Stehekin trip makes a great escape
A rough, hour-long boat ride across the choppy waters of Lake Chelan was not going to keep us from getting to Stehekin Landing in Washington’s North Cascades and away from life’s frustrations.
Our most recent problem: a conspiracy of machines. The new $50 coffeemaker stopped working at 6 a.m. two mornings ago. Husband John had to saw the laundry room doorway bigger, so we could replace our busted washing machine. And the new truck had to go in the shop.
Stehekin, a remote village in the northwest end of Lake Chelan near the Stehekin River confluence, was to be our retreat from civilization. The community was built by a hardy stock of loggers and miners before the turn of the century. No roads lead there. You can only reach it by boat, floatplane or mountain trail.
As John pointed our boat toward gray clouds, I wondered if the smarter thing would have been to stay at Twenty-five Mile Creek State Park where we had launched. Our dog Kah-less thought we were crazy to be riding on water at all. Water is for swimming only, according to him.
We also knew we were pushing our luck in finding an open campsite. Many boat-in campgrounds on the west side of the lake were closed because of recent fires that burned through the Wenatchee National Forest. Some trees still smoldered high on the Chelan Mountains. Part of the Sawtooth Ridge, which lies on the lake’s east side, was also charred.
Farther up the lake, we saw an expansive mix of evergreens and deciduous trees, sheer stone cliffs and the white glacial flow of Domke Falls.
It was getting dark when we approached Stehekin Landing. Kah-less and I stayed with the boat while John got directions to Purple Point campground from the store clerk at North Cascades Stehekin Lodge. (A docking fee is required.)
Our outdoor accommodations were just a short walk (or boat ride) from the landing. A second dock right across the road from the campground made for easy access to our boat.
John set up the tent in the dark with the help of our handy new headlamp. We weren’t sure if a recent ban on campfires was still in effect, so we cooked our hot dogs on the camp stove. Clouds brought a few sprinkles of rain, then it cleared and we could see lots of stars in the sky. It was back and forth, clouds and stars, all night.
“Kah-less has to go to the bathroom,” I announced to John as I blinded him with the headlamp.
“Put that out,” John said, shielding his eyes and realizing I meant “he” had to get dressed to take Kah-less out.
We all decided to go to the bathroom as a family. The restroom facility was surprisingly clean and flushable. This we didn’t expect at a campground that requires a backcountry permit. (The permit is free and available at the Golden West Visitor Center or a park ranger.)
Kah-less woke us again in time to watch the sun rising on the smooth lake and the surrounding jagged mountains. A park ranger stopped by and we all watched a bear move across a rocky ridge and away from camp (our second bear sighting this summer).
This black bear would be a common sight for visitors during our stay. The ranger referred to the 3-year-old bear as a “little rat.” His mother had been a camp scavenger, as well. The ranger reminded us to use the sturdy bear-safe food boxes placed about the campground.
The night before, we had taken seriously the National Park Service warning taped to each site’s picnic table. As instructed, we had locked up all food and anything else with a scent: toothpaste, soap, lotion.
For a place with no roads leading to it, there sure was a lot of traffic along the main drag – Stehekin Valley Road – which ran right past our campground. Early joggers began the day’s activities, followed by hikers and cyclists. Bicycles and other recreation equipment (i.e. fishing gear, canoes, etc.) can be rented.
The morning rush hour continued with people passing by in the Stehekin Valley Ranch “breakfast ride” shuttle. Stehekin Lodge operates narrated shuttle tours to Rainbow Falls throughout the day, following this same road.
We decided to hike the three and a half miles to the falls. The weather had been unpredictable, so John carried a full backpack loaded with clothes for any occasion. What we imagined to be a hike into the wilderness was more like a walk down a country lane. The road took us first through a thick, swamplike forest and then into thinner, drier woods. Rental cabins and residential homes were scattered along this route.
We ate lunch while we watched the falls plunge into its shallow pool. A small busload of people arrived to view this natural wonder and snap photos of each other in front of it.
On the way back, we took a detour down a footpath, labeled Buckner Lane, in search of the historic Buckner Orchard. First planted in 1912, the orchard is home to the Common Delicious apple, a foreparent to America’s popular Red Delicious. However, the day was getting hot and John grew weary from lugging around our overstuffed pack.
We turned back with a new destination in mind: the Stehekin Pastry Company. This bakery is strategically located in a curve of Valley Road, halfway to the falls. We had passed it on our “hike” earlier. Iced pastries and cakes lined glass cases.
The soups received special praise from one park ranger, but we didn’t try them. Instead, John and I split a large slice of Washington walnut pie and chased it with cold soft drinks. Kah-less stood by the picnic table drooling.
The next morning we would return to the bakery for breakfast, before we took one last walk to the visitor center and around the landing. No time to browse the local craft shop or try one of the other few restaurant choices.
As we started our body-pounding ride back down the lake, I looked down at the goose-pimpled stubble on my legs, a result of two nights in the “wild.” How great it would be to reunite them with a razor and shaving cream.
But it wasn’t until the next day when I received my jury summons in the mail that I truly felt like I was home again.