We hitched up the trailer and headed east on highway 2, drove up across Stevens pass and then North along the West shore of lake Entiat, and about a third of the way up the West shore of Lake Chelan to the 25-Mile Creek State park where we met with my wife's parents. They brought their fifth-wheel trailer, and we got adjacent sites.

It was pretty warm the days we were there. It was a bit too warm for me, so I grabbed a book and a chair and went over to the creek and put my bare feet on a rock in the stream to read and keep cool. I did only a little bit of fishing but didn't catch anything. Tried fishing from the bulkhead when it was in the shade, but that shade didn't last long. I actually saw one trout swimming around near the docks, but he wasn't hungry apparently. The water in this lake is very very clear. Lake Chelan is over 50 miles long, and the deepest part is over 1500 feet.

We pumped up the inflatable boat, and I took the family out for a little trip around the bays on the lake near the park.


on Monday morning, we went down to the dock at Fields Point,


and picked up the Lady of the Lake boat for a three-hour ride uplake to the remote village of Stehekin. This little town is only accessible by boat, either private boat or the ferry service on the Lady of the Lake. I think the name may mean "you can't get there from here." There are two boats that service these small lake towns, the fast boat and the slow boat. We got the slow boat. Three hours each way, with an hour and a half in Stehekin, made for a really long day... A boat ride on the lake is nice, but the view is pretty much the same the entire way. It was fun, but after 7 hours, it felt good to get back to the dock and go back to camp.

We were also treated to some very nice sunsets over the mountains above the lake.


Finally it was time to go home, and we decided to stop at the Rocky Reach Dam at the South end of lake Entiat. This is a very nice facility with a park, playground, Northwest museum, visitors' center, and a nice fish ladder for watching the salmon and steelhead migrate back up the river.


I was really impressed with the well-kept grounds, the nice play structures, and family-friendly area. This may be an overlooked stop or an out-of the way destination, but we had fun and would definitely stop there again if we were passing through.


It was a long drive up to 4000 feet and over the mountain pass towing the giant trailer, but it was nice to get away for a few days. Next time though I think we'll avoid the mountain passes and hot weather and keep to the West side of the state.