Lake Chelan

Things To Do

Nothing beats a day on Lake Chelan in the summer, cruising around the lake and enjoying various water sports like wakeboarding, wakesurfing and tubing. There are a couple of businesses in Manson which rent boats for the half day or day, as well as boat launches at Old Mill Park and Manson Bay Park (off-season only). The waters past Manson are usually less busy than down by Chelan, and Watson's Harverene resort across the lake has a gasoline pump for boats, so Manson is the perfect place to launch your boat!

The 12 Tribes Lake Chelan Casino is located in Manson, and provides a variety of slot machines as well as seven live table games like Craps, Blackjack, Roulette and Poker and the ability to bet on your favorite sports teams via 12 Sports Book kiosks. The Casino features a players advantage club, has a restaurant and club, RV parking, and a large amphitheater with live music during the warmer months.

Rally Alley in Chelan next to the Don Morse Park has a go karting track with both single and double occupancy go karts. It's open for Memorial Day weekend, and then daily from Mid June through Labor Day. Must be 16 years old to drive the double kart, and 52" or taller to drive the single kart.

The Lake Chelan Municipal Golf Course is on the north shore above the city of Chelan, and provides outstanding views of the lake. Tee times can be booked online or by phone, and lessons are available. Stop by The Albatross by Karma for drinks or food after your round of golf. Located on the south shore of Lake Chelan, the Bear Mountain Ranch Golf Course is a beautiful 18 hole course with stunning views of Lake Chelan. The course typically opens for the year on April 1st, and tee times can be booked online or by phone.

The Watson's Alpenhorn Cafe is a popular spot for people on the south shore of Lake Chelan to grab burgers, fries and milkshakes. But the cafe isn’t the only reason to visit, as it also offers a 9 hole mini golf course in the shaded hillside in the back. Kids 12 and under play free with the purchase of a meal! The putting course at Don Morse Park located in Chelan, known as "The Green" is a perfect place to practice your game while on vacation in Lake Chelan. It’s an 18 hole course on real grass, and includes sand bunkers, waterfalls and sloped greens. The course provides varying levels of difficulty depending on the hole, but it can be a little more challenging than a typical putt putt course.

What better way to experience Lake Chelan Valley than from the sky with a helicopter tour by Lake Chelan Helicopters? They offer a number of different tours, including a Lake Chelan tour, visiting Stehekin or a Lake Chelan Wine Valley Tour.

Hiking around Manson offers a wide range of trails with sweeping views, forested ridgelines, and access to the lake's dramatic shoreline. One of the most popular hikes in Manson is Fourth of July Mountain, known for its rewarding uplake views of Lake Chelan stretching deep into the North Cascades. Just outside town, Echo Ridge features an extensive trail network with routes for hiking and biking, providing options for a variety of skill levels and scenic overlooks. Beyond Manson, hikers can explore additional trails throughout the region, including several at the Chelan Gorge, the well-known Chelan Butte with its expansive views, and the shorter Elephant Head Trail. For those seeking more challenging terrain, the Twenty Five Mile Creek area offers steeper, more rugged hikes such as the newer Box Canyon Trail, one of the few trails in the area that provides direct access to the lake.

There is live music throughout the year in Lake Chelan, with many of the wineries hosting musicians, even during the winter. During the warmer months, Amos Rome often has live music on the weekends outside on their lawn, Tipsy Canyon and Tsillan Cellars frequently have live music as well, and the Lake Chelan Chamber of Commerce website has an events page with an updated calendar of events, including live music. The 12 Tribes Lake Chelan Casino has a large amphitheater, capable of holding up to 1,500 people, and has musicians performing during the summer months.

Echo Ridge provides over 25 miles of trails to both hikers and mountain bikers and is hands down the favorite area for mountain bikers in Lake Chelan, with a wide variety of easy to moderate mountain biking trails to choose from. The Twenty Five Mile Creek area on the south shore has a couple of trails open to mountain bikers, including Pot Peak, Devil's Backbone and Stormy Mountain. Note, these are difficult trails and some have substantial elevation gain. On the north shore, there are a couple of trails out near South Navarre Peak including Uno Peak trail and Safety Harbor Trail. These trails are not frequently accessed, as it requires a long drive on a dirt forest service road.

Echo Ridge is approximately 11 miles from Chelan and has 30 miles of nordic trails available, providing scenic views of Lake Chelan and the surrounding mountains. Situated at 3,500ft, Echo Ridge often sits above the low lying cloud layer during the winter, providing the opportunity to warm up in the sun as you cruise along the network of trails. There are a variety of trails available for beginners, intermediate as well as advanced. Grooming and track setting are done by the volunteer run Lake Chelan Nordic Ski Club, and the club does an excellent job of providing updates on grooming reports and conditions on their website. Day passes run $15 for the 2022/2023 season, and can be purchased via cash or check at any of the trailheads. Didn't bring your nordic skis? No problem, rentals are available from Lake Chelan Sports (located in downtown Chelan) and Lakeland Ski Rental (located at Echo Valley Resort).

Whether it's going out for a quick board from your dock, or spending the entire day to see how far up lake you can make it, paddleboarding is a very popular activity on Lake Chelan. Paddleboarding around the lower end of the lake where it spills out into the Chelan River is a popular area, as is around Manson Bay Park. Note, with all the boat activity and wind coming down the lake, the waves can be sizable. General rules of thumb : farther up lake has less boat traffic, mornings and evenings tend to have calmer water, and the waves and wind can be much stronger past the narrows. There are a number of spots in Chelan that rent paddleboards, including Chelan Parasail, Lake Rider Sports and Shoreline Watercraft.

In the warmer months, you will see many paragliders circling in the sky around the lower reaches of Lake Chelan. Chelan Butte, the mountain overlooking the city of Chelan, is the preferred launch point, with an access road up to the top. It's considered one of the premier paragliding locations in the Northwest, and Lake Chelan often hosts the National and World competitions during the summer. Don't have a paraglider, but still interested in going, check out tandem flights with Paraglide Chelan.

Parasailing Chelan was Washington State's first parasail company, providing memorable experiences on Lake Chelan for over 30 years. For those not familiar with parasailing, it involves being towed behind a boat with a specially designed canopy wing that resembles a parachute which lifts the flyers into the air . Parasailing Chelan has packages that include flyers and non-flyers, and can accommodate three people at the same time, and also offer photo packages as well.

Pickleball is a fast growing sport with roots in Washington State, and the Lake Chelan area has a couple of different options for pickleball. Harmony Meadows on the outskirts of Manson is a beautiful destination resort centered around tennis and pickleball, allowing non members to book courts seven days in advance. Singleton Park in Manson recently added pickleball line markings to the basketball court, however you must bring your own nets. Don Morse Park in the city of Chelan has two pickleball / tennis courts, and Darnell's resort in Chelan and Wapato Point Resort in Manson have pickleball / tennis courts for guests.

The Chamber of Commerce provides a bike route guide which details three bike rides in the Lake Chelan area. For organized bike rides, check out the Cycle Chelan website by the rotary club, which organizes a number of bike rides in the summer. Prefer a guided tour on electric bikes? Check out Chelan Electric Bikes which provides a number of tour options on electric bikes. Including the Chelan River Gorge and wine tours.

High Trek Chelan offers both a ropes course and zip line on the south shore of Lake Chelan . There are a total of 60 obstacles on the ropes course, and the course is covered by shade sails to help mitigate the high summer temperatures. Tickets can be purchased to include access to the two zip line towers.

Echo Valley Ski Area is a family friendly community run non-profit ski less than 20 minutes away from Chelan. The area sits at an elevation of 2,600ft with approximately 600 vertical feet of terrain with three rope tows and a poma. The ski area is typically open from December until March, and operates on weekends and holidays. As of 2022/2023 season, tickets are $35 and tubing is included in the ticket price. The area offers lessons as well as rentals. Mission Ridge will appeal to those looking for a larger resort, and is a little over an hour away from Chelan.

Lake Chelan isn't known as a backcountry skiing destination, but during the heart of winter there is usually enough snow to get out for a backcountry excursion in the mountains surrounding the lake. Chelan Butte offers stunning views and easy access, while both Antilon Lake Sno-Park and Twenty Five Mile Creek Sno-Park have a few ski tours as well.

Skydive Chelan offers tandem jumps for beginners as well as full altitude jumps for those with a license. It's the only skydive company in the United States that offers a tandem winery skydive landing amongst the vineyards of a couple of the Chelan wineries with an optional bottle of wine waiting for you. I can't think of a better way to make an entrance at a winery!

The Lake Chelan Valley can get quite cold during the winter months, and can be blanketed with snow during the heart of the winter. What better way to enjoy the cold weather and snow than sledding? While there are many hills in the area for sledding, the Lake Chelan Municipal Golf Course provides a convenient option, with a designated sledding hill right next to the club house. Drive on up, and you will see signs directing you towards the sledding hill.

During the winter months, Snowshoeing provides a great way to be active in the Lake Chelan area. Echo Ridge is an excellent option, with the Zoom and Snowshoe trailheads providing access to a number of snowshoe trails, many of which have views of the lake. Day access passes at Echo Ridge are $15 per person and can be purchased at the self service fee areas located at the trailheads with cash or check (kids 17 and under are free). Chelan Butte is another great option, either from the Chelan Butte trailhead which follows the summer trail, or follow the Chelan Butte Road, which is only plowed part of the way up. The Lake Antilon Sno-Park is also an option, where you can follow forest service roads, or try Fourth of July Mountain for an epic view of the Lake.

The cool winter time temperatures in the Lake Chelan Valley result in great snow conditions in the mountains surrounding the lake, and the area has over 150 miles of well marked, groomed trails. Throw in the sun, stunning views of the lake and lack of people and it's easy to see why Lake Chelan is an excellent option for snowmobiling. There are three Sno-parks within the Chelan Valley :

• Echo Valley - 30 spots with access to 100 miles of trails
• Antilon Lake - 75 spots with access to 100 miles of trails
• Twentyfive Mile Creek - 35 spots with access to 63 miles of trails

Nearby Entiat and Methow Valley provide extensive trail systems and Sno-parks as well.

There are a couple of different surfing options around Lake Chelan. Wakesurfing is a popular new activity, where a rider trails behind a boat without using a rope, and is a great sport when the waves in Lake Chelan make wakeboarding difficult. For more traditional surfing, look no further than Lakeside Surf, which has one the world's largest artificial waves measuring in at 6 feet high and over 54 feet wide.

While the lake can be on the colder side, once the temperatures rise in the summer swimming is a very popular water activity. Your best bet for finding a suitable spot to swim is one of the many parks situated on the water, which all have swimming spots :

• Lakeside Park - large swimming area with a couple of docks, grass and shade
• Don Morse Park- large beach area with swimming
• Manson Bay Park - Protected swimming with easy access via concrete stairs
• Willow Park - Small beach and swimming area

Additionally, both Twenty-Five Mile Creek State Park and Lake Chelan State Park have swimming areas, however a Discover or day pass is required to access state parks. There are a couple of nearby swimming areas on the Columbia River, including Chelan Falls Park. Click on the link below to view al the swimming spots around Lake Chelan

Harmony Meadows in Manson is a beautiful destination tennis resort with both lodging and tennis courts available for rent. The Don Morse Park in Chelan has two public tennis courts, and a number of resorts in Lake Chelan have tennis courts on the property, including Darnell's Lake Resort, Wapato Point and Lake Chelan Shores.

Echo Valley Ski & Tubing Area has six lane tubing hill, and tubing is included in the price of a ski ticket for $35 dollars, or a tubing only ticket for $15. Echo Valley provides the tubes, so no need to bring your own. There are a couple of smaller tubing lanes for younger children available as well and children 3 to 5 years of age tube free!

Don Morse Park in downtown Chelan has a couple of beach volleyball courts, and Lakeside park in Chelan also sports a sand court. There are a number of resorts in thhe Lake Chelan area with beach volleyball courts, including Darnell's Lake Resort, Lake Chelan Shores, and Wapato Point. Campbell's Resort will often put up a volleyball net in the shallow water on their beach on Lake Chelan.

Round out your family vacation to Lake Chelan with waterslides and a lazy river at Slide Waters Waterpark. Slidewaters has a beautiful landscaped lawn area and trees for shade, providing the perfect spot to set up the family for the day. Enjoy the food at the River Run Grill, or bring your own, as you will need energy to hit every waterslide in the park.

Wine tasting around Manson, WA offers an intimate look at the vineyards and winemaking that define the Lake Chelan AVA. As part of this federally recognized American Viticultural Area, Manson is home to a number of wineries that grow their own estate grapes on the surrounding hillsides, benefiting from the lake’s moderating effect and the region’s warm, sunny climate. Visitors will find wineries spread throughout the Manson area, many with vineyard views and on-site production, as well as a convenient cluster of tasting rooms in downtown Manson that make it easy to sample a variety of local wines in one outing. From small, family-run operations to larger estate wineries, Manson offers a focused wine tasting experience rooted in the unique terroir of Lake Chelan. Click the link below to view all the wineries around Lake Chelan.

The third deepest lake in the United States offers a ton of water-based activities with local parks and resorts on the water offering beaches to cool off in the lake during the hot summer. Parks are also a great place to launch a paddleboard or kayak, and of course boating is a popular activity, which boat rentals and boat launches spread around the lake. And there's also the waterpark, which is a favorite for kids of all ages and open from Memorial Day to Labor Day.