Leavenworth/Cashmere/Wenatchee, WA

I laugh at my younger self for scoffing at the idea that someone might choose to live on the east side of Washington state over the west side. Now that dreary weather is something I am actively trying to avoid, central/eastern Washington seems ideal. 

Leavenworth was one of the original 43 options, but after some recent self-reflection, we decided Leavenworth would likely be too resorty (it is a Bavarian-themed village, and they really lean into that image!) but the greater Highway 2 region following the Wenatchee River, stretching to the big city of Wenatchee (population: 35,000) was still worth considering. There are a number of distinct towns along that 25-mile stretch, but we focused on the three in the title for now. 

Leavenworth: As already described, it is pretty kitschy. It has literally been portrayed as "Christmastown" in a few holiday movies, and their annual Oktoberfest and Christkindlmarkt bring in lots of onlookers. The year-round population is tiny (less than 3,000), but because of the seasonal attractions it has everything you would want for an engaging lifestyle. 

Cashmere: Although it doesn't feel it, Cashmere has a (slightly) larger population than Leavenworth. The downtown is cute, but restrained. Its claim to fame is being the hometown of the local Aplets and Cotlets candy. I get the sense that Cashmere is where the well off but down-to-earth families live, and it was Cameron's home base when he worked in the area as a raft guide during his gap year.

Wenatchee: Apple capital of the world! It sits at the confluence of the Wenatchee River and larger Columbia River. Wenatchee is the Chelan County seat and houses Central Washington University, so it boasts more activity than I expected for a town its size. Downtown was popping, and I especially liked the Public Market – essentially an indoor permenant-stall farmers and craft market. 

The Good

• Agricultural and industrial, yet with a balanced amount of arts and education focus. Wenatchee especially felt like a really well-rounded town. 
• Every outdoor activity imaginable (except those that require salt water) is nearby and in abundance. Lots of east siders make regular visits to this area for hiking and rafting, especially.
• There are mountains any way you turn. They aren't all spectacularly imposing mountains, but it would be hard to find a house that doesn't have some sort of view.
• It would be nice to live in Washington. Although they feel like complete opposites, Seattle is less than three hours away. That's definitely close enough for occasional weekend visits for special occasions or socializing with our abundance of friends in that area.
• It feels so homey. I know that word doesn't have a great definition, but despite never having been further east than Leavenworth until this year, I felt like a local as I walked through the Cashmere and Wenatchee downtowns. 

The Bad

• Far from an airport. There is a regional airport that flys to Seattle, but it probably is equally time-consuming to drive the ~3hours to SeaTac or Spokane. 
• Land is hard to come by. It's a very mountainous region, so any flatter areas are already dedicated to agriculture. I read that Wenatchee is currently considering allowing road grades up to 25% to allow for construction at harder-to-reach places. 
• There was a little bit of a stinky smell in a few parts of Wenatchee; it was somewhere between sewage and electrical oil. I'm not sure if it was something coming off of the Columbia River or the railroad or an unseen factory, but I can't image the smell gets better in warmer weather. 

The Verdict

Yes. It may have even eked out Taos as my #1 spot. It has the same major downside that Taos does – distance to an airport – but living in Wenatchee area would reduce a lot of our needs to fly. If we need to visit Cameron's family or go to the office for something, we would drive. Although there's not the same practicalities as living in a bigger city, if we do choose to go remote I think Wenatchee is a very strong contender. 

This photo is not from this trip, but it's from one of many hikes we've done previously in this area and a very compelling reason to move here.

These are what many of the surrounding mountains look like – steep and scraggly. 

Getting into this trip, though, let's start with Wenatchee. I like all of the actives and landscapes represented in this city mural.

Winter in Wenatchee. This is the confluence of the Columbia and Wenatchee Rivers. 

It was really snowy! It was hard to find a path, even on the sidewalk, but there were still plenty of people out doing their afternoon meanders.

The year-round indoor public market really sold me.

Inside there were about two dozen semi-permeant stalls. I bought some local produce and art.

Wenatchee felt like a really nice mix of agriculture, industry, and art. 

Downtown had a lot of cute looking shops, mixed in with some of-an-era furniture and appliance stores.

This was another selling point – a handful of locals built a snowboarding jump down the stairs of the Performing Arts Center, which was advertising an abundance of shows for the year.

There was an art walk along the river and a few businesses, like the winery in the background. You can really tell the snow depth with this guy.

Isn't it cute! Maybe I'm seeing the town through rose-colored glasses, but I found very little to fault. 

Now moving on to Cashmere. The downtown was much smaller but really stinking cute!

Evening glow on one of the nearby hillsides.

Cashmere's best known business – Aplets & Cotlets. 

Although Cameron has an affinity for Cashmere, since it was his home base when he was a raft guide, it was a little lackluster in comparison to Wenatchee. 

This is what you get hit with when you drive through Leavenworth at this time of year. Everything is decked to the nines in holiday lights.

Since we've been to Leavenworth plenty times before, we didn't spend a lot of time there this trip, but here's a summer photo. We enjoy hanging out and floating down Icicle Creek, near Leavenworth. 

Another summer photo – Mom and Dad came and visited and they got a kick out of the Bavarian-themed village.