The Swiftwater Corridor features sun-drenched views of pine forestland, pristine waters and valley cattle ranches. The Stuart Range and the Alpine Lakes Wilderness play host year-round to campers, snowmobilers and fishermen.
The corridor contains historic towns, logging camps, mines and ranches. Remains of the boom times abound—access a vast wilderness from a former railroad grade, or belly up to the bar in Washington’s oldest tavern. This byway rambles through the back roads between Salmon La Sac near the Snoqualmie Pass summit and Vantage on the Columbia River and reveals natural beauty, signs of the past and country communities that travelers on the speedier bypass miss out on entirely.
Key points of interest:
- Roslyn – Charming Roslyn maintains much of the character of its early years as a coal town, incorporated in 1889. The Roslyn Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978, and many residential and commercial buildings constructed from 1889-1930 remain intact. Tucked into the eastern foothills of the Cascades, Roslyn also serves as a gateway to abundant year-round outdoor recreation activities.
- Wildhorse Renewable Energy Center – Take a wind turbine tour at the Wild Horse Wind Facility! Weather permitting, free guided tours depart daily, from April-Oct 31, from the Renewable Energy Center at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Set high on a ridge, the Renewable Energy Center provides visitors with an up-close look at the facility’s 149 wind turbines, displays on renewable technology and natural history, and 360 degree views of Mount Rainier, Mount Adams, and the Columbia Basin.
- Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park – Considered one of the most diverse fossil forests in North America, Ginkgo Petrified Forest State Park is famous for the rare specimens of petrified Ginkgo biloba tree discovered there in the late 1920s.