Leavenworth: Trails, Parks and Nature

Leavenworth combines parks and cultural sites with waterfront trails and opportunities for nature watching and winter sports. As you plan your trip, you can consider whether you want to spend most of your time walking, learn about fish propagation, attend an event, or plan activities in the snow. The places and options below offer different highlights; for some activities, the season is also a factor.

Parks and Waterfront Trails

Enchantment Park has two softball fields, one of which is lit, as well as a junior baseball field that also serves as a youth soccer field. It also has a pump track, a skate park and a playground. The sports fields connect directly to trails that run through the scenic Waterfront Park recreation area. In winter, the trails and restrooms at Enchantment Park remain open for walking and cross-country skiing.

On Blackbird Island, the River Trail, Channel Trail and Hot Sands Trail lead to Hot Sands Beach and, via Enchantment Bridge, to the Enchantment Park trail system. Waterfront Park is on the Wenatchee River, a few blocks from downtown. The park and trail network offers several points of reference, from the riverbank to the trails across the island.

A tubing trip down the Wenatchee River passes through Leavenworth. You can put in at Icicle Bridge and take out at Barn Beach or the East Leavenworth boat launch. This offers a different way to experience the river than the trails along its banks.

Nature Watching and Fish Propagation

The Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery is on Icicle Creek. Visitors can see the hatchery, adult fish holding ponds, a fish ladder, raceways and rearing ponds in the original buildings. The hatchery was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1998. A visit offers insight into fish propagation at a site that also has historical significance.

The Icicle Creek Nature Trail is one mile long and mostly paved. Its features include interpretive signs and numerous benches. Bird enthusiasts can watch birds at the Leavenworth National Fish Hatchery year-round. The Birding Bench Trail, however, is accessible from April through November, so year-round birdwatching and the seasonally accessible trail offer different options for when to visit.

Townscape and Culture

In the early 1960s, Leavenworth’s leaders changed the town’s appearance to attract visitors. Front Street Park has a gazebo and a maypole. During Oktoberfest, traditional Bavarian melodies ring out from the Gazebo Stage in the park. Since the festival program may change, it’s a good idea to check the details for your event date.

For planned group visits to the Nutcracker Museum, a museum tour and a nutcracker hunt hosted by the Nutcracker Lady may be part of the visit. These activities are for group visits and are not a general visitor offering.

Winter Sports in the Leavenworth Area

The Leavenworth Winter Sports Club operates three facilities in the Leavenworth area. These include an alpine ski area with two rope tows, a magic carpet, a tubing hill and a sledding hill. The offerings also include snowshoe and fat-bike trails, as well as 26 kilometers of Nordic ski trails. Alongside the winter trails at Enchantment Park, these provide additional, separate options for activities in the snow.

Discover more destinations: Cashmere, Chelan, Wenatchee, Peshastin, Manson.

Back to the main travel guide: Chelan County.