Do you own a cabin on Lake Wenatchee near Leavenworth? It doesn't matter if your home is on North Shore or Cedar Brae, demand for lakefront homes on Lake Wenatchee (or Fish Lake) remains at an all time high. There is only one home for sale on Lake Wenatchee today.
A home at the Kahler Glen golf course near Lake Wenatchee was hit by an avalanche yesterday and carried 150 yards off its foundation according to the Wenatchee World. According to Lake Wenatchee sources, the home was located on Pelton Place which sits above Miracle Mile Road.
KIRO TV has the best photos of the avalanche damage and the home. They reported that a mandatory evacuation was in place for 15 nearby homes, due to avalanche danger and a buried propane tank that appeared to be leaking.
It doesn't appear that anyone was in the home, but that it was a vacation rental that was scheduled to be occupied this weekend. A two person cleaning crew had been in the home earlier in the day. It sounds like a second home was also damaged by the avalanche.
The condos at Kahler Glen are outside of an area that might be effected by avalanches. However, Pelton Place, where this home was located, is on a steep slope backed by land owned by a large timber company. Local news media seem surprised by this avalanche, but last spring, a home on this road was hit by a giant mudslide doing tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of damage.
According to the Northwest Avalanche Center this is the seventh significant avalanche incident this winter. The NWAC had predicted high avalanche danger for Thursday and warned travellers to avoid backcountry areas.
According to www.LakeWenatcheeInfo.com Lake Wenatchee has frozen from shore to shore. I have been seeing the local rivers freeze up and was wondering about the big lake. It has been below zero in the mornings at my house for the past week, though it's 10 degrees warmer now.
I have two suggestions for my readers.
1. Please respect the fragility of the frozen lake. Temps change, some ice is thicker than others. Please be careful as a frozen lake can be a dangerous place.
2. Add www.Lakewenatcheeinfo.com to your feed reader. I am up at Lake Wenatchee all the time, but their blog is still a great source of news for me.
LakeWenatcheeinfo.com's George Wilson is reporting that fiber optics is coming soon to Lake Wenatchee thanks to the Chelan County PUD. Click here to learn about getting fiber at your house near the lake
I just received an email from my good friends at Lake Wenatchee State Park. They are now open for nordic skiing, snowshoeing and sledding. As was mentioned earlier, the Nason Ridge trails are closed this year. I won't post these updates weekly, but you can get these emailed directly to you from the park if you want.
(Please note that while the date below says December 10, I received it on the morning of December 8)
Lake Wenatchee State Park
(509-763-3101)
Cross Country Ski Trail Information
Date: December 10 Time: 9 a.m. Temp / Precip: 23 degrees, clear
General Trail Conditions: One recent heavy snowfall has provided sufficient snow for grooming, though not enough for thorough “grading” of trails. Skiers may notice some side-slope and a few more irregularities than typical. Grooming out nicely in general. Note closure of Nason Ridge trails this season -- see below.
South Park:
Approximately 15 k groomed trails, double-tracked. Within the state park, the total includes a series of 1-3 km loops and longer runs through forest, along the lakeshore, and above the Wenatchee River for a total of 8 k. These trails will be groomed Friday through Sunday for the next couple of weeks, more often later this month. The state park trails interconnect with approximately 7 k of trails maintained by Kahler Glen Golf Course.
North Park:
The groomed trails in the North Park area provides 5.3 k of scenic trails which loop through the campgrounds, follow the river and lake shores, and run through quiet stretches of forest. This entire trail system will have one tracked lane and a full skate lane. This area offers a less-traveled alternative to the sometimes busy trails in the South Park area. These trails will be groomed Friday through Sunday for the next couple of weeks, more often later this month.
Chiwawa See and Ski:
This area has not yet been prepped for grooming. We hope to have this area ready for next weekend.
Nason Ridge Backcountry: Closed for the season due to logging on Longview Timber Company land. This trail system lies almost entirely on private land owned by Longview, any grooming at all is possible due to their willingness to allow public access.
Snowshoe Trail Information:
South Park:
A 1.8-mile loop is possible, though the route is not yet clearly marked or “packed in”. The route follows Wenatchee River and Nason creek then returns to the beach through a Ponderosa Pine / Douglas Fir forest.
North Park:
A 2-mile loop is possible along river, lakeshore and through forest. None of this trail system is currently marked, but good potential for those who are comfortable “finding their own way”.
Sled hill: In great shape!
Please remember, Sno Park Permits are required at all areas.
Lake Wenatchee XC Ski News from Lake Wenatchee State Park
Hello everyone,
We're starting out the season with some unfortunate news. We will have no trails groomed out Nason Ridge this season due to logging on Longview Timber Company lands which begin immediately South of Kahler Glen Golf course and include most all the trail system "up top".
We will be grooming our "core trails", including 8k in the South Park, 5.3k in the North (limited skate lanes), and 8k at Chiwawa See&Ski (skate lane full distance).
Though we never know for certain year-to-year, Longview believes the logging will be completed this season and access to their land next season will likely resume. Many thanks to Longview Timber Company for allowing access to their land in the past, and we hope to be skiing up there next year!
Thanks,
Rick Halstead Park Manager Lake Wenatchee State Park
