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- 96Population
About Tensed
Tensed is a city in Benewah County. About 96 people lived here in 2024, by Census estimate. It sits at about 2,600 feet, 30 miles north of Moscow in a straight line.
Places listed for this area include McCroskey State Park and the Palouse Divide Nordic Ski Area.
Moving to Tensed
Start with homes, jobs and local services in and around Tensed.
Cost of living
Tensed is outside the Idaho metros with a 2024 federal price figure, so this uses the Idaho statewide level. A basket that costs $100 in the U.S. costs $95.49 here, under the U.S. average by 4.5%.
Open the calculatorServices for Tensed
All servicesDMV counters are the county offices. A gas utility appears only when its public list names Tensed.
- St. Maries · Vehicles
222 S 7th St St. Maries, ID 83861 #G07
· Mon. - Fri. 8:30 AM - 4:00 PM
- St. Maries · Driver's licenses
222 S. 7th St. St. Maries, ID 83861 Room G27
· Mon. - Fri. 8:30 AM - 4:30 PM
No natural gas utility on the official town lists names Tensed.
Allergy ratings in Tensed
What a typical year looks like: Low, Moderate or High for each pollen season, plus wildfire smoke. Typical, general guidance. It is not medical advice. Pollen and smoke change with the weather every year, and what bothers you depends on what you are allergic to. See an allergist for testing.
Spring trees
March to June
High
Rating: High, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High, Very High. Peaks in JuneEarly-summer grass
Late May to July
High
Rating: High, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High, Very High. June to mid-JulyFall weeds and sagebrush
August to October
Moderate
Rating: Moderate, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High, Very High. Peaks in AugustWildfire smoke
Mostly July to September
Moderate
Rating: Moderate, on a scale of Low, Moderate, High. 6.6 days a year with air quality over 100. Worst year 14 (2021).
Regional rating. Tensed has no pollen counter. These pollen ratings come from the Coeur d'Alene station in the North Idaho, 36 miles away.
How these ratings are worked out
Pollen is rated on the National Allergy Bureau bands for the grains of pollen in a cubic meter of air. Trees: Low under 15, Moderate 15 to 89, High 90 to 1,499. Weeds: Low under 10, Moderate 10 to 49, High 50 to 499. Grass: Low under 5, Moderate 5 to 19, High 20 to 199. The band is the one reached on the busiest quarter of counted days. A rating is typical, not a forecast: one wet or windy year can move it.
Spring trees, High. Coeur d'Alene NAB station, 294 counted days in 2010 to 2023: on the busiest quarter of days the tree count was 106 grains per cubic meter or more, which the NAB bands call High. On the busiest tenth of days it was 183 or more.
Early-summer grass, High. The NAB station in Coeur d'Alene reported grass in the High range in June 2017 (WSU), and the Spokane NAB station read 120 grains per cubic meter in late May 2026 (Spokesman-Review). NAB calls 20 to 199 High. Two reports, not a long record. The NAB grass bands: Low under 5, Moderate 5 to 19, High 20 to 199, Very High 200 or more grains per cubic meter.
Fall weeds and sagebrush, Moderate. Coeur d'Alene NAB station, 74 counted days in 2010 to 2022: on the busiest quarter of days the weed count was 16 grains per cubic meter or more, which the NAB bands call Moderate. On the busiest tenth of days it was 28 or more. That is a short record, so treat it as a rough guide.
Wildfire smoke, Moderate. The average number of days a year the EPA's air quality index passed 100 ("unhealthy for sensitive groups" or worse), 2021-2025. Under 3 days is Low, 3 to 9 Moderate, 10 or more High. That grouping is ours, not the EPA's. Benewah County has its own EPA air monitor. The count includes any cause, but across Idaho's monitors 86% of those days fell in July to September and 94% were fine particles (PM2.5), which is what wildfire smoke is made of (570 county-days, 2021-2025).
Not rated. Mold: no published mold spore counts for Idaho towns are in the data used, so there is no mold rating. House dust, pets and food allergies are outside this rating.
Sources
- National Allergy Bureau daily pollen counts, CDC release 2003 to 2024 (Boise, Twin Falls, Coeur d'Alene stations)
- NAB pollen level bands (grains per cubic meter)
- WSU News, June 14, 2017: NAB station in Coeur d'Alene reads grass in the high range
- The Spokesman-Review, May 27, 2026: Spokane grass count 120 grains per cubic meter
- EPA AirData: annual AQI by county
Today
Pollen data through 2003-2024, smoke data 2021-2025. Checked 2026-10-03.
Map of Tensed
Parks, trails and things to do
All of IdahoPlaces in and around Tensed, nearest first: everything tied to Tensed plus anything within 15 miles of town.
Things to do
Viewpoints
- Lane's Lookoutviewpoint16 mi
Ski areas
- Palouse Divide Nordic Ski Areaski area14 mi
Parks
- McCroskey State Parkstate park6.7 mi
- Clark Fisk Memorial parknear Plummer12 mi
- Plummer Community Centernear Plummer12 mi
- Farmer's Marketnear Plummer12 mi
- 13 mi
Trails (nearest 12 of 18)
- Iron Mountain Trail1 mi long3.1 mi
- James E. Dewey Trail1.5 mi long3.9 mi
- Kerttu Trail McCroskey State Park0.4 mi long4.9 mi
- Kerttu Trail1.3 mi long4.9 mi
- Trail McCroskey State Park0.3 mi long5.1 mi
- Lone Pine Trail0.8 mi long5.8 mi
- Pt. Sublime Trail0.7 mi long5.8 mi
- Huckleberry Trail2.1 mi long5.8 mi
- Korth Trail9.6 mi long6.6 mi
- Mineral A Trail0.5 mi long7.0 mi
- Redtail Trail0.6 mi long7.2 mi
- Lazy Trail3 mi long7.6 mi
Distances are straight-line miles. From state and federal agency pages, the USGS place names list and OpenStreetMap contributors. Checked October 2, 2026. Check the official page for hours, fees and closures before you go.
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