North Cascades National Park Visitor Information

North Cascades
Cities &Towns

Mountain Pass Road Reports

National Forests
Mt. Baker-Snoqualmie
Okanogan-Wenatchee

National Recreation Areas
Lake Chelan
Mt Baker
Ross Lake

National Wilderness Areas
Boulder River
Glacier Peak
Lake Chelan-Sawtooth
Mt Baker
Noisy-Diobsud
Pasayten

Ski Areas
Crystal Mountain
Echo Valley
Loup Loup
Methow Valley
Mission Ridge
Mt. Baker
Mt Tahoma
Powder Cats
Sitzmark Lifts
Stevens Pass
Summit at Snoqualmie
Sun Mountain
White Pass

More Cascades
North Cascades
Central Cascades
South Cascades

Washington Travel Regions and Maps
Map  Cascade Mountains
Map  Northeast
Map  Northwest
Map  Olympic Peninsula
Map  Puget Sound
Map  San Juan Islands
Map  South Central
Map  Southeast
Map  Southwest

North Cascades National Park

Discovering North Cascades National Park

The North Cascades National Park lies in the northernmost region of the Cascade Mountains in Washington State, amid wild, forested, nearly impenetrable mountains remarkable because of their numerous glaciers, permanent snowfields, and sheer-walled cliffs, spires, and pinnacles.

These wild and dramatic mountains with their deep valleys and steep slopes are so formidable that their individual peaks inspired such names as Mt Terror, Mt Challenger, Mt Fury, Mt Despair, Mt Torment, and Desolation Peak.

Beyond the park's boundaries lie adjoining national forest lands, and provincial park, recreation areas, and Crown lands to the north.

The park complex receives some 500,000 visitors per year and is popular with local hikers, backpackers and mountain climbers.

The Ross, Diablo and Gorge dams along the upper Skagit River which cuts across the park have created lakes ideal for fishing and boating, and with hiking trails along their shores. Popular family-style walks include the Trail of the Cedars near Newhalem, Happy Creek Trail near Diablo Lake, and the Washington Pass Overlook loop.

North Cascades Act of 1968

The park is one of three units in the North Cascades National Park Service Complex which was established on October 2, 1968 by the signing of the North Cascades Act by Lyndon B. Johnson. This act is composed of:

• North Cascades National Park, 684,242 acres.
• Ross Lake National Recreation Area, 117,574 acres
• Lake Chelan National Recreation Area, 425,929 acres.

This same act also created the adjacent Pasayten Wilderness of 550,000 acres and enlarged the Glacier Peak Wilderness to 464,000 acres. In 1988 Congress designated approximately 93 percent of the three areas as the Stephen Mather Wilderness to provide additional legislated protection.

Getting to the North Cascades National Park
Road

The park complex is about a three hour drive north from Seattle on I-5. The main routes include the Interstate I-5 corridor, running north and south from the Canadian border to the Oregon border; and the North Cascades Highway, running east and west and cutting through the North Cascades Park as State Route 20.

Air

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is about 120 miles to the south on I-5 near Seattle and is served by some 30 major airlines.

Go Northwest! Bookstore
Best selection of books on the Northwest.
Click here!

Moon Spotlight Washington's Northern Cascades Camping & Hiking by Tom Stienstra and Scott Leonard. Compact guide covering the region's camping and hiking sights with at-a-glance icons to activities. Hiking descriptions, easy-to-follow maps, and clear driving directions are included. Order now...

Hiking the North Cascades, 2nd Edition by Erik Molvar. This comprehensive guide is your passport to one of the most beautiful and truly wild reaches of North America describing 105 of the region's best and most varied hikes, from a few choice short excursions to a whole host of day trips and overnight treks. Order now...

Day Hiking North Cascades by Craig Romano. This compact guide covers t a broad range of hiking options. This is the most up-to-date guide for the area, organized along highway and other travel corridors with an emphasis on trails that are 12 miles or less, round-trip. Order now...

Day Hike! North Cascades by Mike McQuaide. Organized by major highways and roads for easy trail-finding, clear descriptions of each trail, including mileage and estimated hiking time, elevation gain, possible trail conditions, difficulty level, map references, necessary permits, options for dogs and bikes, and where to find further information. Order now...

Highroad Guide to the Washington Cascades by Allan May. This guide contains detailed trail instructions and 50 maps in an easy to use format leading you to the best sites of Washington's Cascade Mountains. Order now...

We appreciate your orders. They help keep
Go Northwest! online.

Northwest Books
from . . . 

Shopping at
Go Northwest!