Travelers' best kept secret: North Cascades National Park

Travelers who wish to escape the noise of the city and experience the beauty of nature without the crowds should consider visiting North Cascades National Park.

North Cascades National Park is located in Washington, just three hours away from Seattle. Despite its proximity to the city, the area has remained largely unspoiled and is frequented by less than 400,000 visitors per year, a far cry from the more popular Smoky Mountain National Park, which is visited by more than nine million visitors annually.

Despite rare appearance on lists of the country's most popular national parks, North Cascades National Park's breathtaking alpine landscape holds some of the most beautiful scenery in the United States. The park encompasses 504,781 acres and ranges mountain peaks as high as 10,000 feet, valleys that plummet to below 500 feet, more than 300 glaciers, numerous rivers, over 500 lakes and ponds, and numerous types of forest.

Image Source: allleavenworth.com

Flora and fauna

A traverse of the entire park from west to east is an experience in extreme changes in terrain, climate, and elevation. The west side of the park is a temperate rainforest, while a dry continental climate characterizes the east. The upper portion is covered in snow from fall to spring. The combination has resulted in the park having one of the most diverse ecosystems in the world.

The park is home to 75 species of mammals, including gray wolves, black bears, and pikas, about 200 species of birds, including bald eagles and peregrine falcons, as well as 28 species of fish and 21 species of reptiles.

The park contains at least 1,630 vascular plant species, including Douglas fir and western red cedar trees in the lowlands and Engelmann spruce and lodgepole pines at high altitudes.

Activities

Visitors to the park can enjoy a number of activities: hiking (the park has more than 400 miles of trails), alpine trekking, kayaking, fishing, boating, camping, and horseback riding are just a few examples.

Admission and wilderness permits are free.

Travelers who want to experience North Cascades National Park should plan their visit for between mid-June and late-September, when the weather in the park is at its best and most of the trails are free from snow.

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