I didn't expect to find the Wild West when I visited the North Cascades National Park, though this area is really untamed, because it's unpopulated and was not fiercely fought over between Native Americans and settlers. That Harvard fellow who wrote The Virginian, one of the earliest of the Wild West thrillers, did so from the town of Winthrop on the eastern edge of what is now the park. I guess he kept looking east and south, away from all those trees, while he was writing. But it is definitely wild up here. The lack of roads, the weather and the rugged terrain conspire to keep crowds away, as noted by the authors of Frommer's National Parks of the American West, an excellent reference for 36 venues.
The park's official name is North Cascades National Park Service Complex, totaling a vast 685,000 acres. Included are two units of the North Cascades National Park (North Unit and South Unit), the Lake Chelan National Recreation Area and the Ross Lake National Recreation Area. There are also five Research Natural Areas in the complex. Moreover, four national wilderness areas adjoin the park, as does parkland in neighboring British Columbia to the north of the border. The word "cascades" comes from the many waterfalls located in the park, Gorge Falls along Route 20 being one of the two best known.
The park has 318 glaciers, more than half of all the glaciers in the lower 48 states, though they are shrinking, thanks to global warming. There are 260 prehistoric sites, some dating back 8,500 years, indicating that Native Americans made good use of the land here.
Highlights
My favorite spot in the complex is Lake Chelan. If you can visit only one place in the park, this should be it. Take the boat from the southern end of the lake (in Chelan town) and go up to Stehekin Landing and return for a leisurely introduction to this remote area. Boat or float plane is the only way to reach Stehekin except for hiking, of course, about 12 miles minimum from the nearest trailhead.
Second most scenic are two lakes and their dams, Diablo and Ross, respectively, the latter reachable only by ferry at Diablo Lake. The Seattle City Light Company runs tours in the summer. Located on the popular state highway 20, also known as the North Cascades Highway, running east to west. Skagit Tours, tel. 206/684-3030; www.seattle.gov/light/tours/skagit.
Activities
The North Cascades Institute operates several classes that let you track radio-collared caribous or check out the swamp critters or learn about Lummi Indian folk crafts. Contact them at North Cascades Institute, tel. 360/856-5700; www.ncascades.org.
There are at least 16 different hiking trails (totaling more than 400 miles) in the park and related areas. Day hikes require no permits, but you may need permission to park your car. The highest peak here is Mount Baker (10,781 feet). A Seattle resident who went missing in the park for six days in September 2007 survived on wild berries and stream water, he said. But better yet, be prepared when you start out, with food, water, and best of all, a GPS device.
Among other popular activities here are biking, fishing, hang gliding, paragliding, kayaking, canoeing, cross-country skiing and snow shoeing.
Rangers
Park rangers lead several kinds of hikes in the park, starting from one of the two North Cascades Visitor Centers or from Stehekin Landing and other spots. Be sure to check in at one of the Visitor Centers for copies of the park newspaper, the Challenger, which is filled with helpful information, and to find out what activities the Rangers may have planned for the day. The centers also have a Wilderness Trip Planner and plenty of maps to help guide you. They are located at Newhalem and at Sedro-Woolley, telephone 360/854-7200. There is also a Golden West Visitor Center in Stehekin. All three centers are open year round, as is the Chelan Ranger Station in Chelan, though the latter is open only weekdays. A Wilderness Information Center in Marblemount is open mid April through October, daily in summer, weekends only in spring and fall.
Flora and Fauna
Because of its wilderness ambiance, there are plenty of wolves, grizzly bears, marmot, fishers, black tailed deer, pikas (like rabbits), wolverines, moose and other creatures abounding. Be alert for the bald eagle, too, as well as osprey and Harlequin duck. There are 75 mammal species here, 21 species of reptiles and amphibians, 28 species of fish, and about 200 species of birds. Both Diablo and Gorge lakes have been stocked with rainbow and cutthroat trout. In the Skagit River areas, there are at least five kinds of salmon. The park officials say the ancient forests of the North Cascades have as much biomass (renewable organic matter) as any place on earth
New in 2008
The park, fairly new, is celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. As in other years, travelers should note that State Highway 20 east-west across the northern half of the park is frequently closed between mid November and mid April, thanks to heavy snowfall and threat of avalanches.
Entrance Fees
There is no entrance fee to the park, but there are fees for overnight camping (up to $12 per night). If you hike from within the park, there are no trail fees, but if you start off from US Forest Service property nearby, you may have to pay a Forest Pass fee of $5 a day. You could use your Inter Agency Pass for that, too, of course.
Number of Visitors
The combined North Cascades complex got about 344,900 visitors in 2007, but the north and south units of the park itself got only 19,534 of those. Most people go to the more easily accessible Lake Chelan (34,665) and Ross Lake (290,701) recreation areas, while there are only two unpaved roads into the units of the park proper, off the paved Route 20. August is, naturally, the busiest month in all.
Lodging
The ritziest place to stay here is the Sun Mountain Lodge, near Winthrop, with marvelous views of the park and great dining. Less than 100 units, 17 cabins, all very posh, rates from $205 in summer. Sun Mountain Lodge, tel. 800/572-0493; www.sunmountainlodge.com.
More affordable and very comfortable is the Hotel Rio Vista in Winthrop proper, with fine river views from your private balcony. 29 rooms, prices from $100 in summer. Rio Vista, tel. 800/398-0911; www.hotelriovista.com.
Sources of Information
The official site for the North Cascades National Complex, including the park, of course, is www.nps.gov/noca. A good commercial site is www.north.cascades.national-park.com.
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