Cascade Pass
Location: North Cascades - Highway 20
Length: 7 miles roundtrip
Elevation: Gain/1800 ft. Highest/5392 ft.
Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
Time: 3.5-4 hours
Such little effort for such great reward! This hike is a classic. Drive up Hwy 20 to Marblemount and when it turns left, keep going straight, across the bridge onto Cascade River Road. From here, drive about an hour through the sun-dappled forest and Cascade River. The road eventually turns into gravel and the condition varies from year to year. Check WTA for recent trip reports. Cascade River Road ends at the trailhead, so little navigation is necessary. Go ahead and drool on the drive up and watch for wildlife!
If you're new to hiking, I would recommend this one after Sauk Mountain. The trail is mostly comprised of switchbacks, with stunning views cheering you on the entire way. The towering wall of mountain you get peeks at through the trees is Johannesburg. When the trail opens up to the rock field, you have about a mile left before your final destination, or a good resting spot if you're hiking the Sahale Arm or down to Stehekin. Here, adorable little pikas greet you with their squeaks. If you are lucky, you might see a mountain goat, deer, marmots, or a bear. I saw a black bear near the trailhead this time! The WTA urges you to not feed the wildlife.
The top amounts to several peaks and glaciers to ogle at: Mixup Peak and Magic Mountain with the Cache Glacier in between the two, and heading back is El Dorado Peak. There are plenty of spots to have a little picnic. When we went, the views were partially obstructed by the hanging smoke from the fires in eastern Washington that summer.
You'll see a wooden post for Stehekin, which is a cool little village in Chelan that you can only access by boat or by hiking down into. Be advised that while a shuttle used to meet hikers about half way down, the road was washed out a few years ago and sadly never repaired. The trek to Stehekin is an additional 30 miles and will take a few days. If you want to reserve a cabin in Stehekin, I would recommend doing it as early as January as they are limited and very popular.
The same post directs you to the Sahale Arm, which I have not personally done. It's supposed to be incredible. The WTA says it's 12 miles roundtrip and I believe that includes Cascade Pass, although I'm not positive. The elevation gain is a total of 4000 ft. and takes you all the way up to 7570 ft.!
Such little effort for such great reward! This hike is a classic. Drive up Hwy 20 to Marblemount and when it turns left, keep going straight, across the bridge onto Cascade River Road. From here, drive about an hour through the sun-dappled forest and Cascade River. The road eventually turns into gravel and the condition varies from year to year. Check WTA for recent trip reports. Cascade River Road ends at the trailhead, so little navigation is necessary. Go ahead and drool on the drive up and watch for wildlife!
If you're new to hiking, I would recommend this one after Sauk Mountain. The trail is mostly comprised of switchbacks, with stunning views cheering you on the entire way. The towering wall of mountain you get peeks at through the trees is Johannesburg. When the trail opens up to the rock field, you have about a mile left before your final destination, or a good resting spot if you're hiking the Sahale Arm or down to Stehekin. Here, adorable little pikas greet you with their squeaks. If you are lucky, you might see a mountain goat, deer, marmots, or a bear. I saw a black bear near the trailhead this time! The WTA urges you to not feed the wildlife.
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| Be careful through the rock field... Don't trip! You're almost there! |
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| So gorgeous! El Dorado Peak! |
The same post directs you to the Sahale Arm, which I have not personally done. It's supposed to be incredible. The WTA says it's 12 miles roundtrip and I believe that includes Cascade Pass, although I'm not positive. The elevation gain is a total of 4000 ft. and takes you all the way up to 7570 ft.!
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Big ole black bear! I spotted him with about one mile left on the trail and ran down the rest of the way. In the trailhead parking lot, I was telling everyone there was a bear and nobody cared. Am I the only one that gets excited about animals?!
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