After our whirlwind visit to Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, Mark and I wished to explore Glacier National Park in Montana. My intention was to then continue our trip into Canada: Waterton Lakes NP, Banff and Jasper NPs, and saying a quick “hello” to our friends Sue and Dave in Calgary, before heading west to Vancouver and Vancouver Island. I write “my intention”, because we never plan much in advance, and this whole itinerary might have been a tad ambitious, as summer was already ending this far north. Why was that a surprise to me?
Upon doing research online about Glacier National Park, we discovered that massive forest fires raged on the western edge of the park. This was the preferred side for us to enter, because it offered spectacular views, contained free camping, the distance was doable, and it made most sense for our route north. But, the western entrance was closed. We decided to skip this park altogether and drove westwards within the United States, choosing North Cascades National Park as our new destination in Washington state.
The Logistics
This area in the North Cascades is actually called the North Cascades National Park Complex, since it contains multiple parks and recreation areas. It’s best known for its wilderness hiking and many trails, lodges, and campgrounds are only reachable by boat via the handful of lakes. The main road that passes through is not a national park road, but the fast and furious WA-20 highway. Because of all this, our stay didn’t feel quite like a national park experience, but it was memorable nevertheless.
Our resources told us there was a free (!) campground within the national park region, called Gorge Lake. There are only eight spots, next to a glacial river, so we had an early start that Wednesday morning at the end of August. Labor Day Weekend was coming up and getting there before the crowds was important. We were pleasantly surprised to find a few open spots and picked the end site right above the river, which offered us some privacy as well. The sign noted that this campground is free until next spring. Each site has a picnic table and fire ring, there are two vault toilets, and – best of all – garbage and recyclable receptacles! After looking in vain for weeks to recycle cans, bottles, paper and plastic containers while on the road, this “service” made me very happy. We settled in for a week.
We did not pick up a cell connection (T-Mobile) in the park, yet, I decided to accept a big translation project, which took me two days to complete. I managed that feat thanks to the Environmental Learning Center nearby, which has a library, and the free WiFi signal we picked up in the little village of Diablo.
Diablo – A Ghost Town
The first evening, Mark and I crossed a small bridge into Diablo, a scattering of houses, some of them lived in by employees of the electrical company. There was no one around. We approached the power plant and high voltage signs; nobody chased us off. As dusk arrived, we walked over a grate covering rushing water. We kept walking. An eerie feeling came over us as we noticed a yellow sign indicating playing children. The swing was empty, creaking in the chilly breeze. More empty houses. No cars. An abandoned square. A bygone post office, a deserted open-air waiting room, a defunct phone booth. Electrical cables escaped from an open cabinet full of wires… It was surreal. As if we were on the film set of the Walking Dead; a zombie could appear out of nowhere at any time. I returned to this area another day to take photos.
Hiking in the Park
As I mentioned before, multiple-day hikes are the norm in this national park. But, there are shorter options as well. One day, Mark and I hiked the Pyramid Lake Trail which is four miles long and has an elevation gain of 1500ft. We could reach the trailhead from our campground by adding another three miles to this endeavor. Once in the forest, the path was extremely steep. It was good exercise (and preparation for our next hike) and I sweat buckets. The destination, a small log-filled lake, was blah.
Another day, we planned a different hike into the wilderness. We would combine the Thunder Creek, 4th July, and Panther Creek Trails. Usually, hikers climb to the 4th July pass and return. We hoped to make a loop out of this day trip by hitching a ride back to Zesty once we reached the main road. We multiple-checked our calculations: the total trail length would be 7 miles. We packed water, snacks, and lunch for a 3-hour hike.
It was a beautiful walk, first along Thunder Creek, flat and easy, then deeper into the forest and up the mountain, a steep 1.5-hour climb. We crossed what we thought was the pass, and started our descent, through the woods and along rushing Panther Creek. As we approached the 7-mile mark on Mark’s GPS, we reached the end of the hike. Or so we thought. 8 miles in. We could have made a miscalculation on this route. No worries. Nine miles in. We really ought to reach the road soon. We’re out of water. 10 miles. You’ve got to be kidding! Where is the road?
Another mountain to cross. We became desperate. What if this is the wrong path? Trails run for tens of miles in this wilderness park… Short, steep switchbacks, straight up another mountain. Then, down again, as steep. I was exhausted, parched, sweat ran down my face, my knees hurt, my head throbbed. But, I heard a loud Harley Davidson. The noise that usually makes me cringe now put a smile on my face. The road must be nearby. Finally, after 11.5 miles, 3000ft elevation gain and six hours of hiking, we reached an empty parking lot. We hadn’t passed anyone else. The sign at the beginning of the trail mentioned the stretch we just covered as a suitable two-day hike. And, yes, we managed to hitch a ride back to the van not too much later.
The third hike I did was an easy one. Mark had completed it previously while I worked. It started in Diablo, climbed a hill and brought me across the Diablo Dam and back. There are a few dams in this national park and they are all quite spectacular. I learned from another visitor that the smoke in this part of the park had been extremely dense, right before we arrived. This time, we got lucky!
Biking in the Park
This activity is not recommended as the shoulders are narrow, people drive fast and there are a couple of tunnels. Yet, Mark and I braved a short, 10-mile ride to the town of Newhalem and back, which offered nice views and different sites.
On the day Mark and I left North Cascades National Park, the smell of smoke penetrated our home on wheels and nostrils. Good timing. Next stop: British Columbia in Canada.
Note: I’m slowly catching up on blogs about our RVing lifestyle, which started the end of July. Our current location can be found in the right column of this website.
PS: To read the photo captions, hover your mouse over the images, tap them once, or click to make them larger.
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