North Cascades

RECREATION AND TOURISM IN THE MOUNTAINS

HOSTELRIES AND RESORTS

Camp Stehekin / Morse's Resort

In addition to Daisie's camp, another "resort" opened about the year Rainbow Lodge closed. Located along the Stehekin River and near the head of the lake, "Camp Stehekin was a fishing camp built by Bob Duncan and Randall Morse. Morse's parents -- Lester and Mabel -- had originally bought 20 acres from Althea Rice in the mid-1940s for the purpose of building a summer home. Instead, they offered the property to their son and son-in-law for a fishing camp site. With fishing being practically unsurpassed in Stehekin at this time, Morse and Duncan believed they had a marvelous business opportunity. Using their GI loan money they built ten cabins and a small grocery store and purchased ten boats about 1946- 47. Several years later, ca. 1952, Randall bought out his brother-in-law and operated the camp with the help of his wife Frances. They changed the name to Morse's Resort, added a pavilion, improved the lawns, and tried to make a living. [38] Unfortunately for the Morses and others in the valley, the 1948 Stehekin River flood eradicated fish spawning grounds and changed the course of the river. "Unbelievable" fishing in the upper valley was now a thing of the past, and this drastically affected the tourist trade. [39]

Morse's Resort, also known as "Camp Stehekin".
(NOCA-Stehekin photo file: Paul Bergman photo)