North Cascades Washington

Even though Glacier is the focal point, the Flathead and the surrounding area presents boundless activities, talk about it here.

Moderators: teapot57, Tara

Post Reply
User avatar
poky5mom
Donator
Donator
Posts: 1371
Joined: Wed Jul 09, 2008 1:49 pm
Gender?: Female
Please add the numbers(11): 11
Location: Iowa

North Cascades Washington

Post by poky5mom »

We are thinking of hiking in the North Cascades next summer. So far I haven't been able to find a forum like this! Does anyone have any hiking experience there or ideas where to stay?
Kim
indiana hiker
Posts: 161
Joined: Mon May 11, 2015 11:16 am
Gender?: Female
Please add the numbers(11): 11
Has thanked: 1 time
Been thanked: 3 times

Re: North Cascades Washington

Post by indiana hiker »

Two years ago we stayed in Marblemount (Buffalo Run Inn) and Winthrop (River's Edge) to save drive times. Some of our favorite hikes were Cutthroat, Cascade and Heather Passes and Blue Lake. We also spent a day at Mt. Baker and hiked Park Butte trail.
User avatar
rhughes
Donator
Donator
Posts: 104
Joined: Wed Jul 26, 2006 6:09 pm
Gender?: Male
Please add the numbers(11): 11
Location: Snohomish, WA

Re: North Cascades Washington

Post by rhughes »

I live in the North Cascades area, Snohomish, WA, and can attest to great hiking around here. I would be happy to tell you more if you want to PM or email me.

And yes there is a very good chat group for hiking in the area: http://www.nwhikers.net. As with any online group you have to read the list for a while until you get an idea of who has useful information and who is just spouting off.
Roy Hughes, Artist-in-Residence Glacier National Park, 2005
Author of North Cascades Beautiful: An Artist's View
Author of 100 Beautiful Views of Glacier National Park
User avatar
poky5mom
Donator
Donator
Posts: 1371
Joined: Wed Jul 09, 2008 1:49 pm
Gender?: Female
Please add the numbers(11): 11
Location: Iowa

Re: North Cascades Washington

Post by poky5mom »

Thank you rhughes! I will be in contact!!
Kim
llholmes1948
Donator
Donator
Posts: 5221
Joined: Sun May 20, 2007 8:48 pm
Please add the numbers(11): 0
Location: Maine
Has thanked: 37 times
Been thanked: 47 times

Re: North Cascades Washington

Post by llholmes1948 »

I don't know anything about the North Cascades but when my daughter was an engineering intern with the National Park Service in Seattle about 6 or 7 years ago, I remember that she went there several times to work on projects and she thought it was a great place. Maybe someday she can give us a tour of the park.

In the meantime here is a link to an article on the North Cascades that I discovered on the Seattle Times website. Hope the link works:

http://www.seattletimes.com/life/travel ... -cascades/
User avatar
mattB
Donator & Special Contributor
Donator & Special Contributor
Posts: 687
Joined: Fri Feb 10, 2006 6:03 pm
Gender?: Male
Please add the numbers(11): 11
Location: Seattle/(Eureka MT)
Has thanked: 57 times
Been thanked: 21 times

Re: North Cascades Washington

Post by mattB »

I've driven through on the North Cascades Highway, its a gorgeous drive, but never hiked or camped, but I did a little research for a potential trip a couple years ago, but then we ended up just going to Rainier.
There are lots of good day hikes, several pretty large car-camping campgrounds. I don't think there is much if any lodging inside the park.
Twisp and Winthrop would be good places to get motels on the east side, they're both probably comparable to Columbia Falls, about the same size and distance from the hikes.
On the west side there may be some motels/cabins in Concrete, Marblemount, or Darrington, but your best bet may be in Sedro Wooley or Arlington, but those are about an hour's drive from the trail heads.

If I remember right, I think a lot of the hikes in the North Cascades have quite a bit of elevation gain, although that can make for some awesome views, if you can endure the uphill climb!! :-)

Washington Trails Association is a good resource for information on hikes and trails, and lots of reviews.
https://www.wta.org

https://www.wta.org/go-hiking/hikes/hik ... arch+Hikes
User avatar
Langdon Greene
Posts: 67
Joined: Sun Apr 29, 2012 5:09 pm
Gender?: Male
Please add the numbers(11): 11
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: North Cascades Washington

Post by Langdon Greene »

Yeah, the North Cascades (not just the Natl Park, but also including the surrounding wilderness areas: Glacier Peak, Pasayten, Chelan Sawtooth, Alpine Lakes, Henry Jackson, Wild Sky, etc) is probably my [current] #1 area for backpacking. I say that because the sheer volume/density of 'epic-worthy' backpacking routes concentrated into a single 200 mile radius (centered roughly on Glacier Peak) is probably unsurpassed in North America. Maybe the southern Sierras or Canadian Rockies come close. And that's not even including Olympic peninsula or Goat Rocks/Rainier, a just little further out, with lots of great stuff around there too.

But I'm talking backpacking routes (i.e., more than 2 nights). Is that what you're looking for, or dayhikes / weekenders / overnighters?

Either way, ditto to the recommendations for NWHikers and WTA.

Also, check out the Romano & Spring/Manning guidebooks.

For dayhikes, the Maple/Heather/Rainy Pass loop (about 7-8 miles) would be one of the first I'd recommend. Also, Park Butte / ScottPaul / RR Grade. And Sourdough Mtn. There are supposedly a ton of awesome day hikes on the north side (north of Mt. Baker / Shuksan), such as the Artist Point area, but it's a longer drive to get up there, and I haven't gone up around that way yet.

We are considering moving to the Seattle / Vancouver region, partly because of the backpacking opportunities in that region. (And partly because my job opportunities are pretty good there too.)
southernguy
Donator
Donator
Posts: 374
Joined: Sun Mar 26, 2006 8:46 pm
Gender?: Male
Please add the numbers(11): 11
Location: Clinton, Mississippi

Re: North Cascades Washington

Post by southernguy »

My buddy and I are planning a trip there this August. After chatting with some people on the NWHikers site we have decided to spend all of our time in the NC area. We are staying in Concrete the whole time. Following is a list of the hikes we plan to try. Very very ambitious for a couple of 68 year olds.
Saturday the day we arrive Mt Sauk 4.2 miles 1,200 ft We did this hike in 2002 and it is a nice little warm up if we arrive on time
Sunday Railroad grade 6.0 miles 2,100 ft
Monday Hidden Lake 9.0 miles 3,200 ft
Tuesday Cascade pass and part of Sahale arm 7.4 miles to pass 1,800 ft plus whatever we do on Sahale
Wednesday try to recover
Thursday Thornton lakes Trapper's peak 9.4 mi 2,360 to lakes another 1,000 ft gain to peak
Friday Heather/Maple pass 6.5 mi 2,000 ft
As I said, very ambitious (insane?). None of them are extremely long but the elevation gain will be a killer.
There are several videos on youtube and the views look outstanding.
Jim
Post Reply

Return to “Areas Surrounding Glacier”