State Park has several disc golf courses, including a shorter course for kids.

Going on Easy Hikes

Next on our list, going on a family hike is one of our favorite camping activities at Farragut State Park. We’ve been hiking with our kids since they were babies. Families of all ages can enjoy a scenic hike up to a ridge or down to the waterfront. Farragut State Park near Coeur d’Alene, Idaho has lots of easy hiking trails with gorgeous lake views. Many of the paths lead down to the lake’s edge. The scenery is gorgeous and the paths are well maintained. You can enjoy a short 30 minute hike or spend a few hours traversing the forested trails.

Farragut used to be a Naval outpost and some of the trails lead to stone “ruins” of outbuildings and barracks. Hiking and exploring the trails is an adventurous yet simple thing to do with kids at Farragut State Park. Many benches and logs along the trail offer places to rest or stop for a snack. In spring, the paths are scattered with wild flowers and vibrant greenery.

Farragut has lots of easy hiking trails and beautiful lake views overlooking Lake Pend Oreille.

Hiding Painted Rocks

Our kids love to paint colorful designs on rocks and hide them for others to find. This activity has become a popular community effort in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. Similar to geocaching, you can find the work of local artists hiding among tree roots and along forest trails. Some local groups get very artsy with their rock designs and even label them with hashtags. If you find a painted rock out in nature, you can either keep it or hide it again for someone else to discover.

My kids painted a colorful collection of rocks with craft paint. Once dry, we sprayed them with a protective coat of clear spray. The finished rocks had been sitting around our house for a few months. Our camping trip to Farragut State Park was the perfect opportunity to go on a family hike and “hide” our collection of colorful rocks. On other hiking trips, we’ve found a pretty rock left by someone else!

Playgrounds & Swings

Farragut State Park, like many local camping destinations, has a great playground with swings, play structures and a rock climbing wall. The playground offers many things to do with kids at Farragut State Park. You can play tag, compete to scale the rock wall and get up to four kids swinging at the same time. My kids especially love the swings, which are situated with a serene view of Lake Pend Oreille. At the end of our hike, we stopped by the swing set for a few minutes before heading back to our camp site.

Exploring Lake Pend Oreille

Last but not least, camping at Farragut State Park is a great time to explore the nearby lake and enjoy the views. Lake Pend Oreille in Idaho is a beautiful lake for boating, kayaking, fishing and swimming. It’s usually less busy than Hayden Lake or the downtown Lake Coeur d’Alene. You can easily launch your boat or kayak at the Farragut public boat launch, which also has plenty of parking. Tubing, fishing and swimming are popular camping activities at Farragut State Park. The lake does grow some algae near the shore but it’s not as noticeable once you are out in the deeper water. We’ve enjoyed many sunny afternoons out on the lake.

Lake Pend Oreille is a huge lake surrounded by plenty of parks, boat launches, picnic sites and other facilities. It’s no surprise that Lake Pend Oreille is the largest lake in Idaho, located in the northern Idaho Panhandle.

A family camping trip offers the chance to get away and enjoy some special activities with your family. It’s always revitalizing to get exercise and enjoy the fresh air of the forest. Hiking, biking, playing disc golf, fishing and swimming are just a few of the fun camping activities at Farragut State Park. We feel so privileged to live near Coeur d’Alene, Idaho with convenient access to this beautiful area.

Katie Wallace

Hi, I’m Katie! I live with my husband and 4 kids in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. I love Jesus, coffee, creative projects, photography, and traveling. I’ve previously worked as a web designer, journalist, and barista. I hope you enjoy our creative projects and family adventures!