Athol is located at and to the west of the junction of Hwy 95 and 54. The small village of 687 is situated at the gateway to Idaho’s second largest State Park – Farragut and Silverwood,  the Northwest’s largest theme park which features over 200 acres of fun, over 65 rides and attractions including 3 rollercoasters, a 16 acre water park, train ride and much more. Just 15 minutes north of Coeur d’Alene, or 30 minutes south of Sandpoint it is a great getaway location.  There is camping directly across the highway managed by Silverwood or at nearby Farragut State Park. Athol is also the gateway to the International Selkirk Loop’s South Lakes Super Side Trip.

At the turn of the century Athol was a station on the main line of the Northern Pacific railroad. The surrounding country was heavily timbered. A sawmill was established in 1902 with a capacity of twenty-five thousand feet per day. Grains, vegetables and fruits grew abundantly on the newly cleared land. Sufficiently distant from neighboring Coeur d’Alene, Athol became a proper city with the establishment of schools, churches, blacksmith, post office and wood shops.