Chapter 4: Seattle to Stevens Pass to Lake Chelan
Updated July 2022
Bus schedules change often so it's useless to post times that will inevitably change. Here are the pertinent bus systems; see links page for current timetables.
This transit sequence carries you a long distance along US 2, and gives you access to the North Cascades. Between Monroe and Leavenworth, you must use Northwestern Trailways (NWT), a subsidiary of Greyhound, so transit costs go up. Heck, you could take NWT all the way from Seattle to Chelan, but you’d be spending a buttload of money. So, I recommend taking local transit whenever possible, and filling the gap between with the private carrier. But it’s your call.
At this route’s eastern end, to get from the town of Chelan to the far north end of Lake Chelan, you’ll take the Lady of the Lake tour boat. This gives you access to Glacier Peak wilderness and North Cascades National Park (NCNP). Again, kinda’ pricey. But worth it.
Your options here include:
- A. Pacific Crest Trail
- B. The Enchantments
- C. Ingalls Creek
- D. North Cascades National Park
- E. Glacier Peak Wilderness
A - Pacific Crest Trail
from bus to trailhead: Leave NWT at Stevens Pass. The trail intersects the Pass right there; you’ll see signs on either side of the highway directing you.
from trailhead onward: To the north—Canada (eventually). To the south—Mexico (even more eventually).
B - The Enchantments
from bus to trailhead: 4.5 miles (to Snow Creek trailhead); 13.5 miles (to Mountaineer Creek trailhead). To reach either, leave NWT at the QuikMart (please—no Simpsons jokes!), and head up the Icicle Creek Road. For Snow Creek, trailhead is visible from Road. For Mountaineer, it’s longer and a bit more complicated (use your map).
from trailheads onward: It’s a slog either way. But it’s one of the treasures of the Cascades. And, to keep the area from being mobbed, access is granted via a Forest Service lottery; apply early in the season and cross your fingers.
C - Ingalls Creek
from bus to trailhead: 7 miles. 7 very hot—but flat—miles (and, in summer, with fruit stands from the orchards right along the road!). Leave NWT at Icicle Quick Mart, walk east along Highway 2 to first Link Transit (LT) bus stop. Catch LT 22 eastbound, leaving the bus at the junction with Route 97 (but before you leave the bus, ask the driver exactly where to catch the bus heading back the other way). Head south to Ingalls Creek Road, and follow signs to trailhead.
from trailhead onward: It’s a long, gentle uphill grade along a pleasant river, eventually reaching Stuart Pass and Lake Ingalls. There are trails on both sides of the river (but no bridges across). In late summer, quite fordable. Watch for rattlesnakes. I’ve caught rubber boas up there—they’re harmless and docile, unless you’re a mouse.
D - North Cascades National Park (NCNP)
from transit to trailhead: You’ll take 2 LT buses from Leavenworth to reach the town of Chelan; you’ll have to spend the night there (noisy tent camping is permitted after Labor Day at the big campground along the lake)—or cheap, quiet lodgings at Mom’s Motel, maybe a half mile from the lake. The next day, you’ll take the Lady of the Lake (LOL) tour boat uplake. When you arrive in Chelan, time your walk to where you’ll spend the night—so you’ll know how long it’ll take you to return there in the morning. Remember, this is a tourist town in late summer: make your reservations for accommodations and for the boat long before you leave home.
You’re still not near your trailhead. The LOL boat ride will take the better part of a day. There are boats, but taking the faster, more expensive one doesn’t translate into much of an advantage for you as a hiker, the slower, cheaper one will do you just fine). When you finally reach Stehekin, you’ll find that NCNP runs shuttle buses during the peak season that take you and your gear 12 miles or so up a long gravel road to a string of trailheads. Note that all the vehicles you see here have been barged in—there are no roads leading back to civilization from here!
Okay—now you’re here. So, transit to trailhead—zero miles!
from trailhead onward: You’ve got so many options here it’s not funny. You spent 2 days getting here—stay a while. You don’t even have to take the shuttle up the road; trails heading north and east fan out starting right behind the village. Check your maps!
E - Glacier Peak Wilderness
from transit to trailhead: Follow instructions just above, but opt off the LOL at Lucerne. Holden Village, a Lutheran retreat 15 miles above the lake, has buses that meet the LOL boats twice a day to transport their own guests. For a nominal fee (and a reservation, which you made before you left home...) they’ll carry you up to Holden. They’ll even feed you, for a nominal fee. Just beyond the Village sits the trailhead and entrance to Glacier Peak Wilderness. Hot meals sitting in a chair are hard to come by out here—take ‘em up on it!
So, again, transit to trailhead, just a mile or so.
from trailhead onward: Railroad Creek Trail is a long, uphill slog, but you’ll have great views to distract you. You’ll reach the top at Suiattle Pass; you’re in marmot country now! You’ll intersect the PCT here: to the southwest stands Glacier Peak (but any outlet in that direction is far, far away, as in, Stevens Pass...). You could hang out near Lyman Lake, inspect its shrinking glacier, and then head back out from Holden (using their bus to the lake, and LOL back to Chelan). Or you could head north on the PCT along Agnes Creek and its really big trees, eventually meeting one of the shuttle buses back to Stehekin (and the boat ride back to the other reality).