Washington State - Cascade Loop

This state has it all. Snow capped mountains, 5 Active Volcanoes, Glaciers, Ocean, Rain forests, Glacier lakes, 3 National Parks, Gondola rides, wild flowers. The largest city of this state has a very unique downtown and for my 4 year old Florida boy, it had snow in July :) - "The State of Washington" - a paradise for nature lovers and it blew us away. 

This was our break from routine to celebrate our anniversary, baby-moon and Rishi's summer vacation before he starts VPK in August. Our plan was to spend 10 days in Washington state.

Seattle to Leavenworth (Cascades Loop) ~ 2 hours 40 minutes

After discussing our itinerary with my school friend, who lives in WA, she suggested that we cover a bit of the Cascade loop in a day from Seattle. The best itinerary we found online was the scenic drive to Leavenworth city from Sea-Tac which was about 120 miles. 

On the way, we stopped to enjoy the delicious cherries sold by roadside vendors (we were delighted to find cherries from Yakima, WA when we were shopping in a Miami Publix after our trip).

Our first halt was at Lake Wenatchee State Park which is situated in Wenatchee National Forest on the eastern slopes of the Cascade Mountain Range. Framed with the Cascades as it's backdrop, Lake Wenatchee is a picturesque glacier and snow melt fed lake. Though it was July, the lake was freezing but was perfect for boating. You would have to get your own boat as we could not find any boat rentals. The Park Ranger informed us that they may have boat rentals starting in 2014.

Picnic time - homemade methi parathas

It is freezing cold 

We proceeded to Leavenworth city which is about 30 minutes from Wenatchee lake. We pulled over to enjoy picture perfect views of a river that coursed the highway. Leavenworth is an enchanting mountain town designed like a Bavarian village. We drove around the city and then went to Waterfront Park for a quick picnic and an evening walk. 

Waterfront park

We drove back to Seattle on the same scenic way we arrived and it was a great start to a fantastic vacation. 

Our next day plan was drive to Crystal Mountain and Mt Rainier National Park.