Destination of the Month

New, notable or just plain cool travel destinations and/or off-the-beaten-path locations

Leavenworth, WA

The spring thaw is upon us, which means it’s time to recycle that great Cascade snow we skied upon in magnificent March and April (FYI: they’re still skiing through weekends at Crystal Mountain!) by jumping into a raft on the Wenatchee River. The melt gushes down Icicle Creek where we begin our adventure on the state’s best rapids with Blue Sky Outfitters, a great bunch offering daily trips in May.

While the Wenatchee slows in July to provide an easy chair “Family Float” experience for youngsters or grandmothers, May presents a Class III and IV churn though Chumstick Canyon and along the misleadingly mellifluous “Boulder Garden,” the two most intense spans in this natural thrill ride often listed among the Top-10 rafting experiences nationally.

Students of rafting may want to repeat the experience, as snowmelt and rain crafts a new river everyday, but I like to toss some languor into the froth by spending the weekend at sublime Sleeping Lady resort adjacent to Icicle Creek. May’s a great time to hit Sleeping Lady between winter’s retreat and summer’s family reunion seasons. Though dinner and an evening stroll through Leavenworth is a rite of spring, forget the car for one day and explore Sleeping Lady’s campus beneath the ponderosa pines from O’Grady’s Pantry to the outdoor sculptures to Solstice Spa, a mellow rush after a day of high adventure on the mighty Wenatchee.

—Story by Crai S. Bower/Photo courtesy of Blue Sky Outfitters

Plan your next road trip to Leavenworth, or anywhere else in North America, with the TripTik Travel Planner.

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