north cascades highway

I taken trip to north cascades from Seattle on a sunshine day. The drive cuts across several mountains offers spectacular views in the midst of snow filled mountains. The lake Diablo is a beautiful lake, I must say this place is must see for anyone visiting the Seattle northwest. Well worth the drive.

This is the third national park I visited for my trip to Seattle, right after Olympic and Mount Rainier, so comparatively speaking, the view is pretty average, and there's only one road across the whole park, that means if you consider an auto tour, you can finish it within half a day. It's more of a hiking kind of park, guess you could only experience the park by doing some trails. there's one Dam that's really good and the water color is a great asset for photo shooting, need to be careful to drive through the dam though.

Worth the deviation from I90. Early October still showed most leaves on the trees, but the ranger station claimed snow could come with a 48 hour only advance warning this time of year. Several stop-offs were spectacular. You have to watch out for gravel from some of the side roads. Putting your hands into the stream tells you how cold it really is, even with sun and 65* degrees!

This is a glorious drive. I have seen Rocky Mountain National Park, and Glacier National Park, but the North cascades hold their own unique beauty. From glacial lakes to granite peaks. It is an awe inspiring experience. I would love to do some camping there soon.

If you love phenomenal mountains, trees of varied types, rushing rivers and placid lakes of aqua and green, green, green then you'll love the North Cascades National Park. We visited just before the traditional closure of the North Cascades National Highway, in early November. The maples, cottonwoods and blueberry bushes were in autumn hue, while the Skagit River and waterfalls were in full form. There are trailheads galore, and Ross and Diablo Lakes are out of this world. Also, the Parks folks have done a bang-up job with their Visitor's Center in Newhalem. Rainy Pass is aptly named, so bring your rain gear....please no umbrellas. It's Washington State for goodness sakes! Enjoy yourselves in this lovely Park!

I deviated from the more direct, I-90 interstate to see North Cascades. The highway was mostly cleared of snow, though along the way, I found a challenge I didn’t expect for late May. In the higher elevations, it started to rain. It wasn’t heavy, but there was snow all around, and my car's weather gauge showed the temps were approaching freezing. When there’s even a hint of potential for ice on the roads, my driving approach goes into ultra-conservative, little-old-lady mode. Even campers passed me on the road. Still, I had the time to get a great view and to get lots of pictures. I can only imagine how stunning the views would be when the weather is clear.

We loved the Visitor's Center, the Gorge trail, Diablo Overlook and Washington Pass Overlook! We also enjoyed stopping for coffee and ice cream at Cascadian Farm!

Lack of paved roads keeps this one of the best-kept secrets of the National Parks. Three must sees, Gorge Falls, Diablo Lake and Ross Lake.Beautiful Diablo Lake Jade Green water is a great place to eat a picnic lunch. Large parking area over looks the lake.Not a lot of signs, best to get a good map from the visitor center.
You can find a North Cascades and Mt. Baker Visitor Information Guide online in advance which will definitely help you plan a trip. HIghly recommend checking with DOT on road conditions before driving. Especially in the fall, the weather changes fast in the Cascades. It was a clear day when we started, before the day was over we hit dense fog, heavy rain and high winds. Plus two road closures, one because a log truck lost its load and another do to a mud slide. Having to detour twice it was a long day and extra added miles.Just make sure you have a full tank of gas, water and something to eat, last place for gas is Marblemount. Primary access is off of State Route 20, which connects to I-5 (Exit 230) at Burlington. From November through April, State Route 20 is closed from Ross Dam Trailhead to Lone Fir. Started our Day trip from Burlington eastward on St. road 20 along the banks of the Skagit River. First stop was North Cascades visitor center open at 9:00. Picked up map, information on trails etc.Many trails begin from the North Cascades Visitor Center, located across the Skagit River (watch for signs). Trails also begin from the Newhalem Campground, or from the town of Newhalem. There are several easy short trails in the area. A short boardwalk trail to Sterling Munro viewpoint begins behind visitor center with beautiful views of the surrounding mountains. Newhalem Rockshelter Trail .25 mile takes you to a campsite used 1400 years ago by hunting and gathering Upper Skagit Peoples. This trail is accessible , with rest areas, interpretive signs, and benches. Side roads are gravel. Safe travels.

What a gorgeous place. We'll worth the driving. Many beautiful look outs to pull over and take pictures. Craggy peaks and lakes are awesome.

This park has it all- over 300 glacier, rainforest, river, hiking & drop dead gorgeous views. We stayed in the Goodell creek campground right along the Skagit river. This is the most awesome car camping campsite I have ever been to. It's like a rainforest in there. The camp sights are very roomy & there are huge moss draped trees in there. It's other worldly. There are some great hikes in there too. Definitely recommend this park & lake Diablo is a real green color. Not to be missed!!!!

Driving this highway is a treat, no matter what time of year. This was our first time on Highway 20 and we thoroughly enjoyed it. The scenery is beautiful. We did get to see some of the residual fire damage from the first fires this summer...and related flood damage. What an eerie site. There are many stops along the way that provide the visitor with places to stop and enjoy the scenery. We were a bit early for the fall colors but the trip was wonderful anyway...and we will surely repeat it in the future.

Takes a while to get there, but once in the North Cascades National Park, the scenery is awe inspiring. Lots of places to stop for views some of the most beautiful overlooking Ross and Diablo Lakes. Make sure to gas up before entering the park.

The color of the water is so inspiring. It makes you feel like you are an artist waiting to express or capture the view in a picture or in a painting. Beautiful scene!

The drive was beautiful. Great scenic views. Snow-capped mountains everywhere. Waterfalls coming out of the rocks. Some lakes and wildlife. Please note: The traffic can be slow due to the steep mountain inclines and tourists gawking at the scenery.

Wow. This was completely unexpected. It far exceeded my expectations for beauty. We drove to North Cascades National Park from the east. We started the day in Coulee, Wa. The scenery on the way is worth the trip. While researching information for this trip, it was difficult to plan our travels as we couldn’t figure out the best way to maximize viewing in the shortest amount of time. As you read below, hopefully the necessary information is there for you to understand the area better than us. Simply put, North Cascades National Park is a scenic highway about 70 miles long which passes though a beautiful section of our country. The visitor center for North Cascades National Park is located on the western edge of the park so, if like us, you are driving from East to West as we did, you won’t find any park maps to assist you with your trip. That being said, traveling through North Cascades is very easy. We programmed our GPS to Mazama, Wa. and followed WA 20/97 through the park. It was that easy. The drive though the park is spectacular. There are several overlooks and trails off the main road. Unfortunately, the signage is not that good so you should research and download a park brochure before visiting. It will be very helpful. We stopped at Washington Pass, Ross Lake Overlook and Diablo Lake overlook. The views were fantastic. We also drove across the Diablo dam. Although the road is very narrow, it’s worth the trip. I thought the mountain scenery was more majestic than Glacier National Park. It was far less crowded and if I had a choice between one or the other, I would go back to North Cascades. From North Cascades, we drove to Whidbey Island, Wa. A few cautions. - I would not advise taking the road to Diablo Dam if you are in an RV.- Our GPS had trouble finding the Visitor Center. It’s located west of the park at mile marker 120 of Hwy 20. I wish they had a visitor center on the east side of the park.