This 400-mile (645-km) journey along the North Cascades Scenic Highway takes in some of the state’s most spectacular scenery, including the sheer, craggy walls of the Tumwater Canyon, the churning rapids of the Wenatchee River and the deep, narrow expanse of water at Lake Chelan. The landscape is dotted with vineyards, lakes, and mountains, and is magnificent in fall, when copper and gold maple leaves litter the valley floors. The forested islands of Whidbey and Fidalgo merit a few days’ exploration, as do the horse enclosures in the Methow River Valley.