Road Trip Pt. 1 - Leavenworth, WA
The first stop on our PNW road trip was Leavenworth! Fondly known as the “Bavarian Village” of Washington, this idyllic ski town is also beautiful in the summer and filled with wildflower trails and lively biergartens. After a short hike near Thorp mountain on the way over, we arrived at our cute A-Frame cabin, nicknamed Little Bear Cabin, and hosted by PNW Cascade Cabins (check out their vacation properties here). The space itself was so cozy and it was clear that a lot of thought had been put into the design and decor of the space - everything from the dining benches with sheepskin rugs to the fairy lights lining the exterior frame pulled everything together super nicely! Though we weren’t able to check in early, even though we arrived only 45 minutes before our check-in time, we appreciated that they were being very thorough with their cleaning protocols in light of Covid-19, and I counted no less than four hand sanitizer dispensers placed throughout the cabin.
*We were given a complimentary stay in exchange for a feature on Instagram.
We took it pretty easy the first night and just made a home cooked meal for dinner and lounged around and outside the cabin. In the morning, I woke up pretty early to log into work, but had some time to enjoy some coffee and breakfast before checking out.
Our second spot was another A-Frame Airbnb about 15 minutes away, which was super convenient - though we would have loved to stay at Little Bear Cabin forever, it was nice to have a change of scenery as our second cabin was situated right next to a flowing creek, and the dogs loved splashing around in the water. Check out the Airbnb listing here!
This spot is definitely one for those who want to unplug and really get away. The house itself was powered by a generator so electricity was very limited and there was only an outdoor shower, although it was very nice and had great water pressure. This meant we had to time our usage of power and water - do dishes, make coffee, charge our laptops / phones, etc. and also shower before it got dark out. Due to Covid, the hosts opted not to have anyone make the beds, and instead, each bed would have a bag of clean bedsheets / duvets placed next to it for you to use. It was definitely an experience, and while I very much enjoyed the area and the house was very clean, I personally would probably opt for a more traditional Airbnb experience next time.
We did have some time after I got off work so we hiked to Lanham Lake in Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest. The approximately 4 mile trail itself was moderately challenging but beautiful, and we only saw one other couple and their dog the entire time! Koda and Kobe had a blast and the lake was so serene (aside from the swarms of mosquitoes around).
The next morning, we checked out and began the drive to our next stop: White Salmon, WA!
