Katrina's Travels

Continuing over the North Cascades passes....

From Rainy Pass I went down a bit before going up some more to Washington Pass. Everything but the road was covered in fresh snow and the scenery was stunning. There weren't many places to pull off the road, but there were almost no other cars on the road so I was able to just slow down or stop on the road to get photos. I'm sure some of these mountains have names, but I haven't had much luck figuring most of them out. (Anyone who knows their names should feel free to tell me.)







( More photos from between Rainy and Washington Passes )

This is Washington Pass, elevation 5477 feet. I think this was the highest point of my trip. Due to the time of the year I really didn't get up into the mountains much. The car said the outside temperature was 31F when I got to the pass which was slightly concerning, but the road was mostly dry and I just made sure to proceed slowly and carefully any time I had to cross wet places on the road. I never found any ice on the road, so it was all good.







The views coming down from Washington Pass were even more spectacular. I think they deserve a post of there own ... coming up soon.

These are the last of my photos from North Cascades National Park, although not the last photos from the North Cascades.


I loved seeing all the waterfalls, short and long. Both of these waterfalls were along the highway to the west of Diablo Lake. (Yes, these photos were taken before the photos in the last post and are thus out of order. They fit better here.)






After leaving the Diablo Lake overlook, I was headed for higher elevations and more snow.




At times it looked like I was going to drive right into a cloud, but for the most part I didn't.




( More photos )

Coming next: Snowy scenery from Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest

Continuing eastward on my way through North Cascades National Park....

There are several hydroelectric dams on the river along the highway. This one is Gorge Dam.






The Gorge Overlook Trail is a short walk that offers nice views of the dam and lake.




There were a few birds along the trail, including this Varied Thrush.




( More photos )

More later....