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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


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

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.

Hikes from the Mountain Loop Highway, Washington:

Glacier Peak:
Washington: Glacier Peak Wilderness AreaLeft: Glacier Peak (10,541 feet), Glacier Peak Wilderness Area, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

Below: Glacier Peak, seen from Sauk Mountain, which is an easy day hike of 4 miles and 1100 feet vertical gain, near Concrete, Washington.
05SAU_40-GlacierPeakfromSaukMt.jpg

For more views into Glacier Peak Wilderness Area, see Green Mountain & Mt. Pilchuck plus the following on other pages: Carne Mountain , Sauk Mountain , Hidden Lake Lookout

Mt. Pilchuck:
05PIL_035-Pilchuck-Mountain-Lookout.jpgLeft: 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.
05PIL_016-GlacierPeakPilchuck.jpg

0602HEA_15-Mt-Pilchuck-snow.jpgLeft: Mount Pilchuck seen from Heather Lake in the winter.

    Below right: Snowshoeing at
Heather Lake beneath Mount Pilchuck.
0602HEA_17-Mt-Pilchuck.jpg
0602HEA_02-snowshoe.jpg
Above: Mo-Fay & Carol snowshoe in a winter wonderland.

Green Mountain:
Below: This panorama from Green Mountain includes a forest fire above Downey Creek, Dome Peak, Glacier Peak, and Mount Pugh. Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington. (Scroll window right to see wide panorama):

Below right: Fireweed on Green Mountain, with Glacier Peak beyond.
04GRE-0068-Fireweed-Glacier-Peak

Gothic Basin:
05GOT_13-15pan-Del-Campo-Pk.jpg
Above: Del Campo Peak, above Foggy Lake, in Gothic Basin, Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest. Gothic Basin is a day hike of 10 miles with 3300 feet gain along a mostly steep and rough trail, from Barlow Pass on the Mountain Loop Highway, Washington.
05GOT_05-Sheep-Gap-Mt.jpg
Left: Sheep Gap Mountain, on the hike to Gothic Basin, Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest, accessible from the Mountain Loop Highway.

    Below right:
Foggy Lake, Gothic Basin.
05GOT_10-Foggy-Lake.jpg
05GOT_76-Silvertip-Peak.jpg
Silvertip Peak
, located in a historic mining area, seen on the hike to Gothic Basin, Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest, accessible from the Mountain Loop Highway.

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

05L22_051-Lake22.jpg
Left: Lake Twenty-Two in Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest.

    Below right: mossy tree branches, on the trail to
Lake Twenty-Two in Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest.
05L22_040-mossy-branches.jpg

05L22_091@Skunk-Cabbage-Leaf.jpg
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.

    Below right: Closeup of water drops on skunk cabbage leaf.
05L22_081@WaterDropGreen.jpg
05DIC_61-Daisy.jpg
Left: Daisies on Mount Dickerman. July 20, 2005.

Below right: False Lily-of-the-Valley, Maianthemum (Lily Family), on hike to "Lake 22", Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest, Washington.
05L22_069-False-Lily-of-the-Valley.jpg05DIC_05-Columbine-Flower.jpg

Left: Columbine flower (genus=Aquilegia; Buttercup family=Ranunculaceae) on Mount Dickerman, Mountain Loop Highway, Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest.

05DIC_09-Daisy-Insect.jpg
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).

05DIC_31-SwallowtailButterfly.jpg
Left: Swallowtail Butterfly on Mount Dickerman.

    Below: Cutthroat Lakes in Mount Baker - Snoqualmie National Forest, on the Walt Bailey Trail on the way to Bald Mountain, accessible from the Mountain Loop Highway, Washington.
05BAL_38-Cutthroat-Lakes.jpg
Recommended hiking guidebooks: The "100 Hikes" series published by The Mountaineers, Seattle.

Washington Map:

Washington-map.jpg
Washington Page 4: Mountain Loop Highway: Glacier Peak Region 


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

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