6/11: Went to Pearrygin Lake for the first time with my kids and my sister, it was amazing to be…read morethere. Restrooms in day use were very clean and well stocked, and I appreciated the swimming area coned off away from boaters so my kids could swim safely. What I wanted to give the biggest shout out to is the staff. Particularly the staff member in the front office she was very kind and welcoming. Also the gentleman mowing the grass I believe he said his name was Griffin. My son approached him and he shut off the mower and answered every question that was asked. He was so polite and kind to my son it made his day. I definitely want to come back especially if Griffin is there, he really went out of his way to be nice and kind to my son even though that he was busy. Very good guest service.

Great small lake and park near Winthrop. Part of the lake is well-maintained and landscaped and…read morethere are plenty of tables and spots to have a picnic. Large, clean restrooms too. There is a swimming area sectioned off, and it would be a great spot for boating. Definitely a nice picturesque spot while in the North Cascades.

Trailhead not well signed and directions confusing, but we parked a mile away and had a beautiful…read morewalk to the trailhead past the lake. Highly recommended as the views on the way in were worth lingering over, including mullein so huge it looked like a saguaro cactus! We took an SUV, but saw some sedans make it past enormous potholes, so it is possible to get there in your Corolla with care, defensive driving and a bit of risk. There were some drop off's and it was hairy encountering other vehicles heading the opposite direction on the single track road, but we managed, and people were polite. The hike was gorgeous and I don't know if this is considered the end of the season or not, but it was cool and cloudy and we did encounter a rattlesnake on the trail just at the edge of the woods where it opens into the valley. It rattled and coiled at us but did not strike. Moving through the clumps of tall grass was a bit nerve wracking after that, but we swished the bushes with a stick and encountered nothing but wasps nesting in an old combine toward the edge of the valley. It was beautiful and we didn't die and we will go back and not die again.

Falls Creek Falls is a trail north of Winthrop that takes you by falls (naturally). There's street…read moreparking at the beginning with a clearly marked trail to the base of the first waterfall. There are rocks to sit on watching the water fall and the water may spray you a little bit. Keep hiking to go higher and higher uncovering more parts of the waterfall. There are several smaller trails that lead you to pools of water by the falls for wading. The water is cold, but worth it for a refreshing dip.

So pretty!! I just…read morecame here for the weekend and I love it. The walks here are stunning. The views of chelan. The mountains! The choppy water. Amazing panoramic views all over. Park is currently open but faculties are closed. Still make it a fun little stop on your walk/ run or even a drive. Beautiful views!

Amazing cute little park in the cutest town. Walking distance from our hotel . We walked to rent a…read moreboat from Shoreline at this park one day. Best service! Walked here and swam wit the fam. Lifeguards are super friendly! And they have life jackets at park to borrow - how kind is that. You can walk into the water and swim. Another plus is there are actual bathrooms and they were clean!

This July 2012 hike was buried deep in my subconscious…read more On this hike I wished for a quick death to put me out of my misery. I would have been fine being ended by fire or becoming bear food. . But I'd do it again in a heartbeat. . The corgi in a backpack picture of Gunner (& myself) hails from this adventure on the dream-like bluffs above beautiful Lake Chelan. There are hikes and there are hikes which are requirements. The Chelan Lakeshore Trail is the latter. Crystal clear gem waters Icy oasis blue Omnipresent lake The taunting Chelan If there is a Billboard Top 100 for Hikes in the world, the Lakeshore will easily make the Top 10. No one will question the beauty of Lake Chelan. The deep green valley cuts into the Earth yielding the gin-clear glassy waters of the Chelan. Many don't hike the lake. Hordes party in our inland Washington Club Med in the town of Chelan. Thousands take a boat up the 55-mile sliver of a lake yearly. These are all noble and righteous ways to entertain The Lake, but to hike The Lakeshore---that is a memory maker. Just don't do it in the heat of summer (with short-legged doggies more suited for rainy climes). The hike. Yes, the hike. This 17.5 mile hike. The Lakeshore trail requires taking a boat ride. Plop your backpack on the dock, hop on the boat, and enjoy the views. The boat ride in and of itself is stunning. For those backpacking the 17.5, you will get dropped off at Prince Creek. It was eerie to see the boat pull away, and move up-lake like the boat from Apocalypse Now. Foreboding. It was a sunny (hot) August day, but you are on Lake Chelan, you're at the beginning of a legendary hike. Adventure pumps you. Our feet move us on a happy quickstep. The trail points skyward away. Yes for most of the hike, you aren't actually along the shore. With this deep cut gorge, you don't have many flat sandy beaches to walk along. You basically walk along the side of cliff walls and atop bluffs. The lake is close, but painfully and cruelly far away. This made me curse her. But the hike IS beautiful. Those first few miles had me snapping memories and photos. I didn't want to forget Mother Nature's beauty. I'd say after 2-3 miles is when Gunner (corgi #1), expressed issues. He'd simply stubbornly stop and lay down on the (burning) trail. This was not good. We had a 12-mile day. For another mile or so, I was able to coax and scream him to continue, but by Mile 4, his Lakeshore hike was done. What to do. We stopped along the trail under one of the few shady trees. We were all sweating, fatigued, baking. I didn't know what to do. We thought of MacGyver-ing a makeshift gurney, but it woul've only lasted 17 steps. Secretly, I thought of hiking the 4 miles BACK to Prince Creek, setting up tent along the water and waiting for the next boat & calling THAT my Lakeshore hike. We were dead. We had no options. I had to be "the man". Make a decision, damn it! I did. I laid down my ~35-lb pack, I pulled out my Thermarest and gave it to my sister. This freed up space in my pack. Space for a corgi. My 35-lb pack became 70lbs. I had a corgi in a backpack. It was amazing to see how my neurotic Gunner simply let me take his overheated body and place it in my pack with absolute zero fuss. We looked funny & happy (look at the picture). We now had a way to continue. It was funny to have a doggie in my backpack. He'd watch my fellow hikers behind me, and then look over my head forward (dropping slobber on my exposed neck & shoulder). This was fine for 1-2 miles, but then the fatigue began, and my feet began to explode. My joints weren't used to this weight. My feet started blistering. Water was limited. So, I couldn't stay completely hydrated. I needed more water due to the heat, but even more due to the extra load. This is how we went. I'd hike for a mile with a doggie on my back like Luke Skywalker with Yoda on his back in "The Empire Strikes Back". Then I'd have Gunner struggle to walk for a half mile. We alternated our Hells. All the while, Gomez (corgi #2) my other corgi persevered....well for another 8miles. Then he simply stopped. No screams moved him. I now had two nearly dead corgis, and my wimpy self was wishing for a quick death. We still had a couple of miles--nothing you'd say. But for us it was eternity. If it wasn't for my sister & her upbeat-ness, I would not have made it. Then we smelled campfire smoke. We were approaching the Moore Point campsite! Still had a mile to go, but it was downhill, the end was in sight, & the day was almost over. When we made it to Moore, we set up camp & jumped into the ICY water. I decided to end our hike (we'd recuperate and catch the boat in the morning). Some angels of the hike (who helped carry a corgi for a mile earlier), gave us a small bottle of Glenlivet--a wee dram did us good. I'll never forget that evening, that hike, that heat. And, I'd do it again. No question.

This is a short little hike to a couple of waterfalls on Cedar creek. Roundtrip it's about 3.5…read moremiles if you just go to the falls. Elevation gain is approximately 500 feet. There are views of the surrounding North Cascades mountains and you'll enjoy the sounds of Cedar creek for most of your hike as it flows just below most of the trail. If you're a more ambitious sort, you can continue up the creek and over the ridge eventually connecting to the Pacific Crest Trail. Turn left for Mexico, right for Canada.

Indeed very enchanting place. We did backpacking 3 nights 4…read moredays to experience the core zone as much as possible including off-trail scrambles for Little Annapurna and Enchantment Peak. We went Colchuck to Viviane and traced back since not much to see beyond Viviane. Really nice backpacking. My detailed mileage etc is below blog post. https://himebackpacker.blogspot.com/2024/10/the-enchantments-washington.html

I've done this a couple of times so I'll give you the different perspectives…read more The first time I did it as a one-day hike because I did not have a permit. The second time I did it as a three night hike because it was after October 15th and I still didn't have a permit. Since that time, the permit season has been extended to October 30th. Either way, I suggest that hiking in the fall is the prettiest time due to the larch trees colors. Both times we started at the Stuart Lake trailhead (recommended due to reduced overall elevation gain) and ended at the Snow Lake trailhead. Now at the risk of offending someone I will say that hiking through the Enchantments in one day is like watching a porn movie on fast forward. You miss most of the scenery. My suggestion is to either get a permit, or hike outside of season, preferably in the fall, but stay at least two nights. Given that the hike up Aasgard Pass has an elevation gain of 1900 feet in about a mile, I can attest that it can be quite dangerous when raining. On the East side there will be mud & rock slides and in our case we had to duck out of the way of several large, (18 or so inch diameter) Rocks that came bouncing down the boulders with unpredictable direction at a very high rate of speed. Risks early in the season are snow slides and avalanches, so be very aware of the conditions when you are there. All that said, anyone who does not give this a five and tell you that it's absolutely one of the most beautiful hikes you'll ever take on must know something I don't, and I've hiked the Himalayas. Remember that goats are dangerous. Pee on rocks, not soil because the goats will dig it up for the salt. Try not to let a goat see you peeing or it will run towards you. Try fishing in the lakes; the trout are great for dinner up there. You should also know that when coming down toward the Snow Lake trailhead there are a large number of switchbacks and when you see the cars just down the hill, it will likely be another hour before you get there, and if you did it as a day hike, your feet may not be happy when you finally arrive. If you are a hiker, you must find a way to get this one done before you hang up your boots.

Waterfalls aren't exactly common in the desert of central washington, so anyplace you can find the…read moresound of cascading water is special. Finding Summer Falls may be tricky, but the surrounding country roads that cut through coulees and follow abandoned railroad routes are very picturesque, so I would plan to get a little lost and enjoy it. The park is like an oasis at the end of a rocky, dusty driveway: a well-irrigated grassy park with trees, picnic tables, restrooms and a pavilion, all nestled up against Billy Clap Lake and the waterfall. Note: the only water recreation here is fishing: there is no beach and people have been seriously injured from falling on the slippery rocks of the falls. The falls are, however, very accessible if you have two legs and don't mind the "KEEP OUT" signs. If you are looking for desert hikes, there are plenty nearby (including Sun Lakes/Dry Falls state park), but not at Summer Falls. This park is a pretty sedentary place unless you are throwing frisbee or football in the grassy park. These falls and the depth of Billy Clap Lake they flow into were created when an irrigation canal was built to bring water from Banks Lake (itself a product of water diverted from the Grand Coulee Dam) to what was then dry, rocky, sagebrushy non-farmland further south. There is also a tiny, discrete power plant just up the canal from the falls. So the lake is a coulee that is full of water, and the water coming down the falls is what is leftover from the canal after the power plant takes it's share. It sounds pretty industrial, but it's not: the irrigation and power generating functions of the water are invisible at Summer Falls. Summer Falls is a good place--maybe the only place--to enjoy the relaxing sound of a waterfall amidst the area's desert landscape.

Wow. Extremely hard to find, but well worth the wild goose chase…read more This is a waterfall created by one of the many dams in Washington. There's a nice park and swimming area, a little hut for picnics, and bathrooms. You can swim/hike over to the waterfall and even walk behind it (if you blatantly ignore the signs that prohibit this activity, that is)! It was surprising how many people were here, what with how out-of-the-way it was. Glad we found this little gem! Minus one star for having thistles in the grass. My flip-flopped feet did not appreciate.

This is an amazing lake in the National Forest near Leavenworth Washington. You have to take a 9…read moremile trail out and back, but it's worth the view if you're physically able.

Colchuck Lake has been on my list for YEARS and one I definitely considered a bucket list trail. I…read morefinally got the chance to do it this past weekend and it was 100% warranted as as bucket list destination. Doing some research before the hike we learned that the parking lot is pretty much full before 7am. We reached there by around 6:45am and it was entirely full and people were parking down the road. We were even as far as at least half a mile away from the actual trailhead when we actually parked, but luckily the walk is pretty flat. The beginning of the trailhead has a bathroom that will have a lengthy line in the morning, and it is gross. Just be prepared! In total, we clocked almost 9 miles round trip and it took us just shy of 7 hours. That said, we did spend about an hour at the top to take in all of the views and the experience as a whole. I knew this trail would be challenging and I'd say it was probably the second hardest I've ever done (maybe the third), with the first being Mailbox Peak. There are some incredibly tough stretches with steep rock stairs and areas where it feels like you're scrambling a ton. There are moderate breaks where the trail flattens, but it's pretty challenging the entire length of the hike. The end point, the actual lake, is entirely worth the pain and "I don't know if I can do this" moments along the way. Absolutely STUNNING. Probably the most unreal colored water I've ever seen with the shade of blue that it was. The mountains encompassing the lake look fake - literally like AI in real life or something. Truly is a great spot to find a nice rock to sit and relax to enjoy lunch and reenergize for the trek down the trail. After hitting the bottom, it was a loooong walk back to the car with us being so wiped. Much to our disappoint we also discovered that ALL of the cars parked along the road received $100 tickets from the Chelan PD, despite there being no signs that said we couldn't park along the road (just on the bridge, which we weren't on). Overall Colchuck Lake was worth the wait and I'm so glad to have seen it finally - I just don't think I'll ever do it again LOL.