Travel

Flight

Seattle Tacoma International Airport (KSEA)

3.5 hour drive to Chelan Two routes available: Interstate 90 or Highway 2 Both are similar distance and have a mountain pass. 90 is a larger interstate road and less curvy. Be sure to check traffic when leaving Seattle area, both routes are notorious for long delays at unusual times.

Travel Note

Highway 2 (Seattle to Chelan)

Note: Limited Cell Coverage throughout the route. Skykomish is small town we have stopped at a few times. In September, looking off the bridge that leads into town, you may be able to see the end of the salmon run. Also, in Skykomish is Cascadia Cafe, a small casual American cafe with outdoor seating. Past Skykomish you'll head uphill until you reach Stevens Pass, the highest point on your drive and a popular ski area. Headed downhill now, there is a delicious diner, 59er Diner, if you want classic diner food and a famous milkshake. If you get to this point with time to kill and want to see an epic mountain lake, head north on 207 up to Lake Wenatchee (pronounced like your sneezing). Farther east on Hwy 2, you may think you have made a wrong turn and ended up in Bavaria... you haven't. You have made it to Leavenworth, the only place this side of the Mississippi to get schnitzel (don't fact check that). It's a fun pitstop if you want to stretch your legs or have some German food. You are now 1 hour from Chelan and to be honest there isn't much here except pretty scenery, try and count the apple trees.

Travel Note

Interstate 90 (Seattle to Chelan)

Note: Better cell service but can be spotty at times. If you had a rough flight and need a drink immediately, North Bend holds one of our favorite breweries, No Boat Brewing Company, and they typically have a food truck. Another great nearby brewery is Snoqualmie Falls Brewery, they have great pizza and a full menu. You may also have picked up that Snoqualmie has a waterfall. Snoqualmie Falls is a pretty impressive sight, although in September might not be at its fullest. Further down the road than you might think, Snoqualmie Pass is a popular ski area and the highest point on this route. Another favorite brewery here is Dru Brew. Also nearby is a particularly pretty pond (bet no one has told you that before) that would be worth a pitstop, especially on a clear day, Gold Creek Pond. Try and recreate a photo from somewhere else on our website. Moving on down the road you will pass some stunning views of Keechelus Lake, I promise you can't miss it. Past Keechelus is a little burger joint called Mountain High Burgers, that has excellent mountain themed burgers and fries. We came here together shortly after we started dating and took burgers to Kachess Lake (not to be confused with Keechelus Lake). Kachess Lake is very secluded with stunning mountain views and rarely has more than a handful of people there. It can be accessed via Kachess Dam Road near Mountain High Burgers. Not that all we do is eat... but Cle Elum has a place called Owen's Meats. It's kind of an old school butcher shop that has something called "The Good Stuff". It is basically charcuterie in a bag and would make an excellent car snack, save some for us though. Cle Elum is also where you make the left turn to the North on US 97 to complete the drive up to Chelan.

Flight

Spokane International Airport (KSPO)

Travel Note

Highway 2 (Spokane to Chelan)

If you like straight and flat this is the drive for you. Full transparency we have never done this drive, but we looked at a map and found what we think might be interesting. The most direct route appears to be via Hwy 2 and is just under 3 hours. If we were to do this drive, I would make a point to pit stop a bit north of Hwy 2 in Grand Coulee to check out the largest dam in the western hemisphere. Then head to Chelan and if you find good stuff on the way let us know!