Friday – Entering North Cascades
We’ve seen many National Park signs – usually a brown
painted wooden sign with the National Parks logo. This one caught our eye. It gives a hint of the snow-covered peaks.
Saturday – Ross Dam Trail and Happy Creek Trail
We woke up to the sound of pitter patter on the trailer, so
took a leisurely time heading out. Stopping
at the North Cascades National Park Visitor Center, we found out that some of
the trails we intended to hike were still snow covered. “Did you bring an ice axe?” the ranger asked.
“Well, no,” we replied. So we opted for scenic
drives and other trails.
We spotted a Bald Eagle and thought of Barbara’s mom who
loves birds. Wish we got a picture. Here are a few of the sites we saw as we
drove along.
We hiked down to Ross Dam (2 miles 500ft).
Then we hiked up Happy Creek Forest Walk. The first 0.2 miles of the trail is
wheelchair accessible. Then the trail narrowed as it climbed 1.2 miles to the
falls.
We had occasional showers during the day, but nothing heavy
or long-lasting until the end of the last hike. Retreating back to the trailer,
we ate dinner to a steady pitter patter of rain.
Sunday – Thunder Knob and Washington Pass
With rain in the forecast and the clouds still clinging to
the snow capped peaks that we wanted to see, we made the best of the day. First
we hiked up Thunder Knob Trail (3.6 miles 425ft). This steady gradual uphill
climb brought us to some great views, though the tops of the mountains were
hidden by clouds. Here’s our lunch spot.
But the highlight of the day was driving an hour
east up, up, up… outside the National Park to Washington
Pass Overlook in Okanogan National Forest. There was a guy there who said the only other
time he had been there it was all in the clouds. He was thrilled to see the mountains and so
were we.
Look what Barbara found.
Monday – Fourth of July
Pass and Ladder Creek
Falls
With beautiful blue skies and great temperatures, Bill went off
on a 10 mile hike (2300 ft elevation) on Thunder Creek Trail to Fourth of July
Pass. The trail is named because the snow is gone by July 4th,
unlike other pass trails in the park. The 2 miles of the creek trail were
shaded and flat with filtered sunlight. Turning onto the pass trail, the
direction became relentlessly up, switching back and forth to gain elevation,
crossing streams with small waterfalls, and a few spots hugged a steep gorge
(don’t look down!). There weren’t any breathtaking views along the way, at the
top, or even part of the way down the other side of the pass. But there were
off-the-trail backpacker campsites near the top that had views.
Tuesday – Off to Canada…
