Chelan County is a county in the U.S. state of Washington. As of the 2020 census, its population was 79,074. The county seat and largest city is Wenatchee. The county was created out of Okanogan and Kittitas Counties on March 13, 1899. It derives its name from a Chelan Indian word meaning "deep water," likely a reference to 55-mile (89 km)-long Lake Chelan, which reaches a maximum depth of 1,486 feet (453 m).
Cashmere is a city in Chelan County, Washington, United States. It is part of the Wenatchee–East Wenatchee Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 3,248 at the 2020 census.
The Wenatchee River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington, originating at Lake Wenatchee and flowing southeast for 53 miles (85 km), emptying into the Columbia River immediately north of Wenatchee, Washington. On its way it passes the towns of Plain, Leavenworth, Peshastin, Dryden, Cashmere, Monitor, and Wenatchee, all within Chelan County. The river attracts kayaking and river rafting enthusiasts and tourism.
U.S. Route 97 (US 97) is a major north–south route of the United States Numbered Highway System in the Pacific Northwest region. It runs for approximately 670 miles (1,078 km) through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, primarily serving interior areas on the east side of the Cascade Mountains. The highway terminates to the south at a junction with Interstate 5 (I-5) in Weed, California, and to the north at the Canadian border near Osoyoos, British Columbia, where it becomes British Columbia Highway 97. Major cities on the US 97 corridor include Klamath Falls, Bend, and Redmond in Oregon; and Yakima, Ellensburg, and Wenatchee in Washington. A portion of the highway in California and Oregon is part of the Volcanic Legacy Scenic Byway.
The Wenatchee Mountains are a range of mountains in central Washington State, United States of America. A major subrange of the Cascade Range, extending east 50 miles (80 km) from the Cascade crest, the Wenatchee Mountains separate the drainage basins of the Yakima River from the Wenatchee River. The crest of the range forms part of the boundary between Chelan and Kittitas Counties.
U.S. Route 97 Alternate is an alternate route of US 97 within the state of Washington. It runs for 40 miles (64 km) from Wenatchee to Chelan, following the west bank of the Columbia River opposite from US 2 and US 97. The highway travels through sparsely-populated areas along the river and passes near the Rocky Reach Dam and through the town of Entiat.
NCW Libraries is an inter-county rural library district in northern Washington state. It was founded as the North Central Regional Library (NCRL) in 1960 and is headquartered in Wenatchee, Washington. NCW Libraries provides library services to 14,947-square-mile (38,710 km2) of the state, including Chelan, Douglas, Ferry, Grant, and Okanogan counties. The system has 30 branches.
U.S. Route 2 (US 2) is a component of the United States Numbered Highway System that connects the city of Everett in the U.S. state of Washington to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, with a separate segment that runs from Rouses Point, New York, to Houlton, Maine. Within Washington, the highway travels on a 326-mile-long (525 km) route that connects the western and eastern regions of the state as a part of the state highway system and the National Highway System. US 2 forms parts of two National Scenic Byways, the Stevens Pass Greenway from Monroe to Cashmere and the Coulee Corridor Scenic Byway near Coulee City, and an All-American Road named the International Selkirk Loop within Newport.
State Route 285 (SR 285) is a short state highway serving Douglas and Chelan counties, located in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway serves Wenatchee and runs 5 miles (8 km) from an interchange with State Route 28 (SR 28) in East Wenatchee to Downtown Wenatchee, crossing the Columbia River on the Senator George Sellar Bridge. After traversing downtown, the highway ends at an interchange with U.S. Route 2 (US 2) and US 97 north of the Wenatchee River in Sunnyslope.
U.S. Route 97 in the U.S. state of Washington is a 322-mile (518 km) route which traverses from the Oregon state line at the northern end of the Sam Hill Memorial Bridge in Maryhill, north to the Canada–US border in Okanogan County near Oroville. The highway serves major cities such as Goldendale, Yakima, Ellensburg and Wenatchee before continuing towards the Alaska Highway at the Yukon border as British Columbia Highway 97. Along the length of the roadway, US 97 is concurrent with State Route 14 in Maryhill, Interstate 82 (I-82) and US 12 between Union Gap and Ellensburg, I-90 briefly in Ellensburg, US 2 between Peshastin and rural Douglas County and SR 20 near Omak. An alternate route connects the highway with Chelan.
Cardinal Peak is the highest peak of the Chelan Mountains, a subrange of the Cascade Range in the U.S. state of Washington. It is located in Wenatchee National Forest at the head of the Entiat River drainage basin, in Chelan County. To the west and north, streams flow into Lake Chelan. Cardinal Peak is less than 5 miles (8.0 km) from the lake and rises 7,500 feet (2,300 m) above the lakeshore. At 8,595 feet (2,620 m) high, it is the 49th highest peak in Washington. Its 2,070-foot (630 m) prominence ranks 132nd in the state.
Peshastin Pinnacles State Park is a 34-acre (14 ha) public recreation area located three miles (4.8 km) northwest of Cashmere in Chelan County, Washington. The state park features sandstone slabs and spires in a desert environment with views of the surrounding orchards, Enchantment Range, and Wenatchee Valley. Park activities include rock climbing, hiking, birdwatching, and wildlife viewing.
Dryden is a small unincorporated community in Chelan County, Washington, United States. It is situated along the Wenatchee River in the fertile Wenatchee Valley between the towns of Cashmere and Leavenworth. The community serves as a supply and shipping point for local farms and orchards.
Monitor is a small unincorporated community in Chelan County, Washington, United States. It is situated along the Wenatchee River about 8 miles upstream from its junction with the Columbia River in the fertile Wenatchee Valley.
Winton, Washington is a small unincorporated community close to Lake Wenatchee and the Wenatchee National Forest. It is in Chelan County in the state of Washington. The town's only school district, Cascade School District, is located in Leavenworth and includes five schools. It is assigned ZIP code 98826, the same as Leavenworth, Washington, approximately 10 miles (16 km) to the south.
Ardenvoir is an unincorporated community in Chelan County, Washington, United States. Ardenvoir is 9 miles (14 km) west-northwest of Entiat. Ardenvoir has a post office with ZIP code 98811.
Lucerne is an unincorporated community in Chelan County, Washington, United States. Lucerne is assigned the ZIP code 98816.
Merritt is an unincorporated community in Chelan County, Washington, United States. Merritt is on U.S. Route 2 in the upper valley area along Nason Creek in the Wenatchee National Forest, located 20 miles west of downtown Leavenworth. Merritt is assigned the ZIP code 98826. Steep slopes surround the community, rising to more than 8,000 feet in the Chiwaukum Mountains to the south.
Buckeye is an unincorporated community in Spokane County, in the U.S. state of Washington.
Big Chiwaukum is a prominent 8,081-foot (2,463-metre) mountain summit located in Chelan County of Washington state. Big Chiwaukum is situated northeast of Frosty Pass, and within the Alpine Lakes Wilderness. Big Chiwaukum is the highest peak in the Chiwaukum Mountains, a subset of the Cascade Range. In the Wenatchee dialect, Chiwaukum means many little creeks running into one big one. Its nearest higher peak is Cashmere Mountain, 10.35 mi (16.66 km) to the south-southeast. Precipitation runoff from Big Chiwaukum drains into tributaries of the Wenatchee River.
