Stehekin - Boat-in Only! At the far north end of Lake Chelan, 51 miles from the town of Chelan, a tiny community in the foothills of the North Cascades called Stehekin can be reached only by boat or by a very long hike or horseback ride. We took the Stehekin Ferry to this remote village for an overnight, leaving our RV in the ferry’s parking lot. After a 1 hour 45 minute boat ride through stunning mountain scenery, we arrived at Stehekin Landing and climbed aboard a school bus (that had been hauled there by barge years ago) to be taken to Stehekin Valley Ranch 11 miles up the valley. On our way we stopped to see the spectacular Rainbow Falls. Stehekin was settled by intrepid homesteaders in the late 1880s, and descendants of the original families now operate both the Stehekin Ferry and the ranch. The ranch offers unusual lodging in log cabins and wagons, and meals are served communally at long tables in a huge room with vaulted ceilings and dirt floors. The food is out of this world. After our main course, a serving table was filled with a variety of homemade pies, and we were encouraged to eat as many pieces as we could handle. This was so enticing we each opted to have two slivers of different pies. Our only regret upon boarding the ferry to return to our RV the next day is that we’d liked to have stayed another few nights out there. Diablo Lake - What a color! The North Cascades are an immense mountain range with few roads heading in, making it very difficult to penetrate with an RV. However, the North Cascades Highway (State Route 20) passes by endless breathtaking vistas that are particularly jaw-dropping in the 30-mile stretch that goes right through the heart of North Cascades National Park. We were on the edges of our seats as the road swooped from one eye popping view to the next. Our favorite was the overlook at Diablo Lake Vista Point. There was
We boarded the Stehekin Ferry, parked among other pleasure boards, to visit a remote village.
plenty of room to park an RV, and a short-paved trail and picnic tables encouraged visitors to stay and savor the astonishing view for a while. In July, August, and September the lake is an extraordinary shade of aquamarine on sunny days. This is due to suspended rock dust particles that mix into the water during glacial runoff in the spring. This view is not to be missed but keep an eye out for the turnoff as you approach as it is not always easy to spot. There are plenty of other jewels that make an RV trip to Washington very worthwhile, but these lesser known gems were wonderful discoveries for us, and we hope they will be for you too!
FOR MORE INFORMATION: Map of these locations: https://goo.gl/maps/hgbzes4oiwMcMTw86
Pomeroy: http://www.historicpomeroy.com Othello: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ Othello,_Washington
Entiat: https://www.entiatwa.us/
https://www.entiatwa.us/your_ community/history/index.php
Chelan: https://www.lakechelan.com/
Stehekin: https://stehekin.com/
Diablo Lake: https://www.nps.gov/places/diablo- lake-overlook.htm
At Stehekin Valley Ranch, we were invited to have as much pie as we could hold.
WASHINGTON STATE HIGHLIGHTS
COAST TO COAST MAGAZINE FALL 2023 | 21
Made with FlippingBook flipbook maker