Spokane, WA

I am not sure if it was the toddler who really needed a nap or the sun shining for the first time in days that motivated to a drive and bring along the Spokane City Drive Guide. The City Drive is officially 32 miles and has 26 points of interest. I decided to just do a portion of the drive and hit 13 of the sites.

Our first stop was Gonzaga University. Gonzaga is nestled in the middle of Spokane, 502 E. Boone Ave. Gonzaga University is a catholic university beginning in 1877. My favorite building on campus is St. Aloysius Catholic Church. Another spot on the City Drive list is Bing Crosby’s childhood home which now is called the Crosby Alumni House located at 508 E. Sharpe. If you want to view the country’s largest public collection of Bing Crosby memorabilia, stop by the Crosby Student Center in the middle of campus.

After we drove through Gonzaga’s campus, we drove to the Spokane Arena. In my opinion, the Spokane Arena is not necessarily a beautiful piece of architect, as it was built in 1990s, but inside there is always something going on from concerts to sporting events.

Just south of the Arena is the Flour Mill, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Flour Mill, which was built over 100 years ago was used to harness energy of the Spokane River to grind wheat into flour. Today it houses many retail shops, restaurants, and office spaces.

From the Flour Mill, we were only a few blocks from the Spokane County Courthouse located at 1116 W. Broadway. The Courthouse was built was in 1895. The Courthouse is a beautiful building.

Riverfront Park was our next stop at 808 W. Spokane Falls Blvd. We have spent many days at Riverfront Park riding the carousel, the gondola, watching movies at the Imax or simply walking through the park and feeding the ducks.

After driving by Riverfront Park we made our to Browne’s Addition to visit the Museum of Arts & Culture (MAC), and the Campbell House, 2316 W. First Ave. The MAC features exhibits of regional and natural history, including America’s largest collection of Northern Plateau Indian art and artifacts. Next door to the MAC is the Campbell House. The Campbell House was designed by famous architect Kirkland Cutter in 1898.

After leaving Browne’s addition, I followed the City Drive signs to Fort George Wright at 4000 W. Randolph Road. Fort George Wright is where the former Calvary headquarters were in the early settlement of Spokane. Nested in the middle of Fort George Wright is the Mukogowa Fort Wright Institute. This is a branch campus of a University in Nishinomiya, Japan. The final stop on the City Drive located on campus is the Japanese Culture Center. It features exhibits of traditional Japanese art, crafts, costumes and traditional ceremonial dress.

After leaving Fort George Wright we made our way up to the south hill. We hit Cliff Drive and the Cliff Aerie. Cliff Drive is a beautiful spot to take in a breathtaking view of the city. Right past the pull out is Cliff Aerie which is the former resident of Senator Dill who introduced the bill to build Grand Coulee Dam.

Our last stop on the City Drive tour was The Cathedral of St. John the Evangelist. I was hoping to get a tour of the church as the outside architecture is beautiful, but tours are not held on Wednesdays.

I thoroughly enjoyed my City Drive tour and my toddler got a great nap. I hope to continue my tour of the City Drive when the weather gets a little warmer so we can enjoy some of the outdoor spots on the list. To find a complete listing of the Spokane City Drive guide, go to www.visitspokane.com.