RHH's photos with the keyword: north cascades highway

Diablo Lake is one of the lakes formed by the dams on the Skagit River in the North Cascades, in this case by the Diablo Dam. It is a popular recreation area and has some of the best hiking trails in the North Cascades. The peaks are Colonial Peak on the left and Pyramid Peak on the right. The picture was taken last summer which was very dry, as is evident from the vegetation in the foreground. The color of the water is due to glacial run-off. We were orchid hunting in the area when this picture was taken.

These peaks are the Liberty Bell Group and include from right to left, Liberty Bell, Concord Tower, Lexington Tower and Early Winters Spires. The group dominates the area of Washington Pass and the photo was taken from the viewpoint on the opposite side of the pass, part of which is visible in the photo (the beautiful lady is my wife). We spent several hours here on a November morning before going on to hike up to Blue Lake which is on the back side of these peaks. The peaks are also considered among the forty best climb in North America. ronaldhanko-orchidhunter.blogspot.com/2014/12/washington-pass.html

Taken as we traveled through Washington Pass on August 8 on our way to eastern Washington. The sunrise was spectacular and we pulled off the highway to take photos. The ragged peaks of Kangaroo Ridge are just visible in the center of the picture.

I don't even remember exactly where this was taken along the North Cascades Highway, but it is typical of the scenery along much of the way, small mountain streams, rugged peaks, alpine lakes and in the autumn the beautiful yellows and oranges of the alders and other small trees mixed with the green of the firs, pines and hemlocks. When I see these pictures again my heart aches for the mountains and their beauty.

This is Pyramid Peak, taken from the Diablo Lake Overlook on the North Cascades Highway. We were on our way to do some hiking at Blue Lake when this photo was taken.

Spiranthes romanzoffiana, the Hooded Ladies'-tresses, is one of three Ladies'-tresses found in the state of Washington. The other two are very rare, but this species is quite common. We photographed it at about 5000 feet of elevation along the North Cascades Highway in an open field where it grows by the thousands. It prefers a wet environment but we have found it growing in drier areas as well.

This is the sign for the National Park as one travels east through the park. The snow on the sign is not real.

Another unnamed waterfall along the North Cascades Highway in North Cascades National Park. The inset picture is of the same falls a little earlier in the year when the autumn colors were better.

The town of Newhalem is within North Cascades National Park, but is a town that is mostly residences for those who are involved in running the power plant there. The town is owned by Seattle City Light and the residents are all employees of the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project, or other county, state or federal agencies. The photo was taken when driving through the National Park and along the North Cascades Highway to do some hiking at Blue Lake.

Another photo of the same falls as the previous picture, an unnamed falls along the North Cascades Highway in North Cascades National Park. When the picture was taken we were on our last trip of the year along that highway which is now closed for the winter.

Another waterfall we stopped to photograph along the North Cascades highway on what was obviously a very foggy morning (it did clear up later).

On October 24th and November 7th we made our last trips for the year along the North Cascades Highway and through North Cascades National Park (the road is closed now for the winter). On the first occasion we were traveling to eastern Washington and on the second we were doing some hiking in the area of Washington Pass. This photo was taken on one of our many stops along the highway and shows an unnamed waterfall of which there are many

This is another view of Washington pass taken from the roadside shown in the picture below. That picture was taken from the overlook shown in this picture, the flat area above the sheer cliff on the left. In this picture Kangaroo Ridge and Snagtooth Ridge are shown on the right with the road to Winthrop at the bottom of the picture. This view looks east down the pass and the picture below looks west and up the pass.

This photo was taken Thanksgiving Day. We had some responsibilities to take care of in the morning and left home about 1:00pm for eastern Washington. We knew we would miss Thanksgiving Day dinner with family anyway and so we decided to take the North Cascades Highway across the mountains, since the pass was still open, rather unusual for this time of the year. By the time we got into the mountains, however, the sun was setting, and though we managed to get some pictures, this being one of them, we traveled the rest of the way in the dark. We had hoped to stop for dinner along the way at a restaurant, but nothing was open on the holiday and Thanksgiving dinner turned out to be some burritos and fried chicken at a gas station. Anyway, this is Cutthroat Peak, just west of Washington Pass in the last light of the day. We must have been nearly the last to get through the pass, too, because it closed the next day for the rest of the winter. There are more pictures from the trip at the link below.

This is the Tall White Northern Bog Orchis, Platanthera dilatata var. dilatata, photographed along the North Cascades Highway near Washington Pass. This orchid, along with the Slender Bog Orchis, Platanthera stricta can be found in abundance along the roadsides of most of the passes in the Cascades. It is sweetly scented and is often found, as this spike of flowers, with the lip caught in the petals and dorsal sepal.

This is another shot taken from the overlook at Washington Pass, as also the photo below. This view shows the road, Highway 20 or the North Cascades Highway dropping down from the pass toward Mazama and Winthrop, Washington. The cluster of peaks on the right is the Liberty Bell Group, considered one of the forty best climbs in the USA. Liberty Bell Mountain is on the right with Lexington and Concord Towers next to it and Early Winters Spires on the left.

In Explore December 3, 2009, #273. Photo taken late summer along the North Cascades Highway (Highway 20) at the overlook above Diablo Dam and Thunder Creek