North Cascades National Park

Visit the pristine and breathtaking, North Cascades National Park. It contains more than half of the total number of glaciers outside Alaska and has few roads penetrating its wilderness. The Park is actually a complex of three distinct units: the park itself is split into northern and southern units by Ross Lake National Recreation Area while the southern end includes Lake Chelan National Recreation Area.

It is truly a rugged and beautiful place full of jagged peaks, dark and deep valleys, cascading waterfalls, miles of remote trails and alpine glaciers ideal for hikers and backcountry adventurers. The park is rich in human history too, Native Americans have been in these mountains for over 8,000 years, and western settlers came in the nineteenth century to mine gold and other minerals or trap fur baring animals.

Watchable Wildlife:
Don't miss the forested 0.3-mile trail to a 1,300-year-old rock shelter used by early Native Americans.

Species to look for:
Pileated Woodpecker
White-crowned Sparrow
Varied Thrush
Winter Wren
Golden-crowned Kinglets
Chestnut-backed Chickadee
American Dipper
Swainson's Thrush
Vaux's Swift
Cedar Waxwings
Harlequin Ducks
Spotted Sandpiper
Several species of Warblers, Flycatchers and Swallows