Washington Page 4: Mountain Loop Highway: Glacier Peak Region

Photographs Copyright 1982-2008 by Tom Dempsey. Custom Print Prices. 
I last updated this page on May 24, 2008. Send comments to: tom@photoseek.com

This page describes hikes and views accessible from the Mountain Loop Highway and State Route 530, near Granite Falls, Arlington & Darrington, Washington.
     Geography & Climate: Washington's latitude lies in a transitional belt between sub-Arctic northern forests and warmer drier regions. Moist temperate air masses sweep onto the west coast and hit the spectacular Olympic and Cascade mountain ranges, dumping heavy rain on the southwestward (windward) slopes, creating dense temperate rainforest at low elevations and significant glaciers in the Glacier Peak Region, which you can visit via the Mountain Loop Highway, accessible via Everett, Lake Stevens, Arlington, or Darrington.

Mt. Pilchuck:
Left: Pilchuck Mountain Lookout (5324 feet), with Puget Sound in the distance. Mount Pilchuck offers a great day hike of 6 miles and 2300 feet vertical gain, giving sweeping views of the North Cascade Mountains from a former fire lookout.

Below: Glacier Peak, seen from lichen-covered rocks atop Mount Pilchuck.

Left: Mount Pilchuck seen from Heather Lake in the winter.

    Below right: Snowshoeing at Heather Lake beneath Mount Pilchuck.


Above: Mo-Fay & Carol snowshoe in a winter wonderland.

Silvertip Peak

More Mountain Loop Highway hikes in the southern part of Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest:

Left: Water droplets on a leaf of skunk cabbage (Lysichitum americanum) (Calla Lily Family, Araceae), on hike to Lake 22, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

Above: A hoverfly on a daisy, on Mount Dickerman, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington. Hoverflies are expert hoverers, and they mimic the appearance of wasps & bees as a defense. Syrphid, flower, or hover flies are in the Family: Syrphidae, of which there are 1000 species in North America (in the Order: Diptera, Class: Insecta, Phylum: Arthropoda). Hoverfly larvae commonly eat aphids and other small, soft-bodied insects. Adult hoverflies feed on pollen, nectar, and honeydew, and are true flies with only two wings instead of four which most insects have (such as bees & wasps).

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Washington Map:

Washington Page 4: Mountain Loop Highway: Glacier Peak Region 

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Index to Washington:  Page 0: Highlights ~ map ~ 1 ~ 2 ~ 3 ~ 4 ~ 5 ~ 6 ~ 7

• Page 1: Seattle Area: Seattle ( fireworks , Space Needle & EMP , University of Washington ) ; Bloedel Reserve, Bainbridge Island
• Page 1a: Seattle Aquarium 
• Page 1b: Volunteer Park Conservatory 
  
• Page 2: North Cascade Mountains : Mount Baker , Mount Shuksan , Sauk Mountain , Anacortes , Grasshopper Pass , Maple Pass , Rainy Pass SR20 , Hidden Lake Lookout , Sahale Arm , 2a: Skagit Valley Tulips
• Page 3: Whidbey & San Juan Islands: Deception Pass , Ebey's Landing , Fort Casey , Meerkerk Gardens
• Page 4: Mountain Loop Highway: Glacier Peak , Mt Pilchuck ,  Green Mountain , Gothic Basin  , Lake 22 , Walt Bailey Trail , plants, flowers, insects , southern Mt Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest
• Page 5: Central Cascades, Highway 2 & Interstate 90:  Alpine Lakes Wilderness (mountains, larch, mushrooms) , Surprise Lake , Granite Mt , Lake Serene , Carne Mountain
• Page 6: Southwest WA: Mt. Rainier , Goat Rocks , Mt. Adams , Mt. St. Helens
• Page 7: Olympic Peninsula: Lavender Farms , Olympic National Park , Port Townsend , ferries , Mount Townsend rhododendrons

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