We decided to spend at night at Whistlin' Jacks after reading an article in the Seattle Times about touring the area to enjoy the fall colors. The lodge and restaurant were both favorably mentioned and we decided to give it a try.

We started off our day with a hike in the Chinook Pass area, which is lovely and not to be missed. We enjoyed our 3 1/2 mile hike on the Naches Peak Loop trail-- beautiful day, beautiful scenery. After an afternoon of exploring we headed down to Whistlin' Jacks to have dinner and relax.

We understood that the lodge was pretty basic and we are not luxury travelers. That said, we found the place to be depressing. Technically everything seemed to be clean-- but I just couldn't shake the feeling that it wasn't. Perhaps it's because our room was so outdated and run-down. It just wasn't comfortable to hang out there.

We did enjoy the shared outdoor hot tub. Luckily no one else was using it at the time, as it is quite small. We were surprised that there was no sign up list for shared hot tub use.

We did eat in the restaurant (there is nothing else around!) for both dinner and breakfast. I must say my expectations were low and I was pleasantly surprised. The restaurant has a beautiful view of the river and the wait staff were helpful. While I did not expect many vegetarian choices I was surprised that the only veggie item on the dinner menu was a spinach salad-- I figured there would at least be a veggie burger or pasta dish! That said, the salad was actually pretty good. At breakfast there were more vegetarian choices, and my husband had a wonderful veggie eggs benedict. The food was a little overpriced, but not the greasy spoon I had feared.

Overall, our stay at Whistlin' Jacks wasn't bad. But was it worth it? For us it wasn't. We would have had a much more enjoyable trip if we had just headed back home after our lovely hike in the mountains. If you happen to end up in the area and need a basic, clean place to spend the night, go for it. I don't know that you'll find any better choices in the immediate area (besides camping). But if you don't really need to stay overnight in the area, don't.