North Cascades National Park, WA, Newhalem area - Aug 9, 2023

 On my fridge hangs a magnet reading, “I’ll plan to be spontaneous tomorrow.”  Spontaneity and I are not good bedfellows, so when I was informed that the Sourdough Fire near North Cascades National Park forced the closure of our campground and  my 4 nights there were cancelled, some anxiety did ensue.  These national parks are very crowded and campgrounds fill up quickly which is why I plan and reserve so far in advance.  But we scrambled, found a rather lonesome and remote campground down a rutted forest road, and inched Bambi into a serenely quiet camp spot.  The only reason we got so lucky is that the fire has scared off most would-be visitors.  Turned out to be one sweet camp spot afterall!


The road into the park was closed for a week, but lucky for us reopened just today.  However, Diablo Lake remained closed, foiling my planned kayak trip.  Instead, we got up quite early so as to hike the very long steep Cascade Pass to Sahale Glacier Trail only to be socked in with low clouds and that notorious Pacific Northwest drizzle.  Dang, thwarted again!  What to do now?  What else but return to the most comfortable bed known to man in my cozy warm Bambi and go back to sleep.  Was absolutely delightful and most out of character for me.  Eventually we dragged ourselves out of bed and made our way into the visitor center which remains open and enjoyed several short hikes outside the fire closed area.

 


We hiked the River Loop through old growth forest down to the glacial green Skagit River.







Next came the Powerhouse Trail to Ladder Creek Falls.




And finally we found our way onto the Tale of Trees Trail, an interpretive walk through more old growth.  Was a delightful day despite our forced change of plans.  The clouds never did burn off but hung low across the rugged peaks that comprise the towering Cascades Mountains.  Happily, the forecast continues to improve, so we have plans for more aggressive hikes the next couple of days and hope to catch some picturesque views. 



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