“Breathe on the world. Hold out your hands to it. When mornings and evenings roll along, watch how they open and close, how they invite you to the long party that your life is.”
-William Stafford
I’d been looking forward to the Cascade Mountains. I love hiking in alpine environments and I knew nothing about this area of the country. I knew it was popular with Seattleites, it was their backyard playground. I also knew it got a crazy amount of snow in the winter and that the area encompassed some beautiful jewel green lakes.
I was glad I’d be spending my birthday here.
We are at Pearygin State Park in the Methow Valley right outside Winthrop, Washington. The weather is in the 80’s and I give thanks to Ron C. Judd who wrote Camping Washington and gave this campground high praise. The drive here was spectacular, through acres of rolling wheat fields and bizarre rock outcroppings. On the way in, we stopped in a town called TWISP, who doesn’t love that name? It ‘s a town of 960 and YET they have this kick ass organic grocery store with homemade smoothies, curry quinoa bowls, cashew butter, great local cheeses, a wine cellar filled with good cheap wines and oh my god did I say I LOVE this place. There’s not much to Twisp. There’s that funky name. There’s this excellent store that has all the sustenance of life. A cool place to eat with the name of Yard Food. Pretty much perfection.
Directly in front of our camper is a view that pleases my soul. Rolling hills, shadowed by sunlight. Late September blue sky and distant peaks. Pristine lake. Birds are everywhere. Kestrels, falcons, ducks are hanging out. We have a patch of green grass, two ancient poplars, and a mountain ash that is shading the Cricket. Ryan Adams is the tunes. Homemade veggie chili on the fire. Bees are buzzing around me lazily, not attacking! It’s quiet. There’s space between here.
Here’s the thing, when you pull into a town, you know viscerally whether you connect with it. There can be some ineffable feeling or a distinctive meh, not for me. I try to resist the initial impression and reserve judgment until I have spent some time there, some places surprise you when you dig a little deeper. But there are times when I come upon a place and feel an immediate affinity. Winthrop is a one street town, but boy do they pack a lot into that one curving stretch of asphalt. Local coffee shops, organic bakeries, brewpubs(called saloons in this here town), an awesome local bookstore, a single cocktail bar, a cider house, a winery, a renowned restaurant, and above and around it all, beauty. The interesting thing about Winthrop is that all the facades are western themed, so you feel as if you have stepped back in time. Not like a ghost town, more like a thriving , functioning western town, with all the modern day 
comforts you could ask for.
We spent 5 days here. Those days were spent hiking in the Cascades, mountain biking, strolling the streets of Winthrop and cooking meals in camp. The hikes were wildly good. Thunder Knob was a 3.6 miler up through a boggy forest to a desert like plateau where Lake Diablo glowed its ethereal green blue below us. Another day we hiked what I consider our best yet. Blue Lake is a classic hike to a secluded alpine lake . Though it was different in many ways. As we gained elevation, the trail would break out of the woods into meadows of riotous color, vivid reds of mountain ash and mustard yellows from late season wildflowers. This was a region of the unique larch tree, a conifer that changes its fall colors to bright lemony yellow. 
The larch stands paint brilliant pockets of painterly hues in the landscape. I have to tell you each time we emerged into one of these technicolor meadows, I was waylaid by emotion. It was so pleasing to the eye and that feeling translated to a well-being and calm euphoria. I guess that’s what is called a natural high. Mark was patient with me, I would pause and swoon and he would wait, even though it was the seventh or eighth time we saw this familiar vista.
When we reached the lake it was icing on the cake. A deep clear blue lake surrounded by pines and backed by snow spotted mountains. To top it off, two mountain goats, momma and baby were cavorting over the glacial boulders, completing the almost surrealistic scene. It clouded over and started to drizzle and the mist created an entirely new landscape punctuated by color. The walk back was more of the same, I hated for it to end. I can’t remember the last time I wasn’t booking down a trail at the end of a day to snag that celebratory ice cold beer.
The Cascade Mountains are a place of great solitude, we saw few people on the trails and the road was never crowded. There were dozens of hikes we missed and I list this as one of my definite returns. One of our great discoveries on this trip was the North Cascades Institute on the shore of Lake Diablo. A place of retreat and learning, the folks here believe connecting community with nature is primary and they do so with a variety of innovative programming: education, youth leadership adventures, mountain school, and residency programs. The campus is stunning with a wonderful library, cafeteria and cabins all tucked into the pines on the shores of Lake Diablo. I cannot wait to go back.
One final word on Winthrop. It’s a rocking little town made vibrant and sustainable through the entrepreneurship of locals. We had one of our most enjoyable nights at the intimate Barnyard Cinema. Just to show you how small the world truly is, the couple that owns the place have roots in Western Michigan, with family in South Haven In fact, Genevieve had funky glasses on and of course they were from Globe Design in Holand. Three couples had joined together to manifest their vision of a local independent theatre. Gorgeous in design and well done in execution, Barnyard Cinema is housed in a newly constructed barn. It includes a screening room with big comfy loungers and a view of the distant Cascades out the two story picture window where the screen descends when the film is set to begin. An adjacent bar and wonderful little candy/popcorn counter completes the picture. It was obviously a successful venture and had become the community gathering space the owners envisioned, when we attended the film showing that evening(The Last Viceroy) it was packed. We had a blast getting to know the owners and hearing their story.
The Methow Valley and the North Cascades is a place that I felt a deep connection to, one I will find my way back to. It’s not an easy place, they call it end of the road(literally, the road over the pass to Seattle closes in November for the duration of winter) but the sense of community here is strong. And nature is waiting for you right out your back door.