Amenities

Shore launch.

History

In the 1800s, a trail ran through the Hoodoo Valley, connecting the Spokane region with the area around Lake Pend Oreille. The trail crossed the river here at what was then called Seneacquoteen, which means “crossing” in Kalispel, a local Inland Salish dialect. Native tribes camped and crossed the river here for centuries, and when they arrived, white fur traders also used the route. 

Seneacquoteen enjoyed a brief boom during the early 1860s when hopeful miners heading to newly discovered gold in British Columbia and Montana swarmed along the trail, prompting the establishment of a ferry to carry travelers and pack animals across the river. Ferry service continued for nearly 100 years, finally ending in March 1957. The Markham family, who lived at Seneacquoteen, operated the ferry for many years. It became less important after Sandpoint’s first Long Bridge was built in 1910. 

During the boom of the gold rush, the first steamboat was built at Seneacquoteen. The Mary Moody was a sternwheeler used on Lake Pend Oreille for carrying passengers and pack mules to the gold mines of Montana as part of a combined land and water route controlled by the Oregon Steam Navigation Company. Named after the captain’s wife, The Mary Moody could hold 55 passengers, 85 mules, and 10,000 pounds of freight, at a cost of 13¢ a pound. Miners traveled from Portland to the Snake River on company boats, then by stagecoach to Lake Pend Oreille, and eventually to the Last Chance Gold Mines of Montana. The Oregon Steam Navigation Company launched the Mary Moody on April 28, 1866. However, the boat soon switched its home port to Pen d’Oreille City at the south end of the lake. 

A few decades later, Hoodoo Creek was the site of the Adair family waterwheel. The Adairs used the creek-powered waterwheel to do farm chores, including turning the crank for a large ice cream freezer. The Adairs sold ice cream and root beer to park visitors, or people on the way to the ferry.