Stehekin

I came through Stehekin on my Pacific Crest thru-hike. It is the last town before the northern terminus of the 2,500+ mile trail so it is usually pretty emotional for the thru-hikers that have come all the way from Mexico.

When I was there we camped at the park campground and took the shuttle bus up the valley to get to and from the trail. The boat trip on Lady of the Lake is worth the price for the stunning views and the great pizza in Chelan. We met an hippie guy there that let us crash in his backyard after a night of celebrating with a friend who got off the trail.

There is an awesome dude ranch up-valley from the town that has a great dinner (ask around) and they have the most beautiful Icelandic horses cavorting in the greenness.

North Cascades is also really superb because of their highly-evolved attitude about dogs. It is the only US National Park that allows thru-hikers to backpack the trail with their dogs under voice control. (Everywhere else we were forced to walk extra miles around, hitchhike, or risk fines; and even jail in Yosemite!) Cheers to this park’s more civilized attitude and the friendly welcome we received from the shuttle bus driver who cheerfully yelled to me…”YES! Dogs are allowed on the bus!!!” If you look carefully you can probably still see our names colorfully signed on the ceiling of the bus along with all the other jubilant hikers. All the way from Mexico to Canada we walked… and FINALLY we found a place where our intrepid four-pawed hiking partner was respected!

I would go back to Stehekin in a second. It is a magical and wonderfully hidden gem of a place!

It’s hard to get there, but worth the trip.
We took the “Lady of the Lake” ferry and stayed at the cabins.
Awesome hiking.

I love it there. I use to work on Lake Chelan every summer and we would go up to Stehikin on the Lady of the Lake a couple times a summer. fun times!

With the 4 hour drive and 2-6 hour boat ride (depends what season it is and how much you’re willing to pay) each way, it’s a long slog from Seattle to Stehekin. The town is very cute, but I wouldn’t call it worth it to just go for one day. The real destination is the hiking trails in the mountains around town. I went for a three day backpacking trip on Memorial Day weekend, and saw a total of three other people on the trail (I almost saw more rattlesnakes than people…). The south slopes were sunny and dusty, but snow still lingered at high elevation and in the shadows on the north slopes. The high ridges offered great views of the sapphire lake on one side and of the mountains and valleys stretching off into the distance. The 20 mile loop included damp stream banks, flower-dotted high meadows, snowy gullies, dramatic burn areas, and ended at a campsite by a stream that felt like a slightly overgrown Japanese garden.

Here’s how to get there: http://www.ladyofthelake.com/
And what to do when you do get there: http://www.stehekin.com/hiking.html

My friends just visited the tiny town of Stehekin last weekend. It sounds crazy. It is at the head of Lake Chelan and you either have to take a boat or hike 25 miles to reach it. Only 70 people live there! Who wants to go?