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Mount Baker and the North Cascades
October 17, 2007 | 21 Comments
The Cascades run north-south from western Canada to California. The North Cascades range, in northern eastern Washington state (See Map) bordering Canada, is dramatic, and rugged. We visited this area in early September.
The previous day at Mount Rainer had been wet and dreary. This time we got lucky.
This mountain range was cut out by the ancestors of the vast 10,000 acre glaciers that sprawl in the northern part of the forest. Mountain peaks over 10,000 feet plunge quickly into valleys at sea level. On top of all this, there is Mount Baker , which is still an active volcano, emitting steam and sulphur gases.
The vistas from Mount Baker Scenic Byway are some of the most spectacular you will see anywhere. At 5,400 feet, from Artist Point, one gets breathtaking vews of Mount Baker, Mount Shuksan (9,775 feet) and the North Cascade range in the distance.
Mount Baker (10,781 feet) is the most isolated of the Cascade volcanoes in the USA. It rests on a foundation of non-volcanic rocks in a region that is largely non-volcanic in origin. Since the last Ice Age, the area around the mountain has been largely ice free, but the mountain itself remains heavily mantled with snow and ice.
The present-day cone of Mount Baker is relatively young, perhaps less than 30,000 years old, but it sits atop a similar older volcanic cone called Black Buttes Volcano which was active between 500,000 and 300,000 years ago.
After Mount Rainier, Baker is the most heavily glaciated of the Cascade volcanoes: the volume of snow and ice on Mount Baker (0.43 cubic miles, 1.8 cubic kilometers) is greater than that of all the other Cascades volcanoes (except Rainier) combined. It is also one of the snowiest places in the world: in 1999, Mount Baker Ski Area, located on a subsidiary peak, set the world record for snowfall in a single season. (1,140 inches/95 feet/2,896 cm)
(Source: Wikipedia)
The majestic Mount Shuksan
The North Cascades in the distance
North Cascades National Park has saw-toothed peaks, deep valleys, cascading waterfalls and close to 400 glaciers.
With names like Desolation Peak, Mount Fury, Jagged Ridge and Mount Terror, these mountains comprise the largest and most rugged alpine wilderness in the contiguous United States. One of the snowiest places on earth, the westside mountains collect more snow than melts each year (forming glaciers). The park is open from May to November.
The Skagit River has a unique green colour from the glacial rock flour that it carries.
After three hours of driving, we’re at Washington overlook, which is on the east side, where it is much drier.
(see larger view HERE)
Ross Lake at twilight
We left Seattle at 7 a.m. and returned at midnight, driving all day, with hardly a few minutes to stop and enjoy these places. We plan to go back for a more leisurely visit.
Filed Under: Mount-Baker, Mount-Shuksan, MUSINGS, national park, North-Cascades-National-Park, Photo Essays, Ross-Lake, TRAVEL, Washington-state
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21 Comments
Make it longer next time.
Lovely pictures!
All the scenic pictures look awesome. Clap, clap for capturing nature so well. :yes:
wow love the pics especially the last one.seems like taken during sunset
WOW EXCELLENT PICS! NO WORDS
The skagit river pic and the last one are my favourites.
beautiful pics of the mountain….
beeeeyutiful pics…
amazing photos! i love your photo essays!
Bee, I am just staring at those breathtaking sceneries!!!
simply superb!!!
i have never seen a river with such a beautiful shade of green – beautiful.
btw, the captcha you have used in your contact form is way too clear – i think clever spam bots should be able to beat that easily.
i hated captchas until i recently discovered a rather clever service that uses this pointless typing of nonsensical letters to digitize books.
I love that river!! You should go back to enjoy all those at leisure, I would love to! Nature at it’s best. My heart is full!:)
Beautiful Pics..yes you need to go back and take it slow. Isn’t that true about so many vacations
last shot is breath takinging…
Breathtaking pictures. What a lovely place. I loved the green color of that river.
Breath-taking snaps……Absolutely loved them :yes: :yes:
What lovely pics, out of the world, u guys are great !
Beautiful pictures…especially the last one. :bow:
Lovely pictures. You guys got a good eye for photography. I especially liked the ‘The majestic Mount Shuksan’ and also the ‘Ross Lake at twilight’ snaps.
Beautiful pics. Living in Colorado, I know how beautiful the snow covered peaks can look.
B&J,
These are great. One summer we went kayaking in Ross Lake to get to our camp site, 10 miles each way.. made dinner at campsite taste so much better! North Cascades is truly a beautiful place and not many out of state tourists make it there..