North Cascades NP

This blog post presents images we took on a recent trip along Hwy 20 in Northern Washington State through North Cascades National Park. It is a fascinating place with many things to see and lots of things to do. This set of images is only intended to give you a feeling or microscopic sense of the area, it really must be seen and lived and absorbed in person to get the true magnificence and beauty of this magical place.

Here is our route along Hwy 20 - we stayed in Winthrop and drove over to Marblemount and then back. It took us about 4 hours each way with various stops. It is about 87 miles one way. These images and the places visited are presented in sequence from Marblemount to the east in Winthrop.

Going east out of Marblemount is this sign announcing the start of the North Cascades National Park. It is a place of high mountain peaks beautiful trees and pristine waters. The city of Marblemount is about 315 feet in elevation and the high point at Washington Pass is 5,744 feet. We will climb a bit.

This is Diablo Lake as seen from the designated pull out and observation point along the highway. The lake was formed when Diablo Dam was completed in 1930 on the Skagit river

In the previous view of Diablo Lake there is a small island in the lower left portion of the image. This is just a close up of that island. Fascinating small rock outcropping with some trees growing among the rocks.

We thought this was an interesting image, the yellow tree against the granite backdrop. Many of the deciduous trees are starting to turn, it is fall.

Here is a look at Ross Lake as it extends to the north. It is about 22 miles long and was formed when the Ross Dam was built in 1949. There is a resort at the lake where you can stay - There is a ferry across the lake or you can hike across the dam and around to the resort.

We took this excursion in the middle of October. Winter is coming but it has not arrived yet. It was fascinating to see the trees turning their bright yellow mixed among the conifers.

Unlike the trees in the previous image, this tree has been turned too many times. It is rather twisted around and fairly old. It is right along a walking path at Washington Pass Overlook. Perhaps it had been struck by lightning many years back. That is certainly possible at this exposed elevation.

Here in the upper reaches we see the tops of the cragy peaks. Winter comes a bit early here. On one of the higher peaks we could see snow falling already. Hwy 20 does not stay open in the winter. The snows will shut it down in Mid to late November and it will stay closed until April.

The winding road is coming in from the east and rises up to our location.

This view is from the Washington Pass Overlook. The mountain on the right is Liberty Bell Peak and Early Winter Spires are situated to the left. These are most impressive chunks of rock. If you are interested there are lots and lots of images of the North Cascades available on the Internet.

This image provides a view to the east towards the Methow Valley and Winthrop. Winthrop is about 31 miles to the east from here.

The high rock mountains rise up in virtually every direction. Great views.

Another of the many views of the lofty mountains.

On our way down to Winthrop we turned off the road to see the Klipchuck Campground. Before getting there we crossed this small stream, It was named Early Winters Creek.

Looking over the edge of the bridge and down into the little creek it was amazing how crystal clear the water was. We could imagine it was fairly cold and opted not to go swimming.

This is a map of the Klipchuck Campground found at the campground sign in station. The campground is about 19 miles west of Winthrop and is a wonderful campground with nicely spaced sites and various hiking trail opportunities.

In mid October on Monday afternoon there were only 2 campsites taken so pack your tent or hook up your trailer and get out there. It is a beautiful, peaceful spot.

We are about at the end of the sojourn.
We wanted to just back track a moment to show a sign from the Diablo Lake overlook. As you can see it clearly states, with an image,¨No Drones¨.
Years ago we were camping in our trailer and stopped for a couple of nights at Pichaco Peak State Park in Arizona. They also had a ¨No Drones¨ rule and we, out of curiosity, asked them why. The ranger stated there were some number of folks that liked to sunbathe with clothes as an option and did not want pictures taken of them in such a condition.
That might not be the reason here but not a bad idea to limit the Drones.

There are a lot of hiking trails scattered throughout the park and the Pacific Crest Trail crosses over Hwy 20. We saw numerous cars parked at several trailheads as we wandered around.

We hope you enjoyed this all too brief look at North Cascades National Park. It is a wonderful place and well worth your visit.
Let us know if you have any questions or comments.
All the best
George & Deanna