Coeur d'Alene volunteers clear 115 fallen trees from Revett Lake Trail

Two Coeur d’Alene residents turned one Saturday into a backcountry rescue, clearing 115 fallen trees from Revett Lake Trail #9 in just under 12 hours. Jeffrey Durocher and Chris Celentano, both certified U.S. Forest Service sawyers, worked from 9:30 a.m. until 9:15 p.m. to restore access on a trail that had become a serious obstacle in remote North Idaho.

Revett Lake Trail #9 is more than a line on a forest map. The U.S. Forest Service describes it as a very scenic, easy hiking trail through some of the most remote country on the district, with a split-log bridge crossing Cascade Creek. At Revett Lake, camping and fishing are available, making the route a gateway for hikers and anglers heading into the Coeur d’Alene River country.

The scale of the cleanup shows why the work mattered. A separate account of the same project described the trail as a perilous obstacle course just two weeks earlier, a reminder of how quickly fallen timber can cut off public access in the backcountry. In a region where the Coeur d’Alene River Region offers hundreds of miles of trails for hiking and other recreation, clearing one heavily blocked route can make the difference between a usable trail and one most people avoid.

Their effort also fits into a larger pattern of trail and road recovery across North Idaho. The Idaho Panhandle National Forests said a major storm in December 2025 caused widespread damage across north Idaho forests, and other volunteer work over that same period helped clear nearly 500 fallen trees from Forest Service roads after strong winds. The Revett Lake effort shows how much of that recovery depends on skilled local volunteers willing to spend long days on steep, remote ground.

The Forest Service says properly trained employees, volunteers and cooperators can be certified through the national saw program to use chainsaws and crosscut saws on federal lands. That system is what makes jobs like the Revett Lake cleanup possible, and it keeps hard-earned access open for the next hikers, paddlers and anglers headed for the lake.