About Lake Kachess

One of Washington’s best kept secrets. A deep, clear dark blue mountain lake. Surrounded by stunning mountains, evergreen trees and, in winter, hunreds of miles of snow mobil trails.

You will never run out of trails to hike or ski depending on the season.

Enjoy the numerous trails and amazingly diverse scenery during the summer. Or just take a picnic out to the lake and enjoy the soothing waters.

In the winter enjoy the skiing, snowmobiling, and snowshoeing all in your own backyard.
Only a few minutes form the Snoqualmie summit so you can enjoy the professional trails as well as the ones hidden out back. Come stay and play in this year round playground.

About Snoqualmie Pass

Although Native Americans traversed Snoqualmie Pass for thousands of years they generally favored other Trans Cascade mountain passes. Although there is no written record we can surmise they found it just too steep!

It wasn't until around the 1850's that explorers like Capt. George B. McClennan, Abiel Tinkham and Arthur A. Denny (founder of Seattle) became aware of the "Snoqualmie" route. McClennan was told Snoqualmie was "practicable on foot with the greatest difficulty."

Never the less, in 1858 a trail was blazed across the pass and in 1867 a road was completed that was, unfortunately, destroyed regularly by weather. In 1988 the Northern Pacific Railroad completed a railroad tunnel. The first automobile made it over in 1905.

Today Snoqualmie Pass is the primary East to West traffic route. As Interstate 90 it features from 4 to 6 lanes of traffic. Due to extensive construction in the early 80's the grades both East and West bound are moderate. In summer traffic travels at Interstate speed day and night. Generally the pass is readily accessible in winter but the area is know for sudden and very heavy snow falls that can slow and in some cases stop traffic.

The first ski resort on the pass was started in the 1950's at what is now called Summit West. The founder, Webb Moffet became a well know leader in the skiing industry eventually owning all four ski areas at Snoqualmie Pass.

Winter activity is busy at Snoqualmie Pass with thousands of skiers making the day trip to hit the slopes. The four areas feature the largest night skiing operation in the United States.

In summer things are alive. There is world class hiking, mountain biking, fishing and more. Its a mountain wonderland just minutes away from the city.

About Washington

The Evergreen State lives up to its name. In Western Washington vast forest once covered most everything and even today new visitors are sometimes stunned by the ever present green that can be found in the forests of course, but also in the vegetation that seems to spring up everywhere.

Much maligned as a rainy place, most areas of the state such as Seattle actually get less rain than New York City, Chicago and Florida. And in Eastern Washington vast stretches of high plateau and vast agricultural areas are actually hot and bright in summer and have a great many days of sun even in winter.

THE COAST:
Washington also has some of the most diverse coastal areas in the U.S. To the Southwest, the Long Beach Peninsula is the longest beach in the world and visitors can even drive their cars right out on the sand. There they'll find color kiting, legions of shore birds and a brisk ocean environment.

Further up the cost are Willapa and Grays Harbors home to forest industries, fishing fleets and moderate year round climates. From Seattle and the larger cities, visitors flock to both Harbors during the spring, summer and fall. Many come for fishing, claming and beach front activities.

Still further North is the vast Olympic Peninsula where beaches rise steadily to numerous snow capped summits including Mount Olympus, the Hoh rain forest and the rain showed Sequim recreational areas. The Peninsula is also home to numerous low land lakes where spring fishing gives way to summer water skiing and other great fresh water fun.

PUGET SOUND:
Tucked between the Olympic Mountains to the West and the metropolitan areas of Seattle, Tacoma and Everett to the East is a vast salt water estuary known as Puget Sound. It is connected to the Pacific Ocean by the pristine Straight of Juan De Fuca. State ferries and the engineering marvels of floating bridges, allow visitors to move around "the Sound" with ease. The Sound has been reshaped by the scouring action and till deposition which extended as far south as Olympia.

SAN JUAN ISLANDS:
At the Northern edge of Puget Sound lies a cluster of spectacular rocky islands known and the San Juan’s. A ferry or float plane is required to access the islands but worth the trip.

SOUND CITIES:
Almost dead center on the East coast of Puget Sound lays the large city of Seattle and its cross lake cousin Bellevue. Home to big industries such as Boeing, Microsoft and Starbucks Coffee the cities of Puget Sound offer much to visitors. There are restaurants, tours and places to visit such as the Pike Place farmers market. Professional spots teams and major arts organizations including Opera, Ballet and many Live Theatres provide things to do on every night of the year.

CASCADE MOUNTAINS:
Running North-South and splitting the state in half are the Cascade Mountains. Sometimes forgotten in comparison to the Montana, Idaho and Colorado Rocky mountains, the Cascades are vast and sheer. Mt Saint Helens eruption in 1980 brought attention to the area but there are a dozen other major mountain climbing areas including Mt. Rainer and Mt Badams. All are within easy driving distance of major cities and international airports.

At the Northern End of Washington State's Cascades is Mt. Baker, birthplace of snow boarding and still one of the snowiest ski areas in the world. Just to the south is the North Cascades Wilderness area which boasts one of America's most scenic roads. So precipitous, in fact, that it closes in winter due to immense snow falls.

EASTERN WASHINGTON:
From the Eastern Slopes of the Cascades spreads the sprawling areas of Eastern Washington. On the south it is bordered by the Columbia River gorge how to numerous dams and world famous wind surfing. Above that lay the deep rich fields and wine grape vineyards of the Yakima Valley which compares in longitude and composition of renowned French growing areas.

The Columbia river flows north through the middle of Eastern Washington State where dams have created long and winding lakes surrounded by campgrounds and recreational areas. North Central Washington is home to the Replica Bavarian Village of Leavenworth which boasts over four million visitors per year, as well as to Lake Chelan a 50 mile long natural lake one of the cleanest in the United States. Its gorge - if it were emptied of water - would be deeper than the Grand Canyon. North of that can be found the Wild West town of Winthrop Washington where real live cowboys ride the ranges during hot summers and frigid white winters.

On the border shared with Idaho and about central North to South, lays the Inland Empire city of Spokane headquarters to industry and agricultural activities. To the south likes the Palouse region known as the bread basket of the world because it produces more grain per acre than anywhere else.

In short, the Evergreen state is a very diverse place full of recreational activities like boating, fishing, water sports, professional sports arenas, high class arts organizations and so much to do you'll need a month just to begin to see much of it.