North Cascades National Park

North Cascades National Park 2 comments

Where Is It: North and east of Seattle, on the Canadian border.

The Birth: from Wikipedia:

North Cascades National Park is managed by the National Park Service and the park headquarters is in Sedro-Woolley, WA. North Cascades National Park is bisected by Ross Lake National Recreation Area, creating a northern and southern district or unit of the park. The southeast boundary of the southern district abuts Lake Chelan National Recreation Area; the park and two recreation areas are managed as the North Cascades National Park Complex. The three entities were all established in 1968 and in 1988, much of the park complex was designated wilderness as the Stephen Mather Wilderness, preventing further non-natural alterations to 94 percent of the park.

Size: 504,781 acres

# Visitors: 21,623 visitors in 2013.

Choices: from NationalGeographic.com:

The western part of the park differs markedly from the east. Moisture blows in from Puget Sound and the Strait of Juan de Fuca. It hits the western slopes and rises, condensing to rain and snow. Western red cedars, hemlocks, and Douglas firs luxuriate on slopes that receive 110 inches of precipitation a year. When the winds reach the east, they are mostly wrung dry: Only 35 inches of precipitation fall in Stehekin at the head of Lake Chelan. Arid-dwelling sagebrush and ponderosa pine grow in the peaks’ rain shadow.

Fees: There is no entrance fee. Camping fees range from free to $12, depending on the campground and the season.

Staying There: There are hundreds of campsites, but most of them are very primitive: bring your own water and carry out your garbage.

Contact Info:

810 State Route 20
Sedro-Woolley, WA 98284

(360) 854-7200

Don’t Miss This: from Gorp.com:

North Cascades National Park is renowned for its varied and rugged climbing terrain. The numerous peaks and over 300 glaciers present classic mixed mountaineering routes, intricate glacier travel, and technical rock climbing as well as scrambling—all within a premier wilderness setting.
A popular backpacking trail is the 40.4-mile Devil’s Dome Loop, which circumnavigates Jack Mountain. The trail is known for its wonderful wildflowers and much of it is high ridge walking above tree line.
Another popular backpacking trail is the 33.5-mile Copper Ridge-Chilliwack River Loop. This strenuous route features a rare ridge walk with expansive mountain views and one of the finest old growth forest hikes in the park.
Intrepid hikers, backpackers, and climbers visit all year, but April through October is peak season. The driest and most popular time to visit is during the summer—mid-June through September. Higher elevation trails often remain snow-covered well into July and sometimes August.