When it comes to traveling, the more places I visit, the more spontaneous I have become. Especially, since my husband is a massive enabler and when a crazy idea pops into my head, he regularly tells me to “just book it.” Yet again, another trip was booked on a whim. This time a yoga retreat in gorgeous Leavenworth, Washington. For once, I stayed in the United States for a trip!
As I am sure anyone that reads this blog has noticed, I execute handstands pretty much everywhere I travel. Well, I’m certainly not the only person in the world that does this. Holly Fiske, affectionately known as Upsidedown Mama, takes it to a whole new level that I have yet to master. Her handstanding is something I aspire to! Holly used to host yoga retreats in her hometown of Leavenworth. Now she offers yoga teacher training, but I was lucky enough to attend her final retreat before we switched gears into teaching. While she no longer hosts, a visit to Leavenworth (the town, not the prison) is worth the trip.
We stayed at the Sleeping Lady Mountain Resort, a quaint little resort a short distance by car from downtown Leavenworth. Large, open cabins dot the picturesque landscape nestled in the Cascade Mountains, with the Wenatchee River snaking through the property. In October, the leaves were changing, the temperatures were mild – cool in the mornings and evenings, but perfect for hiking in the afternoons. The studio used for yoga was charming, with windows overlooking the most striking backdrop. Picture autumn leaves, snow-capped mountains, stark blue skies with deer wandering about.
Holly could not have put together a better, more relaxing retreat. The meals she arranged, all catered by local restaurants in town, were delicious. The nights were spent floating in an outdoor hot tub after enjoying a glass of wine (or two) at the resort’s own dining options, the Grotto Bar or the Kingfisher Restaurant. Little Red’s Cafe catered our breakfast each day, including it’s catch phrase, “Coffee with attitude.” Yodelin Broth Company & Beer Garden supplied our healthy, filling dinners.
As the title suggests, there was yoga involved. Holly lead us through daily yoga flows – we downward dogged, treed, boat posed, and acted like cobras. Holly introduced me to the wonders of myofascial release with the equivalent of lacrosse ball. I had used foam rollers before, but the balls pinpoint particular muscles extremely effectively. I use them on a regular basis now because of a herniated disc in my lumber spine.
Holly is insanely active, just like me, so hiking was included with the yogaing. We loaded up in vehicles and drove to The Enchantments, southwest of Leavenworth. Situated on Colchuck Lake, the hike was challenging and rewarding as hell. I’ll go into more detail on the particulars of the hike in a separate post, but here’s a teaser in photograph form…
While I was unable to stay an extra day after the yoga retreat concluded, the town’s Oktoberfest celebration was an event worth the stay. Make sure to bring your best lederhosen to wear since if you don’t you’ll be a bit out of place! Leavenworth is an adorable little Bavarian-style village, with Front Street lined with German beer and food establishments.
What should have been a two and a half hour drive from Leavenworth to the Seattle airport turned into a four hour nightmare with a missed flight. A flight I missed by ten measly minutes. I was peacefully enjoying my awe-inspiring drive through balsam wood scented valleys that were lined with gorgeous rock walled mountains. As I approached a town, I noticed a little traffic back up. The more I refreshed Google Maps, the more red the road became. When I came to a complete stop, inching forward a foot here and a foot there, I detoured deeper in the town, coming back out on the main drag within viewing distance of a car crash. Vehicles were still getting by! Woohoo, I may make my flight. Minutes later I observed bad things happening. Being a cop, I immediately recognized the signs that the road was being COMPLETELY blocked. Shit! For the next full hour, I was constantly checking the clock, updating Uncle Google’s directions, and monitoring the flight. FINALLY, a single lane opened after the most inept tow driver and sheriff’s office deputies I had ever seen managed to partially clear a smidge of the roadway. And we’re off! Thankfully, I had traveled with my police badge and department patches. Please prevail, professional courtesy and the thin blue line should I get pulled over for my less-than-legal speeds. Veroooooommm!!!
As mentioned at the start of this post, booking impromptu trips (aka. impulse control) is a condition I suffer from, so while in Leavenworth, I may have booked a trip for the next month to Jordan. But next, I’ll delve into the hike.
October 2023
Oh, man. I bet all that stress you got rid of during yoga and hiking came roaring back with that departure. May I ask: was the airline accommodating, or was it “too bad, so sad, you have to foot the bill for a new ticket”?
Sitting that close and helplessly watching the road fully close for an hour was panic-inducing. I think my tiny rental car went airborne a few times once I got through. I called United enroute to Seattle airport and explained my situation. They were VERY accommodating, and switched me to the ONLY other flight to DC that night. Given it was completely out of my control, they waived all fees, kept me on standby on my original flight in the event that I made it in time, and didn’t charge extra for the fare difference. I was very impressed. The flight closed ten minutes before I got to the desk before security. I do have the United Visa, so I booked a basic economy fare – all the perks of main cabin (free checked bags, boarding group 2, access to lounges twice a year), but with the cheapest price.
First of all, go United! Second, boy oh boy, Delta’s basic economy gives you pretty much nothing. I mean, maybe free checked bags, but even if you have the Delta Reserve card as we do, most of the benefits are voided if you book basic economy, which is why we never do. So, go United again!