LAKE CHELAN NATIONAL RECREATION AREA
THINGS TO DO IN STEHEKIN, WASHINGTON
Activity: Sightseeing, Biking
After a most challenging, but fulfilling backpacking adventure along the incredible Lake Shore Trail, my sister Peggy and her husband Dale surprised me with a hotel stay in a pleasant little place in Stehekin. It was a most delightful surprise after couple days of hard backpacking. I was already to start pitching my tent in the campground on the edge of town when they invited me up for wine and hors d’oeuvres on the patio of our modest, but clean and welcoming room over looking the lake. What I really enjoyed was the nice hot shower to wash off the dust, sweat and trail.
Most things were closed up because of the Cov-19 Pandemic, but we could order to go at the restaurant next to our hotel at the Stehekin Landing. We had a delicious meal, sat out on our deck looking at the lake, recanting our wondrous backpacking trip. The next morning we had to catch the Ferry back to civilization. It was leaving just after lunch time which allowed us the morning for exploring the quaint little town and the area.
There are lots of things to do in Stehekin if you are staying for some amount of time, but our adventure was the backpacking to the end of beautiful Lake Chelan and now we had only the morning to see Stehekin. So, if you only have a short amount of time- here is the hot ticket. I first took a little self guided tour of a historic cabin, and then we rented bikes and set out for Rainbow Falls, which is about a 4 mile round trip.
Biking through Stehekin up towards the falls is filled with glorious greenery during early Summer. It was so green and so lush I had to keep taking off my sunglasses to believe how green it really was. Our first stop was at the historic one room school house. Pretty cool to step back in time and see what it was like for country kids back in yesteryear. I am pretty sure it was like this for my parents growing up in Oregon, as I remember they told me how they had to trudge miles through deep snow, uphill both ways.
Then the falls… wow oh wow. Now this is a proper waterfall! Very powerful falls with soaking mist and spray tumbles 312 feet. It was overcast and cool on this morning, so no rainbow effect, but it was astounding nonetheless- framed with evergreens with torrents of water tumbling through the air reaching for the ground below. There is a steep switch back walk way that goes up to a perch for a different view of the falls. But be warned this view should be enjoyed on a hot day in your trunks. I should also say it is not much of a view, not because it isn’t magnificent, but it is hard to keep your eyes open when the wind created by the thundering falls is blasting mist and spray right in your face. I had a rain jacket on, but my shorts were throughly soaked in seconds. So it is more of an adventure than a view. But you know I love adventure!
On the way back from the falls the thing to do is stop by the Stehekin Pastry Co which has been serving up the most delicious, made from scratch, pastries and shouldn’t be missed. Plus they have nice grounds to enjoy with your meal.
There are nice cabins in this area as one might imagine, but one in particular was so outstanding that we had to stop and do a “Cabin on the Lake” photo shoot.
Be sure to checkout the video to see the power and the glory of the falls.
Stehekin Landing, where the Ferry docks. The buildings you see house a gift shop, restaurant, shops, and the hotel in which we stayed.
Historic One Room School House
Dale, Peggy and I at Rainbow Falls
The grounds at the bakery were lovely and our pastries were so good.
There were lots of cool cabins in Stehekin at Lake Chelan, but our favorite was “Cabin on the Lake.”
A bike ride to Rainbow Falls with a stop at the pastry shop is a must do when in Stehekin, you won’t regret it.
I was looking for the eternal beauty,
which God and Nature may have created on earth?
I think I found it, up high in the mountains,
in the form of gracious thundering water fall.
Originating from the melting snow,
or the water parting from the frozen glacier,
raging plunge of unlimited water down the cliff,
makes the waterfall show off its beauty and grace.
I stand in awe and behold the water fall,
an exalted sensation seems to fill my heart,
I see the boundless stream of water,
splashing on the rocks at the foot of the cliff,
and making the shadowy mist around it.
The Sun rays cast their reflection,
and make the mist appear in cheerful rainbows colors.
The cool breeze mixed with water drops,
soothes my mind and cleans up my body and soul.
I can stare at the waterfall for hours and hours,
take its pictures or portray its image in my heart and mind.
Is it a picture of a mighty reaching for some weakling down below,
or some earthly mind trying to achieve the limitless sky of wisdom?
I wonder where the water goes,
the foamy and silky waterfront,
moves down the creek,
in a melodious tune in its eternal path,
like a lover searching for the beloved in the unknown paths.
The music of flowing water fills the mountain ambiance with sweet musical harmony,
The lovers hear the sweet serenade of their intimate feelings,
The separated lovers find their missing emotions,
The meditating hearts find the sounds of their soul,
The nature lover’s ears ring with melodious sounds of the flowing water,
I am positive that one can hear songs of their heart and mind,
in the flowing stream of the water fall.
By Jay P Narain
Thanks for joining Dale, Peggy and I at the superb Rainbow Falls “Pursuing Balance Through Adventure“. It was a special few days sharing the wilds of Lake Chelan, it’s natural beauty and stunning mountains, and of course it’s breathtaking Rainbow Falls. Please leave a COMMENT, LIKE, FOLLOW and SHARE. You can have a head band like Peggy’s (which also doubles as a face gaiter to be COVID-19 appropriate), or beanie and performance shirt like mine by going to SHOP APPAREL, which also helps support this blog. Go to the menu above and click on Oregon Hiking to see my next outing filled with adventure seeking balance away from the everyday and mundane. Each location is itself an independent website and needs to be FOLLOWED as a stand alone.
Happy Trails-
Roger Jenkins
Pursuing Balance Through Adventure
Washington State Hiking Pursuing Balance Thru Adventure 