Colchuck Consignment

Laura Patton and Brian Buckley started Colchuck online in 2020 to close a gap they kept noticing: a valley full of good outdoor gear sitting unused, and a valley full of people who wanted to get outside and could not afford to begin. They took a storefront in Cashmere rather than Leavenworth, partly for the rent and partly because it sits in the middle of everybody.

It runs on two seasons, winter and summer, because the room only holds so much. Prices step down on their own as things age. They check serial numbers against stolen gear registries before taking anything expensive, and they publish exactly what they will not accept, which includes ropes, harnesses and avalanche beacons unless still in the packet.

The repair bench is the best of it. Thirty five dollars an hour on a sliding scale so that cost never stops a repair, and mending done visibly in upcycled patch fabric, on the principle that a fixed jacket is something to be proud of. The rental library is priced the same way.