North Cascades National Park

Understand

The North Cascades National Park Complex is made up of three protected areas, all administered by the National Park Service:

• The park proper consists of two sections, to the north and south of the Skagit River.
• The Upper Skagit River Valley and associated lakes make up the Ross Lake National Recreation Area. State Route 20, the North Cascades Highway, drives through this area.
• The Lake Chelan National Recreation Area, covering the northern tip of Lake Chelan, borders the south edge of the park.

The boundaries are not obvious or important to most visitors, so this article covers all of these areas.

Much of the park is designated as Wilderness, meaning the land is protected from most forms of human infrastructure, including roads and frontcountry campgrounds. As such, there are few areas with developed facilities.

History

Indigenous peoples

Archeological evidence from over 8000 years ago shows that the area contained large indigenous populations. The rugged topography of the Cascades divided the peoples of the Columbia River Plateau to the east and those of the Puget Sound Lowlands to the west.

Routes through the major mountain passes were vital to indigenous peoples, as important links in a trade network to share locally abundant resources. They traveled across mountain passes to trade, following ridge crests to avoid dense brush along avalanche shoots and stream bottoms. The difficulty of travel across these rugged mountains made intimate knowledge of them vital.

Fur traders

In the late 1700s, fur traders traveling on foot and by canoe were among the first Euro-Americans to venture into the North Cascades wilderness. Seeking to follow the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean, these explorers entered only the lower reaches of the North Cascades. The earliest recorded crossing of the North Cascades by a Euro-American occurred in 1814. Alexander Ross, a fur trader, crossed Twisp Pass, followed the Stehekin River and crossed Cascade Pass, then traced the Cascade River downstream to its confluence with the Skagit River. Maps of Washington Territory in 1860 show large areas still labeled "unexplored."

Miners

In the 1850s, prospectors began searching for gold along the banks of the Skagit River. After gold was discovered along Ruby Creek in the late 1870s, hundreds of miners swarmed over the upper Skagit Valley. They found little gold, and the rush was over by 1880. Over the next few decades, miners turned their attention to other minerals, primarily silver and lead, located higher in the mountains. New claims were established in the high country around Cascade Pass, including Doubtful Lake, Boston and Horseshoe Basins and Bridge Creek. A rich silver deposit was found just below Boston Glacier near the headwaters of Thunder Creek in 1892, and another rush was on. Some silver was located, but the costs of getting the ore out were too high. By 1913 most of the Thunder Creek mining companies had folded. Mining continued along the Stehekin drainage through the 1910s until metal values dropped and it became too costly. Interest in mining in the area did not resume until World War I increased the demand for metal and then again during the 1940s to 1950s for the last time. Short working seasons, unpredictable weather conditions, difficult transportation, limited accessibility and lack of working capital were all factors that hampered the development of large-scale mining in the North Cascades.

Loggers

Due to inaccessibility, little of the park was commercially logged. Commercial timber cutting began on westside, low-elevation forests in the 1860s. Once the natural logjams that blocked the lower Skagit were cleared away in the 1870s, logging began to extend into the heart of the mountains. Logs were rafted down the river to be milled at settlements downstream. Logging also occurred in the Stehekin Valley. There were some mills in the valley that were used to mill lumber for local use. Most of the logs were rafted down Lake Chelan and used to make apple boxes. The lack of an adequate transportation system hindered early efforts to expand logging operations deep into the mountains.

Landscape

Steep mountains coupled with an amazing variety of rock and water features contribute to the region's tremendous biodiversity. Variation in elevation, soil types, rainfall and exposure combine to form eight distinctive life zones from the lowland forests and wetlands to the alpine peaks and glaciers.

Forests

Abundant rain and mild winters provide the perfect environment for trees in the Pacific Northwest to grow very large and old. Most of the old giants are gone from the Northwest, but in the wilds of the North Cascades you can still visit groves that have never been cut and still retain all of the characteristics of old-growth forest.

Geology

The North Cascades are still rising, shifting and forming. Geologists believe that these mountains are a collage of terranes, distinct assemblages of rock separated by faults. Fossil and rock magnetism studies indicate that the North Cascades terranes were formed thousands of miles south in the Pacific Ocean. Attached to slowly moving plates of oceanic rock, they drifted northward merging about 90 million years ago. Colliding with the North American Continent, the drifting rock masses were thrust upwards and faulted laterally into a jumbled array of mountains. The collision broke or sliced the terranes into north or south trending faults that are still evident today.

Glaciers

Boasting over 300 glaciers and countless snowfields, the North Cascades National Park Service Complex is one of the snowiest places on earth and the most heavily glaciated area in the United States outside of Alaska (more than Glacier National Park!).

Lakes and ponds

The abundance and diversity of aquatic habitats in the North Cascades ecosystem is one of the characteristics that makes this area unique. In North Cascades National Park (NP), over 500 lakes and ponds are scattered throughout the mountain landscape. These natural environments are home to native aquatic life including plankton, aquatic insects, frogs and salamanders.

Rivers and streams

Major rivers continually shape the landscape on all sides of the Cascade Crest and provide key habitat for thousands of species of plants and animals. Nowhere is this more apparent than in the North Cascades. To the north, the Chilliwack River leaves the park to combine with the Fraser River in British Columbia (the largest watershed along the west coast of North America). The Nooksack River flows west beyond Mount Baker beginning its journey near Mt. Shuksan (the park's most photographed peak). Baker River drains the Picket Range and southeast slopes of Mount Baker joining the Skagit River, which flows from Canada, then westward across the middle of North Cascades National Park Complex. The Skagit is the largest watershed emptying into Puget Sound. In spite of the three dams along its length, the Skagit supports all five species of Pacific salmon and two anadromous (or sea-going) trout. The Stehekin River drains the southeast corner of the park to feed Lake Chelan – a glacier-carved trough which at 1500 ft is the third deepest natural lake in the nation. The waters of Lake Chelan eventually make their way to the mighty Columbia River, the largest river system in the western US.

Wetlands

Wetlands, marshes and swamps may be the last thing people think of when they visit, but they are one of the most important. They prepare the ground from which will spring forth a mature forest. Wetlands also provide perfect habitat for many amphibians, invertebrates and aquatic plants.

Flora and fauna

The park is home to a wide variety of species, most notably the Grizzly Bear, the Gray Wolf, and the Canada Lynx. The extreme variation in elevation produce an incredible range of plant life as well, with the short flowering season of the alpine meadows being particularly spectacular.

Climate

The climate is typical of the Pacific Northwest. It is easy to stereotype the weather there as heavy, rainy winters and clear, mild summers. However, as soon as you cross the Cascade crest, the climate transitions to the eastern Washington high desert.

Inclement weather can occur at any time of the year. It is not unheard of to have snowstorms in July at higher elevations!

Summer is the best time to visit the park. The North Cascades Highway is only fully open from late April to November; the park is largely inaccessible and covered in snow the rest of the year. While the Stehekin ferries run year-round, most of the businesses there are only open seasonally.

Visitor information

The park has five Visitor Centers:

Get in

The park is quite close to Bellingham, a few hours north of Seattle and a few hours southeast of Vancouver, BC.

By car

WA-20, the North Cascades Highway, is the only major road in the park. To the west, it joins Interstate 5 at Burlington. To the east, it passes through Winthrop to Eastern Washington.

This road closes during the winter between Ross Lake and Mazama, making much of the park inaccessible. The next best way around is via the Stevens Pass Highway, a several-hour detour.

There are a few other access roads from outside the park. These roads are generally used to reach remote trailheads, and are not near park visitor services.

• WA-542, the Mt. Baker Highway, from Glacier. Most commonly used to access Mt. Shuksan.
• Cascade River Road from Marblemount. Most commonly used to access Sahale Arm, Cascade Pass, Boston Basin, and Eldorado.

The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) maintains a real-time travel map with traffic and road closure information; they also have a mobile app on iOS and Android. Check WSDOT's map or app before you head out.

By ferry

There is daily passenger ferry service (no cars) across Lake Chelan to Stehekin, in the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area. There are no roads connecting Stehekin to outside the park, so this is the only way to access the town without a full-day hike. The ferry route itself is scenic, and is a popular way to experience the park.

By public transit

There is no public transit that reaches the park. Skagit Transit Routes 70X and 717 serve Concrete. Link Transit serves the Lady of the Lake dock in Chelan.

By foot

The Pacific Crest Trail (PCT) is a well-known trail that extends along the West Coast of the United States, from Mexico to Canada. It enters the park near Stehekin (a popular resupply spot), crosses WA-20 at Rainy Pass, and continues to its terminus at the Canadian border.

The Boundary Trail, part of the larger Pacific Northwest Trail, traverses the park east-west.

Fees and permits

There are no entry fees for North Cascades National Park from WA-20 or Stehekin. Some of the trailheads from other remote access roads are in the surrounding National Forests, which require a parking pass, such as the Interagency Annual Pass or Northwest Forest Pass.

Campgrounds have variable fees, often dependent on the time of year and popularity of the campground.

Spending a night in the backcountry requires a permit, obtained at the Wilderness Information Center in Marblemount or the Golden West Visitor Center in Stehekin. Many of the more popular backcountry camping and climbing zones require a permit assigned by lottery in March or April.

Get around

Most locomotion through the park is human powered, whether it be hiking, skiing, kayaking, or climbing.

The Wilderness designation of most of the park means that there is little vehicle access except for the WA-20 corridor. Non-hikers are limited to the view from the highway and a few side roads.

Stehekin

Stay safe

Fuel

On the North Cascades Highway, there is no gas for 70 miles between Marblemount and Mazama. There are a few electric vehicle chargers in Newhalem, but mobile phone signals can be spotty in this area, so don’t count on being able to use them.

Backcountry

Always carry the 10 Essentials. A request to Search and Rescue takes several hours or longer to carry out, so make yourself comfortable.

Climbing is inherently dangerous. Do not attempt any routes you are not prepared for.

The Cascades see significant snow accumulation during the winter, which persists well into the summer. Avalanches trigger frequently, especially during warming periods. Refer to the Northwest Avalanche Center for current avalanche information.

The Cascades are habitat for black bears, and brown (grizzly) bears have also been reintroduced into remote parts of the park. There have been fewer than a dozen bear attacks in Washington in the last century, but hikers need to know about bear safety. Ask a park ranger for local advice.

Wildfires burn parts of the North Cascades nearly every summer, as the Pacific Northwest receives very little rain during that time. Respect campfire bans and park closures, and don't be careless with fire. When the National Weather Service issues a Red Flag Warning, plan your hike carefully, as a new fire might block your path out. Smoke from wildfires can also cause respiratory distress.

Go next

• Mount Baker, one of the Cascade volcanoes, has a famous ski resort and provides views of Mt. Shuksan.
• Bellingham, a charming college town.
• Seattle and Vancouver are major cities just a few hours away.
• Washington's other great mountain parks, Mount Rainier National Park and Olympic National Park.

North Cascades National Park is on the North Cascade Loop itinerary.