Lodging · North Cascades National Park
A remote stay nine miles up-valley with meals and transport included.
Overview
Map
Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
North Cascades Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for North Cascades National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the North Cascades audio tourRecorded for this place
Stehekin Valley Ranch and the Cookhouse“Up ahead is Stehekin Valley Ranch, a guest ranch with cabins, tent cabins and covered wagons. Choose it for a planned stay farther up the valley, with meals and in-valley transport included in cabin packages.”
Plays as you drive up to Stehekin Valley Ranch in the Parkwolf North Cascades Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Stehekin Valley Ranch is a guest ranch nine miles up-valley from the head of Lake Chelan, with tent cabins, ranch cabins, covered wagons and a Ranch House. It's a base for spending time in the upper valley, not a quick stop at the landing. Cabin packages include meals and in-valley transportation, which makes a remote stay easier to manage.
Meals are served buffet-style in the Cookhouse, with home cooking and local ingredients; packed lunches are available for day trips. Tent cabins share nearby showers and bathrooms at the Cookhouse. Ranch cabins and wagons have their own bathrooms, while the Ranch House bedrooms have private ones; a few smaller cabins also have kitchenettes. A dinner visit without an overnight stay may be possible by arrangement, but confirm the meal and ride up-valley in advance.
No road connects Stehekin to the outside world. Most guests come by passenger ferry across Lake Chelan; plane, horse and trail approaches are also possible. Let the reservation office know how you're arriving before your stay, especially if you're walking in. The property has a reading room with books, puzzles and games and a recreation building with badminton, horseshoes, frisbee golf and ping-pong. Kayak tours, bike rentals, horseback riding, fishing and day hikes are also listed as activities, so check what you can arrange for your dates.
Wildlife
101 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
70 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
20 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
77 sightingsSooty GrouseMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
23 sightingsWhite-tailed PtarmiganMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
75 sightingsWestern ToadMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across North Cascades. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateHoward Lake Trail2.8 mi · 2.5 hr · 2.4 mi awayClimb to water lilies, dragonflies and a beaver lodge.
EasyOld Wagon Trail to Bridge Creek Camp5.3 mi · 3 hr · 2.4 mi awayA gentle one-way walk through cedar groves to Bridge Creek Camp.
ChallengingAgnes Creek Trail10.3 mi · 8 hr · 2.4 mi awayA long walk through cedar forest to two creek cascades.
ChallengingMcGregor Mountain Trail15 mi · 12 hr · 2.4 mi awayA punishing climb to Heaton Camp and far-reaching Stehekin views.
EasyAgnes Gorge Trail5 mi · 3 hr · 2.5 mi awayAn easy forest walk to a narrow gorge and waterfall.
ChallengingCompany Creek Trail11 mi · 10 hr · 3.2 mi awayA demanding 5,400-foot climb from Stehekin to Hilgard Pass.ChallengingHilgard Pass / Ten Mile Pass Loop28 mi · 20 hr · 3.2 mi awayA demanding loop from Stehekin to two high mountain passes.
EasyStehekin River Trail6.4 mi · 3.5 hr · 4 mi awayA gentle forest walk to Weaver Point, with river and falls views
Sight · 2.4 mi awayHigh BridgeA remote Stehekin River gorge view at a historic ranger station.
Campground · 2.4 mi awayHigh Bridge CampgroundBackcountry camp two miles beyond High Bridge.
Campground · 2.8 mi awayTumwater CampA backcountry night along Stehekin’s upper valley routes.
Sight · 3.9 mi awayHarlequin BridgeA short valley stop with a surprisingly unusual bridge story.
Campground · 3.9 mi awayHarlequin CampgroundA walk-in camp along the Stehekin River.
Sight · 4.6 mi awayRainbow FallsA short walk reaches a 312-foot waterfall in a glacial valley.
Campground · 4.8 mi awayRainbow Bridge CampAn overnight camp on Rainbow Loop, in the area burned in 2010.
Sight · 4.8 mi awayStehekin Old SchoolA one-room schoolhouse shows how an isolated valley educated its kids.Parkwolf’s North Cascades ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
