Best For
Tent-only campers willing to access Stehekin by boat or floatplane who want a top-rated, intimate camping experience an eight-minute walk from the dock. Not for anyone expecting to drive in — Stehekin is car-free.
6
Sites
No
Hookups
Purple Point is the highest-rated campground in the park at 4.7 and one of the most logistically unique — Stehekin is only accessible by boat, floatplane, or on foot, making this 6-site tent-only campground a genuine destination rather than a convenience stop. An approximately eight-minute walk from the boat dock at Stehekin Landing, it is about as close to the water as you can sleep. The booking window data tells a clear story: August has only a 1.4% last-minute rate and September drops to 0.0%, with 29.2% of September reservations booked 6+ months out. If you want late summer here, book on the day reservations open. May offers the best flexibility at 17.6% last-minute, but with only 6 sites, even 'flexible' means you need to check multiple times a day.
Content from North Cascades National Park park guide
July and August are peak season with nearly 5,900 reservations each month and 19–20% of bookings made 6+ months in advance — beautiful weather but zero margin for flexible planning. May offers the most last-minute opportunity (22.6% of bookings) and lighter crowds, though some campgrounds and facilities may not be fully open. September is counterintuitively the hardest month to get a site last-minute at 18.0%, driven by high-planning campers who want fall color and cooler temperatures without the summer crowds — if that's you, book in January.
State Route 20 (North Cascades Highway) is the primary corridor connecting Newhalem-area campgrounds to the Colonial Creek and Diablo Lake campgrounds — it typically closes for winter between November and April, effectively ending the camping season at those sites. Stehekin and its campgrounds (Purple Point, Harlequin, Lakeview) are entirely inaccessible by road and require travel by ferry, floatplane, or on foot; once in Stehekin, the valley road is served by a seasonal shuttle bus. Hozomeen is only accessible via a long unpaved road from Hope, British Columbia — do not plan to reach it from a US highway.
Total reservations in May — 2023: 30 · 2024: 51 · 2025: 47
Address
Chelan County, Washington
Coordinates
48.3130, -120.6580
Very high demand - sites typically fill up immediately when the booking window opens. Plan to book the moment reservations open.
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North Cascades National Park
North Cascades National Park
Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest
Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest
Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest
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North Cascades National Park does not charge a standard per-vehicle entrance fee for most of the park, though the Stephen Mather Wilderness and specific recreation areas may have associated permit costs — verify current fee schedules at recreation.gov before arrival. Campsite nightly rates vary by campground and site type; group shelter sites cost more than standard individual sites. The America the Beautiful Interagency Annual Pass covers entrance fees where applicable and is worth carrying, but it does not cover campsite reservation fees.
All reservable campgrounds enforce a 14-day maximum stay, and the data shows demand is Very High every day of the week with no seasonal slack at the peak campgrounds. Cell service is extremely limited to nonexistent throughout most of the park — do not rely on mobile data for navigation, weather updates, or campsite changes once you leave Sedro-Woolley or Marblemount. Dogs are generally permitted at campgrounds but restrictions apply on trails within the national park boundaries; bring adequate food, water filtration, and supplies from Marblemount or Burlington before entering the park corridor, as services inside the park are minimal.