I was out driving through the Cascades, enjoying life to the fullest and I knew that there was a supercharger located somewhere close. I hadn’t really researched it much, just seeing that it was there on the map, and I didn’t plan on really doing anything besides charging. As I pulled into town though, I noticed that it was unlike anywhere else I had ever been. The entire city seemed as if it was modeled after a village in the Swiss Alps, and that seemed more than appropriate as the backdrop of the mountains could make you quickly forget that you were anywhere in the United States.
The town of Leavenworth was founded as a small timber community and hub for the Great Northern Railway, but when the line was relocated to Wenatchee in 1925, a new way to fund the economy had to be created and the town looked towards utilizing it’s mountains and relying on tourism. Although the ski jumps brought some tourists, the town didn’t really start to become popping until Ted Price and Bob Rodgers, who had bought a failing cafe on Highway 2 in 1960, sold the idea of remodeling the city after a Bavarian village. After taking the “powers that be” on a trip to a Danish-themed town, Solvang, California, to build support for the idea, construction started and the rest, as they say, is history.
As I walked down the streets, I realized that I had come during Oktober Fest and even though the streets were packed, I couldn’t have picked a better time. Everywhere I turned had someone dancing or drinking a beer and the entire town seemed as if it was a party. The alleys were filled with vendors, selling every good you could think of, from art, to food, to clothes to tools. I immediately got a little somber realizing that visiting here on such a spur of the moment trip would never do the town justice. I would definitely have to come back with actual plans to explore. Before I left though, I made sure to enjoy a sausage made right in town and the local beer. I just couldn’t pass up Oktober Fest.
Closest Supercharger Leavenworth WA 0 mi
1329 Front St, Leavenworth, WA 98826
