Entry No. 26 — the Coeur d'Alene file — filed under: outdoor

Cataldo Mission, Old Mission State Park

Idaho's oldest standing building, this 1850s mission was raised by Catholic missionaries and Coeur d'Alene tribal members using wooden pegs instead of nails. The improvised interior is the weird part: walls dressed in Hudson's Bay fabric, faux-marble statues hand-carved with a knife, tin cans rigged into mock chandeliers, and a ceiling stained blue with hand-pressed huckleberries. It anchors a state park with interpretive grounds along the river.

The move: Tour the nail-free mission to spot the huckleberry-stained ceiling and tin-can chandeliers, then picnic on the park grounds above the river.

📍 Before you go It is a state park, so an Idaho day-use parking fee applies; the parish house and visitor center keep seasonal hours even though the grounds stay open.

• 📍 Cataldo, Idaho
• 💸 $
• ⚡ Up for anything
• 🌗 Indoors

Where: 31732 S Mission Rd, Cataldo, ID 83810

Hours: Added 2026-06-24 — confirm current hours before you go.

Plan a visit & invite your people →

Proof: source 1 · source 2 · source 3 · source 4

last checked: 2026-06-24