North Cascades National Park
Discover North Cascades National Park
North Cascades National Park is a national park in the North Cascade Mountains of Washington State, on the border with Canada. The park's 500,000 acres (200,000 hectares) protect a remote wilderness where steep glacier-capped mountains rise nearly 10,000 ft (3,000 m) above pristine lakes. This park has more glaciers than anywhere else in the contiguous U.S., making for exceptional alpine scenery and mountain climbing. The North Cascades National Park Complex is made up of three protected areas, all administered by the National Park Service:
Taste of North Cascades National Park...
Dining options along the North Cascades Highway are extremely limited, so pack a lunch! The nearest restaurants are in Marblemount and Winthrop. On the North Cascades Highway, there is only one lodging inside the park. To the west, there's motels and lodges along the highway as close in as Marblemount. There are more hotels in Sedro-Woolley, about an hour from the park, and in the communities along Interstate 5. To the east, there's a variety of options in Winthrop. The Stehekin Valley has two hotels. There are also a handful of private cabins and cottages for rent. If planning to visit the park during the summer months between June and early September, make your reservations as early as possible. This is the height of the tourist season and the limited hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, and cabins generally fill up quickly. There are a number of National Park Service campgrounds. Most offer potable water, dump stations, and firewood. During the summer, all campsites should be reserved well in advance, though a handful of tent-only walk-up sites may be available. In the winter, some campsites close, and others become first-come-first-serve. The following campgrounds are along the North Cascades Highway: The following campgrounds are near Stehekin. As you cannot drive to Stehekin, you will probably need to reach these by walking or riding the park shuttle. Sleeping overnight in the park, outside of the developed campgrounds, requires a backcountry permit.
A Rich Past
Explore the historical roots that shaped North Cascades National Park into what it is today.
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. 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." 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....
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. The park is quite close to Bellingham, a few hours north of Seattle and a few hours southeast of Vancouver, BC. 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.
Essential Information
Best Time to Visit
Year Roundbest time to visit the park....
Getting There
Multiple OptionsThe park is quite close to Bellingham, a few hours north of Seattle and a few hours southeast of Vancouver, BC. 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. 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. There is daily passenger ferry service (no cars) across Lake Chelan to Stehekin, in the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area....
Getting Around & Staying
Getting 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. This highway, completed in 1972, is one of the great scenic drives of the Pacific Northwest, passing through jagged peaks, alpine meadows, and old-growth forest. In the west, the road looks out over the two crystalline reservoirs. Eastward from the crest, the surrounding mountains tower over the road. 48.309359-120.6563128 Stehekin is a community of a few hundred residents at the northwest tip of Lake Chelan. Only accessible by hike or ferry, it is one of the most remote settlements in the contiguous United States. When the national park was established, the community negotiated with the National Park Service to remain in place.
Where to Stay
On the North Cascades Highway, there is only one lodging inside the park. To the west, there's motels and lodges along the highway as close in as Marblemount. There are more hotels in Sedro-Woolley, about an hour from the park, and in the communities along Interstate 5. To the east, there's a variety of options in Winthrop. The Stehekin Valley has two hotels. There are also a handful of private cabins and cottages for rent. If planning to visit the park during the summer months between June and early September, make your reservations as early as possible. This is the height of the tourist season and the limited hotels, motels, bed and breakfasts, and cabins generally fill up quickly. There are a number of National Park Service campgrounds. Most offer potable water, dump stations, and firewood. During the summer, all campsites should be reserved well in advance, though a handful of tent-only walk-up sites may be available.
Money & Budget
Services along the North Cascades Highway are extremely limited. Buy whatever you need by Concrete, Winthrop or Chelan. Dining options along the North Cascades Highway are extremely limited, so pack a lunch! The nearest restaurants are in Marblemount and Winthrop. On the North Cascades Highway, there is only one lodging inside the park. To the west, there's motels and lodges along the highway as close in as Marblemount. There are more hotels in Sedro-Woolley, about an hour from the park, and in the communities along Interstate 5. To the east, there's a variety of options in Winthrop. The Stehekin Valley has two hotels. There are also a handful of private cabins and cottages for rent.
Safety Information
Safety Overview
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. 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.