Document text
3 of 3 Premium Clicks used this month SUBSCRIBE Print + Online Subscriber Activation | Register x Forgot Password | Need an Account? e-edition | subscribe | newsletter | deals Home News Latest Stories Families flee to Southern Oregon to escape violence in Michoacan, Mexico 2-year-old drowns in irrigation ditch in Central Point Emergency services, April 5 Graduation rates among special ed students in Jackson County improve but fall short of 67 percent target Cute smiles, chubby cheeks win judges' hearts in annual Pear Blossom Baby Contest in Medford Crime, Courts and Emergency Services Emergency services, April 5 Emergency services, April 4 Social media helped track down AmericanWest Bank robber, Medford police say Jury awards damages to Rogue River couple that lived next to noisy dogs U.S. Bank robbery suspect charged in Minute Market crime Politics and Elections Arthur I. Cyr: Afghanistan progress is uneven but undeniable Jackson County Commissioners plan no tax on marijuana for one year Arthur I. Cyr: Iran – a crisis without end Arthur I. Cyr: South Korea represents long-term triumph – for them and for US Special election: Jackson County voters OK marijuana tax Education Graduation rates among special ed students in Jackson County improve but fall short of 67 percent target New SOU board hikes tuition 5 percent Southern Oregon Education Service District superintendent to retire in June Which comes first: The rocket or the egg? Medford School District one of most accident-prone in state Environment A sea-foam change Rogue Valley lions on their way to California Corps hopes to clear Lost Creek Lake of debris Beetles taking toll on Ashland pines Mt. Ashland Ski Area to host party March 28 State News City rules drive Uber ride-hailing service out of Eugene District fires Oregon's 2014 Teacher of the Year Oregon lawmakers consider increasing highway speed limits State releases 94,000 emails from former first lady Cylvia Hayes Man accused of arson in Albany high school cafeteria fire Nation - World Obituaries William D. Enyart Gordon Geeseman Patricia Anne Johnson Patricia E. Rees Gary Dahl Weather Photo Galleries Since You Asked Videos Web Cams Mail Tribune 100 Shareable Sports Latest Stories Notre Dame edges South Carolina in Final Four J.B. Holmes takes Houston Open Okafor, Kaminsky took different paths to Indy Giants open title defense on road Healthy choice Varsity 541 College Sports Notre Dame edges South Carolina in Final Four Okafor, Kaminsky took different paths to Indy Healthy choice Kentucky player apologizes for obscenity, slur Ducks' Buckner sidelined for spring Pro Sports J.B. Holmes takes Houston Open Giants open title defense on road Blazers again hit 50-win mark Timbers dump Dallas for first victory Spieth grabs one-shot lead at Houston Community Sports Business Latest Stories Silvio Calabi: Scion tC style hides its utility Road to health: Bike and pedestrian paths play greater role in transportation project funding Jackson County median home price hits $215,000 in first quarter Blog: The Season for Cleaning Blog: Nothing succeeds like ... a good wine promotion Real Estate News Jackson County median home price hits $215,000 in first quarter East McAndrews Road sees a resurgence in commercial projects Business briefs: March 7 People In Business People in Business, March 26, 2015 Transportation Road to health: Bike and pedestrian paths play greater role in transportation project funding Rogue Disposal plans natural gas fueling site Alaska, United Express boost Medford airport to record February Agriculture Broth maker leaves San Diego for Medford Opinion Latest Letters to the Editor, April 5 Our View: State income tax sharing run amok Dana Milbank: Bob Menendez should resign Guest Opinion: If Courtney kills bill, $15 minimum wage will go to the ballot Michael Gerson: The virtues of the smoke-filled room Editorials Our View: State income tax sharing run amok Other Views: Rethink gillnet ban on the Columbia Our View: Local water supplies are not unlimited Our View: Cheers and Jeers Our View: The tangled web at Medford's Northgate Centre Letters to the Editor Letters to the Editor, April 5 Letters to the Editor, April 3 Letters to the Editor, April 2 Letters to the Editor, April1 Letters to the Editor, March 31 Columns Dana Milbank: Bob Menendez should resign Guest Opinion: If Courtney kills bill, $15 minimum wage will go to the ballot Michael Gerson: The virtues of the smoke-filled room Guest Opinion: Phoenix embraces Bee City USA designation Matthew T. Mangino: Prison deaths on the rise Guest Opinions Guest Opinion: If Courtney kills bill, $15 minimum wage will go to the ballot Guest Opinion: Phoenix embraces Bee City USA designation Guest Opinion: Marijuana offers Oregon benefits, drawbacks Guest Opinion: How to end the influence of money in elections Guest Opinion: How schools teach U.S. history raises hackles Lifestyle Latest stories Silvio Calabi: Scion tC style hides its utility Southern Oregon Journal: The famous Southern Oregon Coast Easter lilies Adopt a Pet A little fiction is like salt Solving the caregiving riddle takes care Food Community blog: Light lemon souffles are an easy Easter treat Page H. Onorato: Leftover ham and eggs make for some yummy dishes after Easter The journey from inspiration to written recipe Tammy Kelly: Lighten up traditional Easter desserts Kitchen Call: Goat cheese recipes worth bleating over Home and Garden Carol Link: Pruning rose plants, step by step How often should you paint the outside of your house? Carol Link: It’s time to get into shape for spring yard work Dear Monty: Relocation brings pay raise and challenges Garden Cameos: Planning for a fragrant garden year round Health Health Watch: Work out like a pro athlete Brent St. Germain: Feeling the burn again HealthStyle: Normal anxiety or anxiety disorder? Community blog: How to Get Rid of a Tension Headache St. Mary's student helps others with diabetes Hiking Biking Faith Religion briefs: Friday, April 3 Religion briefs: Friday, March 27 Religion briefs Religion News: Presbyterian Church gives approval on same-sex marriage Religion briefs: Friday, March 13 Milestones and Achievements Haga-Parks Exercise helps special-needs kids adjust to airport procedures Columnist for a Day Rogue Healthy Aging Tempo Latest stories Here's Tempo's 5 picks for entertainment this week Live Music in Local Clubs A Country Cajun Revival comes to the Unitarian Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhibits by regional artists New exhibits open at Schneider Museum of Art Theater Auditions for youth musical set at Camelot Review: From past into present in OSF's 'Long Day's Journey' ‘A Dream of Red Pavilions’ at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Review: Education and its discontents Next Stage Repertory presents 'Educating Rita' at the Craterian Theater Music Elias String Quartet plays at Southern Oregon University Bluegrass band Siskiyou Summit plays Bell Fiore Winery Oregon Old-Time Fiddlers at the Ashland Community Center Live Music in Local Clubs A Country Cajun Revival comes to the Unitarian Community Events MailTribune.com rolls out new calendar Hip-Hop Poetry Open Mic at the Oregon Shakespeare Festival Easter egg hunts are a long-standing tradition in the Rogue Valley Get Up & Go: Friday, April 3 Ashland's First Friday Art Walk showcases new exhibits by regional artists Dining RESTAURANT INSPECTIONS: Sunday, April 5 The Laughing Clam in Grants Pass offers seafood-heavy menu Standing Stone owners to open Medford brewpub and restaurant Restaurant Inspections: March 29 Basque-inspired cuisine at Eleven in Ashland Tempo Videos Classifieds Jobs Autos Real Estate FEATURED » Obits Blogs TV Listings Movie Listings Oregon Outdoors Oregon Healthy Living Special Sections Business Services NEWS NOW Graduation rates among special ed students in Jackson County improve but fall short of 67 percent target ... Our View: State income tax sharing run amok ... Guest Opinion: If Courtney kills bill, $15 minimum wage will go to the ballot ... Graduation rates among special ed students in Jackson County improve but fall short of 67 percent target ... Our View: State income tax sharing run amok ... Guest Opinion: If Courtney kills bill, $15 minimum wage will go to the ballot ... TRAVEL / IDAHO Choose your own adventure Coeur d'Alene is a friendly pocket of joy in the Northwest Comment By Josh Noel Chicago Tribune MailTribune.com By Josh Noel Chicago Tribune Posted Apr. 5, 2015 at 12:01 AM By Josh Noel Chicago Tribune Posted Apr. 5, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Social News COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho — Two challenges accompany a visit to this lovely, pine-studded north Idaho town. One involves the name, which translates to "Heart of an Awl," meaning the sharp instrument used to punch holes in leather, which apparently was a big thing back in 1878, when Coeur d'Alene was founded. How do you pronounce the town's name? How do you spell it? The good news is that neither much matters. Locals mostly call it "CDA," and you can too. In fact, it will make you sound even less like a tourist. So cross that off your list of worries. Second, and much more vexing, is deciding what to do in Coeur d'Alene — that is, CDA. As much as any town I've visited, Coeur d'Alene is a "choose your own adventure" sort of destination. Step out of a downtown hotel and turn one direction for bistros, beer bars and quaint small-town shopping. Head the other way and you find (get ready, it's a long list): hiking, biking, swimming, kayaking, paddleboarding, jet skiing, water skiing, lake cruises, a biplane waiting to whisk you above the Lake Coeur d'Alene, wind surfing or just lounging on the beach. On the average pleasant summer day, all those pursuits happen side by side in the town of 46,000, which is tucked between the lake and the national forest that share its name. Add it all up and Coeur d'Alene feels like one of nature's most glorious theme parks: small-town charm crossed with the glories of the wild. Coeur d'Alene holds an easy, laid-back magic built for tourism but never overwhelmed by it. Though it sits at 2,200 feet, its northern latitude gives it the feel of a higher-elevation mountain gem, like Flagstaff, Ariz., or Durango, Colo. Perched high in the Idaho panhandle, Coeur d'Alene is both literally and figuratively far from the places that conventional wisdom considers aspirational getaways, like, say, Martha's Vineyard, Tahoe or Aspen. But the anonymity only feeds Coeur d'Alene's charm; if you don't know about it and don't make the effort to find out, well, more for the rest of us. But once discovering Coeur d'Alene, you might wonder how you were ever so incurious about northern Idaho. It's a stop particularly worth the effort for road trippers bouncing among the great cities and sites of the Northwest, which is exactly what Kray and Pattie Hensley, of Sonoma, Calif., were doing when I met them one afternoon at Crafted, a craft-beer bar and restaurant that opened last summer in downtown Coeur d'Alene. The Hensleys had just come from Yellowstone National Park, seven hours southeast by car. I asked if they agreed that Coeur d'Alene belonged in the same sentence as the nation's most picturesque getaways. Did it, for instance, remind them of their near-to-home getaway, Lake Tahoe? "A lot," said Kray Hensley, 71. "But I'd rather be here." "California is more built up," said Pattie Hensley, 70. "This feels more loose. It's more pristine." "Loose" is a fair description of Coeur d'Alene. There's no pretense here — just a quick, seductive charm and progressive Western mentality. The downtown farmers market, for instance, included a woman pouring three of her homemade kombucha teas (which she sold to an eager local audience — on tap no less); another stall hawking locally grown wool in a rainbow of colors; and, of course, because this is small-town America, local fudge. But the town's secret weapon becomes obvious soon after arriving: that lake. Sitting beside downtown and ringed by piney hills, Lake Coeur d'Alene is an absolute thing of beauty. It's as deep as 250 feet and hosts all sorts of action, from the aforementioned joys to young children building sand castles on its beach. Such pleasures lie in all directions in Coeur d'Alene, including the world-famous "floating green" at Coeur d'Alene Resort golf course. It's exactly what its name implies: a green on the 14th hole that floats on Lake Coeur d'Alene, and it's accessible only by boat once a golfer chips a shot over. "I'm a Southern California girl, and I never would have guessed I'd end up here," said Carol Kime, 52, who moved to the town five years ago, after her parents did. Until then, she had never even heard of it. "The people are so friendly. They just talk to you on the street. And you'd never honk your horn at someone like in L.A. You just don't do that here." I met Kime at the dock where the boat tour, which spends 90 minutes skimming across the lake, begins. The tours are an easy way to gain perspective on the town and the beauty surrounding it, so I boarded a cruise one afternoon with several dozen people, mostly families with young children or groups of adults with cases of beer and festive mindsets. The captain announced on the intercom, "They say this is one of the five most beautiful lakes in the world," and whoever "they" were, I believed them. I believed them even more when a local clued me in to which house on that glistening shore belonged to retired football player John Elway and which belonged to the actor Dennis Franz. (They're neighbors, apparently.) The next morning I visited Tubbs Hill, a rolling 130-acre pine-shrouded peninsula jutting into the lake. It has been protected land since the 1970s; in the hands of a less savvy town, it's not difficult to imagine that it would have been plowed and developed to the hilt. But Coeur d'Alene had the good sense to leave Tubbs Hill alone, resulting in a rustic, piney two-mile hiking trail just beside the downtown. On a warm, sunny Saturday, I walked the loop, passing the secret coves and beaches below. Locals swam, splashed, threw sticks for their dogs into the lake and dared each other to jump from the rocky cliffs into the blue-green water below. The town, and most sense of civilization, disappeared after about 10 minutes, and at its farthest point, it seemed I might have been in the middle of nowhere. It was just me and a quiet view across the broad mountain lake. It was a wonderful sliver of peace, but I won't lie — I was glad to know that at the end of the loop, I would be a mere five-minute walk to beer and wood-fired pizza. Such is life in Coeur d'Alene. Ahem — CDA.   By Josh Noel Chicago Tribune MailTribune.com By Josh Noel Chicago Tribune Posted Apr. 5, 2015 at 12:01 AM » Comment or view comments Reader Reaction » STAY INFORMED Email NewsLetter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. calendar Connect with MailTribune.com Facebook Twitter RSS Back to top Reader Services Reader Services Home Subscriptions Subscriber controls Contact us Submissions Photos Events Letters to the editor Corrections Announcements Obituaries Story ideas Since you asked Alerts Email Alerts RSS Feeds Text Alerts Advertise Media Kit Home Products and services Ad rates Advertising contacts Mail Tribune Daily Tidings The Nickel Shop Our Valley Blogs Stay Informed Email newsletter Sign Up Today Sign up for our newsletter and have the top headlines from your community delivered right to your inbox. Your privacy is important, read our privacy policy. © Copyright 2015 Local Media Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms of Service | Local Media Group Publications Original content available for non-commercial use under a Creative Commons license, except where noted. MailTribune.com | P.O. Box 1108, Medford, OR 97501