Here the beautiful Stehekin Valley, with a portion of fjord-like Lake Chelan, adjoins North Cascades National Park. Lake Chelan National Recreation Area (62,000 acres) rests in a glacially carved trough in the Cascades Range. Lake Chelan reaches a depth of 1,500 feet, making it one of the nation's deepest lakes, and offers opportunities for boating, fishing, and lakeshore camping. Though the average width is less than two miles, Lake Chelan extends almost 55 miles into the Cascade Mountains. At its deepest point Lake Chelan drops to 400 feet below sea level. The northernmost four miles of this lake are in the National Recreation Area, including the remote community of Stehekin and the magnificent Stehekin River Valley.

Lake Chelan National Recreation Area encompasses the upper 4.5 miles of Lake Chelan and the glacier-carved Stehekin Valley. The Stehekin River, one of three major tributaries to Lake Chelan, meanders through this narrow valley. Elevation gradually rises from 1100 feet at the lake to 5400 feet at Cascade Pass, 29 miles away. Rainbow Creek plunges 312 feet over Rainbow Falls, a popular scenic destination, before joining the Stehekin River 3.5 miles upvalley from the lake.