Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
opportunity to enjoy these last awesome vistas of the North Cascades. With its
in-your-face view of craggy peaks, this is the North Cascade Scenic Highway's
big payoff and this sight alone makes the drive over the mountains worthwhile.
In Marblemount, the next town you come to, you'll find the
Wilderness
Information Center
of the Ross Lake National Recreation Area (
&
360/873-
4500,
ext. 39), which provides backcountry permits and information.
In the town of Newhalem, a picturesque Seattle City Light company town
at the foot of the Gorge Dam, you'll find the
North Cascades Visitor Center
(
&
206/386-4495;
www.nps.gov/noca), the main visitor center for the North
Cascades National Park Complex, which includes North Cascades National
Park, Ross Lake National Recreation Area, and Lake Chelan National Recre-
ation Area. The visitor center is filled with interesting exhibits on this remote
national park. There are several short hikes in the area, and in the autumn, you
can see spawning salmon at the base of the hydropower plant on the edge of
town. Surrounding this powerhouse, there is an attractively landscaped garden
that is reached by a swinging footbridge. Continuing east from Newhalem, the
road passes through a deep, narrow gorge, where you can glimpse
Gorge Creek
Falls
before reaching
Gorge Dam,
the first and smallest of the dams along this
stretch of the Skagit River.
Beyond the Gorge Dam, you soon come to Diablo, another Seattle City Light
company town, which stands at the base of Diablo Dam. Diablo is the starting
point for one of the most fascinating excursions in this corner of the state—the
2-hour boat tour on the turquoise-colored waters of Diablo Lake. In places,
steep cliffs rise directly from the waters of the lake and stunted conifers cling to
the rock walls. At times this scenery looks as if it were lifted from a Chinese
scroll painting. Tours are offered on Saturday and Sunday in June and Septem-
ber and Thursday through Monday in July and August. Tours cost $17 for
adults, $15 for seniors, and $15 for children ages 6 to 12. For information, or
to make a reservation (highly recommended), call
Skagit Tours/Seattle City
Light
(
&
206/684-3030;
www.skagittours.com).
Continuing on past Diablo, you cross the Thunder Arm of Diablo Lake and
climb up to the spectacular
Diablo Lake Overlook
. When the sun shines,
the glacier-fed lake displays an astounding turquoise color due to the suspended
particles of silt in the water. High above the lake you can see glaciated Colonial
and Pyramid peaks.
At the
Ross Lake Overlook,
several miles farther east, the dammed waters of
this huge reservoir come into view. The lake, and in fact this entire stretch of
highway from east of Marblemount to east of Ross Lake, is designated the
Ross
Lake National Recreation Area.
The lake itself extends 24 miles north, with its
northern shore lying 1
1
⁄
2
miles inside Canada. The only access to the lake from
the United States is by trail or water, and with its many shoreline backcountry
campsites and East Bank Trail it is a popular backpacker destination. Boaters in
sea kayaks and canoes also frequent these remote waters. See “Where to Stay,”
below, for information on the Ross Lake Resort, which rents canoes and kayaks
and offers both a water taxi service and a shuttle that will haul your kayak or
canoe around Ross Dam. Trails lead down to the lake both at the dam (before
the Ross Lake Overlook) and east of the overlook (access to the East Bank Trail).
WHERE TO STAY
IN THE MOUNT BAKER AREA
The best accommodations at the foot of Mount Baker are to be had through
Mt. Baker Lodging,
7425 Mt. Baker Hwy. (P.O. Box 2002), Maple Falls, WA
