Way up in the very Northeast corner of King County, nestled in the Mount Baker Snoqualmie National Forest in the Cascade Mountains is the tiny town of Skykomish, Washington. It’s isolated from the rest of King County and the Seattle Metro area by impassable mountains and forest. You can only get there from here one way via State Highway 2 from Everett and Snohomish County on the west or from Wenatchee and Chelan County from the east through Steven’s Pass.
Skykomish was incorporated in 1909. It’s rambunctious and colorful history was created out of the movement west and its abundant timber, gold and minerals, and the push to Seattle by the Great Northern Railroad.
The Skykomish Hotel has been an icon of the Cascades for over 100 years. I remember coming through here as a kid on the train to Spokane in the late 50's.
If you ever have the opportunity to drive through here, do it! It’s an absolutely breathtaking beautiful drive through the wilderness. On Highway 2 you’re intimately in the landscape. It’s way more upfront and personal than Interstate 90 through Snoqualmie Pass (though that’s a beautiful drive too). As you meander through the highlands and the mountains on a 2 lane road you’ll drive by old corner cafes, taverns, bait shops, and sleepy little rustic roadside motels that are family owned and in no way associated with any national chain. This is the real Northwest!
I'm sad you're closed Skykomish Hotel.
On my way back from Wenatchee in June I stopped in Skykomish to take a few photo’s of the old hotel. I was saddened it is closed and boarded up. I was unaware until later that there are several local battles going on between its citizens, town officials, the state, and the BNSF Railroad (Warren Buffett) as to the future of this now quaint little town of Skykomish.
As I said, it’s a tiny little town of about 200 citizens with a school district that only has about 20 students. The town is creating a new ‘greener’ future and has gone through major cleanups to correct the old poisonous ways of doing business in the wild. It’s a wonderful gateway to hiking, camping, skiing, and fishing. In the summer they host live concerts. I salute Skykomish and their dreams of renewal and a prosperous future. They’re not only a tiny town with a big history, they have a great big vision of the future.
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