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Hey everyone! It’s Sanchez. I’m hijacking this post from my mom. Don’t get me wrong – she’s okay at this writing thing, but Lake Wenatchee was my absolute favorite place in Leavenworth. I want to make sure it gets the … Read More

Dirtyface Mountain is a prominent, 6,200-foot summit that sits beside Lake Wenatchee’s northwestern shore. Since arriving in Leavenworth back in March, we’ve taken Sanchez to the lake at least two or three afternoons a week. With the park absolutely devoid … Read More

Hex Mountain is a 5,034’ peak just outside the small town of Cle Elum. It sits along the eastern shore of Cle Elum Lake with an easily-accessible trailhead just off Salmon La Sac Rd (WA-903). The 7-mile out-and-back follows a … Read More

About 30 minutes north of Wenatchee and less than an hour from Leavenworth, Swakane Canyon sits just across the Columbia River from Lincoln Rock State Park. Swakane Canyon seems to be a pretty lightly-trafficked area, which drove our decision when … Read More

Established in 2005 as a federally-recognized viticultural area, Horse Heaven Hills is a sizeable growing area bounded on the north by the Yakima Valley, and on the south by the Columbia River. With the river’s moderating effect on the area’s … Read More

For the first time in the six weeks we’ve been in Leavenworth, we finally picked out a hike that was right here in town. I don’t know why it took me so long to stumble across this trail, seeing as … Read More

When Stephan and I picked Washington state for our next temporary home, the alpine trails of the Cascade Mountains were the driving force behind that decision. However, having moved to the area in early spring of a record-setting snow year, … Read More

When you think of premier wines in the U.S., your mind probably goes straight to Napa or Sonoma Valley. Indeed, the two regions are home to some of the largest and most established producers in the country. By comparison, Washington’s … Read More

Last weekend we continued our relentless quest to find spring hikes after what has been a record-setting winter for much of Washington state. The state’s snowpack will likely rank as the third-highest on record, and here in the Cascades it’s … Read More

Rising between Lake Chelan and the Columbia River, Chelan Butte’s 3,835’ crest soars above the tiny town of the same name. Although it’s a low-elevation peak, it stands alone alongside the lake’s southeastern shore. Consequently, the butte offers some stunning … Read More

Located in the semi-arid desert of eastern Washington, Hanford Reach is the last remaining free-flowing, non-tidal stretch of the 1,200-mile-long Columbia River. This fifty-mile expanse was preserved by chance, paradoxically as a result of the U.S. weapons program. Once part … Read More

Winter in northern New England isn’t easy. It’s cold, it’s snowy, it’s overcast far more often than it’s sunny, and it gets dark before 4 p.m. We’re not talking just a few weeks here either… it’s like this for months. … Read More

Located within the rugged badlands of western North Dakota, Theodore Roosevelt National Park was named in honor of our 26th President. An avid outdoorsman, Teddy Roosevelt is widely known as the “conservation President” for the myriad policies he implemented to … Read More

After quarantining and spending a couple months in New Hampshire with family for the holidays and beyond, it was time to get back on the road. Sometime in January we settled on a place in Leavenworth, Washington. Stephan had been … Read More