Enchantments overnight permits

The Enchantment Permit Area sits in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness near Leavenworth, Washington. Overnight trips need a permit from May 15 through October 31. Outside those dates, overnight visitors self-register at the trailhead.

Figures below are from the Recreation.gov permit page on the check date. That page does not name a season year. Confirm lottery dates for 2027 there before you apply.

The five zones

The Core is the one counted by head. A Core application states the group size you will accept, and that number cannot be raised later. In the other four zones a party can add people up to the limit of eight.

Two lotteries

Advance lottery. Run each February on Recreation.gov. The application fee is $6 whether or not you win. An alternate leader has to be named on the application, must hold a Recreation.gov account, and must accept within 72 hours.

Daily lottery. Run from May through October. You must be physically inside the geofenced area and apply from a phone with location turned on. It cannot be entered from home.

Recreation.gov's page gives the February timing but not the exact application window or results date. Check Recreation.gov for the current year's window.

Where returned permits go

A permit given up after the advance lottery returns to the reservable zone calendar on Recreation.gov. The Forest Service does not publish a time of day or a weekly release for that space.

It does publish the refund rule:

A holder whose trip is off has a money reason to cancel before day 22 and none after. That is an inference about behavior, not an agency release schedule. It suggests the weeks before the 22-day mark are the ones most worth watching.

Two other rules affect what comes back:

• The zone and entry date on a reservation cannot be changed. A holder who wants different dates has to cancel.
• Parties may drop members, without a refund. In the Core, where people are counted, that may free individual places.

Catching one

1. Choose the zone your route needs. A through-hike of the Core is a different trip from a base camp at Colchuck Lake.
2. Settle the party size. A Core opening for two is useless to a party of four.
3. Enter the February lottery.
4. After results, set an alert on your zone and entry dates.
5. When a message arrives, go straight to Recreation.gov and check the zone, the date and the number of people before paying.

OpenCampsite's Enchantments guide has ready-made watches for the Core Enchantment Zone and the Colchuck Zone. The alert watches the reservable calendar only. It does not enter the advance lottery or the on-site daily lottery, it does not hold space, and it does not guarantee you a permit.

Rules that cost people their permit

• The permit must be printed and signed. Recreation.gov states that unsigned permits shown on a phone are not valid.
• Printing opens 14 days before the trip. After printing, changes are made only at the Leavenworth Ranger Station.
• Every member starts on the reserved entry date and camps with the permit holder.
• The holder must be 18 or older and carry photo ID.
• Permits are not transferable.

On the ground

• Dogs are not allowed.
• Campfires are prohibited above 5,000 feet and within half a mile of any lake.
• Recreation.gov calls May, June, September and October shoulder seasons and warns of snow and winter-like conditions. A permit says nothing about whether the route is passable.