Wandering the Wenatchee Foothills

The Wenatchee Foothills are known for their smooth trails and wonderful wildflowers in the springtime. After a pleasant run at Horse Lake back in April, Kelly and I returned to Wenatchee for more fun. Our friend Alex had introduced us to Kayleigh and Brian, two Wenatchee locals who joined us for our last run. This time, Kayleigh proposed a more adventurous route this time that started and ended in Wenatchee, ascending all the way to Horse Lake Mountain.

We met up in the early afternoon and left a car at Kenzie’s Landing before driving together to the Castle Rock trailhead. The ground was hard and dry at these lower elevations. Wenatchee is rapidly approaching the heat of summer.

Kayleigh was the only one who really knew what we were doing. From the Castle Rock saddle, we ascended a steep sandy hillside called “The Chopper”. As we were driving over, Brian had asked skeptically, “We’re going up the Chopper?!” That should have been Red Flag #1. Red Flag #2 was that Kayleigh dropped a car at #2 Canyon, only 5 miles in, as a potential bail option. Red Flag #3 was the feeling of our feet slipping on the steep dirt. But by then it was too late to bail and go back down – the only way is up!

Sandbagger Kayleigh was waiting for us with a smug grin at the top of the hill. Cable Line, Teneriffe, Mailbox – the westside trails are a walk in the park compared to The Chopper!

The “trail” continued on the ridge, generally uphill, but with many steep little ups and downs. Sometimes it disappeared in the tall grass. It reminded me of faint Teanaway ridge use trails, much like the Middle Fork Teanaway Orbit. Even though we were below 3k, it felt surprisingly alpine and remote. Cool stuff, right in the backyard of Wenatchee.

Starting in the afternoon, we had been worried about heat, but luckily we had cloud cover and a strong breeze. Moody weather days like this one are perfect for eastside ramblings.

After a few strenuous miles of ups and downs on the ridge, we started to enter the Ponderosa forests, where the wildflowers were still thriving. We were all relieved when we finally reached the manicured trail network of #2 Canyon.

#2 Canyon is an elite trail system higher in the foothills, with flowy bike trails and beautiful forests. The flowers were absolutely going off at this elevation! We were all stoked to be on such runnable trails finally.

We followed the trails and roads towards the summit of Horse Lake Mountain. At an elevation of about 4600 ft, it stands almost 4000 ft above downtown Wenatchee! It doesn’t look that high from town, but it feels high from above.

We lounged in the cool breeze, watching clouds cast shadows on the city below. We could see from the Columbia River to the cloudy Enchantments and even the lower flanks of Glacier Peak. I loved looking down at all the intricate water carved canyons of the Wenatchee Valley, where ice age glaciers had left alone. Coming from the westside, I find the canyon topography so intricate and interesting, especially when viewed from above.

We dropped down trails off the north side. They were steep in places, but once we got lower, we joined up with the super gentle flowy trails of Horse Lake. Without a single rock or root, it was wonderful downhill running.

As we descended the final slopes, we were treated to lovely light and shadows. The long grasses swayed in the wind and wave clouds streaked overhead. It was a vibe, and I was digging it.

Having spent so much time in the Issaquah Alps, it has been really fun to explore the Wenatchee Foothills this year. Issaquah is to North Bend as Wenatchee is to Leavenworth. One could say that Issaquah is the Wenatchee of the westside, or rather Wenatchee is the Issaquah of the eastside. The investment in elite recreational infrastructure throughout the foothills is comparable (shoutout to the local organizations and volunteers who have stewarded these areas), but the terrain and scenery could not be more different. The diversity of the Cascades, from west to east, is truly special.

Thank you to Kayleigh and Brian for hosting me, Kelly and Alex for a great weekend!

Notes:

• The run was 17 miles and 5k gain. It took us about 6 hours.
• The first few miles until #2 Canyon are much more difficult than the rest. One could skip this section by starting in #2 Canyon.
• We could have ran a few miles of road to complete the loop.
• This felt like the right time of year for this route; while the lower elevations were dried out, the flowers were still excellent above 3k! Maybe slightly earlier would be optimal for flowers throughout all the elevation bands.
• There were no water sources on this route, so bring everything you need!