Priest Lake State Park - Lionhead Unit
When a long summer road trip starts with a great spot like this you wonder if it can get any better. This campground is on the East shore of Priest Lake at the far north end. It is a remote area with 47 sites and caters mostly to tent campers. We got one of the largest sites (#114) and we barely fit. No trailers here. No electricity, no water hookups but there is central water. Pit toilets. What you will find is a very peaceful campground with nice tree cover for shade in the heat of summer. Trails throughout the campground take you to the water and a trail from the boat launch area will take you to the shore away from the crowds and you will likely have a nice beach all to yourselves like we did. And while there are no hookups, there was a nice big dump and fill area at the south end of the lake (last picture). This is bear area...... we ran into one on the road to the Lookout Mountain hike!
Yep..... Mason loved it here!
Getting There:
Take Highway 57 North from Priest River for 23 miles then turn right onto Dickensheet Rd. towards Coolin. At Coolin turn right on the East Shore Rd. and go for 24 miles to Lionhead Unit.
Take Highway 57 North from Priest River for 23 miles then turn right onto Dickensheet Rd. towards Coolin. At Coolin turn right on the East Shore Rd. and go for 24 miles to Lionhead Unit.
Nearby Hikes, Bikes & Other Sights.....
Lower Priest Lake to Upper Priest Lake Paddle
This waterway takes paddlers from the large & busy 23,000-acre Priest Lake to the secluded, quiet 1,300-acre upper lake. The 3 mile route to the upper lake, is easy paddling and usually suitable for beginners. First you cross from the boat launch at Lionhead to mouth of the waterway and are soon greeted by the solitude of the mossy lined banks on either side of the narrow waterway. Trees towered on either side of the waterway, and we saw only 2 other groups of kayakers, even on a Saturday in summer.......providing for a quiet peaceful paddle. After about 3 miles the waterway opens up to the beauty of Upper Priest Lake. There is a camping area on the shore where we stopped for a while and enjoyed the beauty before paddling back to our camp. There was a little wind on the return and trying to cross the open water back to the boat launch proved to be a little more work than expected.
Lookout Mountain Hike
The views from this hike are some of the best in the area! With views of both lower & upper Priest lake. There are now 2 lookouts at the top, one is new and the other is a national historic lookout built in 1929. The hike to the top is 2.5 miles and 1500 ft. elevation gain. If you do not want to go the entire way, the short distance to Lookout Lake at .75 miles in is worth it. From the shore of the lake you can look up and see the peak to where you are headed and see the lookout towers if you look really hard! Campsites dot the lake shore here also. At the beginning of July there was still some snow near the lake and we buried 2 beers in the snow to have as a reward on the way down! It is a steady even climb from the lake until you reach the last 1/4 mile or so and it is steep and very rocky. Worth the climb when you reach the top!
Getting Here:
From Lionhead Campground: continue 4 miles past the Lionhead campground and then a slight right onto Forest Road #44. Continue on Road #44 for 2.5 miles to Forest Road #432. Take a right onto #432 and go 3.75 miles to the trail head on the left. It is a little hard to see, but a metal sign that says Lookout Lake on a big rock marks the starting spot.
From Lionhead Campground: continue 4 miles past the Lionhead campground and then a slight right onto Forest Road #44. Continue on Road #44 for 2.5 miles to Forest Road #432. Take a right onto #432 and go 3.75 miles to the trail head on the left. It is a little hard to see, but a metal sign that says Lookout Lake on a big rock marks the starting spot.