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The North Cascades are a section of the
Cascade Range The Cascade Range or Cascades is a major mountain range of western North America, extending from southern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern California. It includes both non-volcanic mountains, such as the North Cascades, ...
of western
North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
. They span the border between the
Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British North ...
of
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
and the
U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...
of
Washington Washington commonly refers to: * Washington (state), United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A metonym for the federal government of the United States ** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered o ...
and are officially named in the U.S. and Canada as the Cascade Mountains. The portion in Canada is known to Americans as the Canadian Cascades, a designation that also includes the mountains above the east bank of the
Fraser Canyon The Fraser Canyon is a major landform of the Fraser River where it descends rapidly through narrow rock gorges in the Coast Mountains en route from the Interior Plateau of British Columbia to the Fraser Valley. Colloquially, the term "Fraser Ca ...
as far north as the town of Lytton, at the confluence of the
Thompson Thompson may refer to: People * Thompson (surname) * Thompson M. Scoon (1888–1953), New York politician Places Australia *Thompson Beach, South Australia, a locality Bulgaria * Thompson, Bulgaria, a village in Sofia Province Canada * ...
and Fraser Rivers. They are predominantly non-volcanic, but include the
stratovolcano A stratovolcano, also known as a composite volcano, is a conical volcano built up by many layers (strata) of hardened lava and tephra. Unlike shield volcanoes, stratovolcanoes are characterized by a steep profile with a summit crater and per ...
es
Mount Baker Mount Baker (Lummi: '; nok, Kw’eq Smaenit or '), also known as Koma Kulshan or simply Kulshan, is a active glacier-covered andesitic stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc and the North Cascades of Washington in the United States. Mount ...
,
Glacier Peak Glacier Peak or Dakobed (known in the Sauk-Suiattle dialect of the Lushootseed language as "Tda-ko-buh-ba" or "Takobia") is the most isolated of the five major stratovolcanoes (composite volcanoes) of the Cascade Volcanic Arc in the U.S state ...
and Coquihalla Mountain, which are part of the
Cascade Volcanic Arc The Cascade Volcanoes (also known as the Cascade Volcanic Arc or the Cascade Arc) are a number of volcanoes in a volcanic arc in western North America, extending from southwestern British Columbia through Washington and Oregon to Northern Calif ...
.


Geography

The U.S. section of the North Cascades and the adjoining
Skagit Range The Skagit Range ( ) is a Mountain range#Sub-ranges, subrange of the Cascade Range in southwestern British Columbia, Canada and northwestern Washington (state), Washington, United States, which are known in Canada as the Canadian Cascades or, offi ...
in British Columbia are most notable for their dramatic scenery and challenging
mountaineering Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, a ...
, both resulting from their steep, rugged
topography Topography is the study of the forms and features of land surfaces. The topography of an area may refer to the land forms and features themselves, or a description or depiction in maps. Topography is a field of geoscience and planetary sci ...
. While most of the peaks are under in
elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vert ...
, the low
valley A valley is an elongated low area often running between Hill, hills or Mountain, mountains, which will typically contain a river or stream running from one end to the other. Most valleys are formed by erosion of the land surface by rivers ...
s provide great local relief, often over . The summits of the rest of the Canadian Cascades are not glaciated in the same way and feature rock "horns" rising from plateau-like uplands, with the
Manning Park E.C. Manning Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. It is usually referred to as Manning Park, although that nomenclature is also used to refer to the resort and ski area at the park's core. The park covers 83,671 hecta ...
and Cathedral Park areas known for their extensive alpine meadows, as is also the case with the eastern flank of the US portion of the range. Portions of the US side of the range are protected as part of
North Cascades National Park North Cascades National Park is an American national park in the state of Washington. At more than , it is the largest of the three National Park Service units that comprise the North Cascades National Park Complex. North Cascades National Par ...
. The large amount of
precipitation In meteorology, precipitation is any product of the condensation of atmospheric water vapor that falls under gravitational pull from clouds. The main forms of precipitation include drizzle, rain, sleet, snow, ice pellets, graupel and hail. ...
, much of it in the form of
snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...
, and the resulting
glaciation A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betw ...
, combine with the regional
uplift Uplift may refer to: Science * Geologic uplift, a geological process ** Tectonic uplift, a geological process * Stellar uplift, the theoretical prospect of moving a stellar mass * Uplift mountains * Llano Uplift * Nemaha Uplift Business * Uplif ...
to create a dramatic
landscape A landscape is the visible features of an area of land, its landforms, and how they integrate with natural or man-made features, often considered in terms of their aesthetic appeal.''New Oxford American Dictionary''. A landscape includes the ...
in the western part of the range. Deep,
U-shaped valley U-shaped valleys, also called trough valleys or glacial troughs, are formed by the process of glaciation. They are characteristic of mountain glaciation in particular. They have a characteristic U shape in cross-section, with steep, straight s ...
s carved by glaciers in
Pleistocene The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological Epoch (geology), epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was fina ...
time separate sharp ridges and peaks carved into steep shapes by more recent snow and ice. The eastern and northernmost parts of the range are much more plateau-like in character, though in the case of the northernmost areas graven by deep valleys along the flank of the Fraser Canyon, notably that of the Anderson River.


Extent

The Fraser River and the adjoining lowland on its south bank form the northern and northwestern boundary of the range. On the east, the
Okanogan River The Okanogan River (known as the Okanagan River in Canada) is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately 115 mi (185 km) long, in southern British Columbia and north central Washington. It drains a scenic plateau region called th ...
and the
Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...
bound the range in the United States, while the northeastern boundary of the range departs the Thompson via the
Nicoamen River The Nicoamen River is a tributary of the Thompson River in the southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, located upstream from its confluence with the Thompson at Lytton. The Nicoamen forms the extreme northeast boundary of the Cascade Mount ...
and runs via Lawless Creek, the
Tulameen River The Tulameen River is a tributary of the Similkameen River in the Canadian province of British Columbia. The Tulameen River is part of the Columbia River drainage basin, being a tributary of the Similkameen River, which flows into the Okanagan Riv ...
and Copper Creek to the
Similkameen River The Similkameen River runs through southern British Columbia, Canada, eventually discharging into the Okanagan River near Oroville, Washington, in the United States. Through the Okanagan River, it drains to the Columbia River. The river is said ...
. On the west, the foothills of the range are separated by a narrow coastal plain from
Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ) is a sound of the Pacific Northwest, an inlet of the Pacific Ocean, and part of the Salish Sea. It is located along the northwestern coast of the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected ma ...
except along Chuckanut Drive between Bellingham and
Mount Vernon Mount Vernon is an American landmark and former plantation of Founding Father, commander of the Continental Army in the Revolutionary War, and the first president of the United States George Washington and his wife, Martha. The estate is on ...
, where they abut the Sound directly. The southern boundary of the North Cascades is less definite. For the purposes of this article, it will be taken as
U.S. Highway 2 U.S. Route 2 or U.S. Highway 2 (US 2) is an east–west U.S. Highway spanning across the northern continental United States. US 2 consists of two segments connected by various roadways in southern Canada. Unlike some routes, whi ...
, running over
Stevens Pass Stevens Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass through the Cascade Range, Cascade Mountains located at the border of King County, Washington, King County and Chelan County, Washington, Chelan County in Washington (state), Washington, United States. ...
, or equivalently, the Skykomish River, Nason Creek, and the lower
Wenatchee River The Wenatchee River is a river in the U.S. state of Washington, originating at Lake Wenatchee and flowing southeast for , emptying into the Columbia River immediately north of Wenatchee, Washington. On its way it passes the towns of Plain, Leave ...
. This roughly follows Beckey's geologic division in ''
Cascade Alpine Guide Friedrich Wolfgang Beckey (14 January 1923 – 30 October 2017), known as Fred Beckey, was an American rock climber, mountaineer and book author, who in seven decades of climbing achieved hundreds of first ascents of the tallest peaks and best ro ...
'' and the definition used by Peakbagger.com. Sometimes the southern boundary is defined by
Snoqualmie Pass Snoqualmie Pass is a mountain pass that carries Interstate 90 (I-90) through the Cascade Range in the U.S. state of Washington. The pass summit is at an elevation of , on the county line between Kittitas County and King County. Snoqualmie ...
and the approximate route of
Interstate 90 Interstate 90 (I-90) is an east–west transcontinental freeway and the longest Interstate Highway in the United States at . It begins in Seattle, Washington, and travels through the Pacific Northwest, Mountain West, Great Plains, Midwest, and ...
. Sometimes the term "North Cascades" or "northern Cascades" is used for the entire range north of the
Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...
. Geologically, the rocks of the North Cascades extend south beyond Stevens Pass and west into the
San Juan Islands The San Juan Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific Northwest of the United States between the U.S. state of Washington and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of Washington state, and form the core of ...
. The significance of the geologic transitions to the
Okanagan Highland The Okanagan Highland is an elevated hilly plateau area in British Columbia, Canada, and the U.S. state of Washington (where it is spelled Okanogan Highlands). Rounded mountains with elevations up to above sea level and deep, narrow valleys are ...
to the east and the
Interior Plateau The Interior Plateau comprises a large region of the Interior of British Columbia, and lies between the Cariboo and Monashee Mountains on the east, and the Hazelton Mountains, Coast Mountains and Cascade Range on the west.''Landforms of British C ...
and
Coast Mountains The Coast Mountains (french: La chaîne Côtière) are a major mountain range in the Pacific Coast Ranges of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia ...
to the north are less agreed upon.


Climate

The
climate Climate is the long-term weather pattern in an area, typically averaged over 30 years. More rigorously, it is the mean and variability of meteorological variables over a time spanning from months to millions of years. Some of the meteorologic ...
in the North Cascades varies considerably by location and elevation. The western slope of the range is wet and cool, with of precipitation per year. This produces a
temperate rain forest Temperate rainforests are coniferous or broadleaf forests that occur in the temperate zone and receive heavy rain. Temperate rain forests occur in oceanic moist regions around the world: the Pacific temperate rain forests of North American P ...
climate in the low valleys, which then grades into
montane Montane ecosystems are found on the slopes of mountains. The alpine climate in these regions strongly affects the ecosystem because temperatures fall as elevation increases, causing the ecosystem to stratify. This stratification is a crucial ...
and
alpine climate Alpine climate is the typical weather (climate) for elevations above the tree line, where trees fail to grow due to cold. This climate is also referred to as a mountain climate or highland climate. Definition There are multiple definitions of ...
s on mountain slopes and peaks. Summers are comparatively dry, with far less precipitation than in winter; sometimes the warmer eastern air and cooler western air meet at the Cascades during the summer months, and form thunderstorms. Sometimes, the storms move downwind into lowland cities. The eastern slope lies in the
rain shadow A rain shadow is an area of significantly reduced rainfall behind a mountainous region, on the side facing away from prevailing winds, known as its leeward side. Evaporated moisture from water bodies (such as oceans and large lakes) is carrie ...
of the range, since prevailing winds and most moisture come from the west, and hence is significantly drier than the western side of the main divide, becoming
semi-arid A semi-arid climate, semi-desert climate, or steppe climate is a dry climate sub-type. It is located on regions that receive precipitation below potential evapotranspiration, but not as low as a desert climate. There are different kinds of semi-ar ...
in the eastern lowlands. As with most mountainous areas, precipitation increases dramatically with increasing elevation. As a result, there is a great deal of winter
snow Snow comprises individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water throughout ...
and
glaciation A glacial period (alternatively glacial or glaciation) is an interval of time (thousands of years) within an ice age that is marked by colder temperatures and glacier advances. Interglacials, on the other hand, are periods of warmer climate betw ...
in the high North Cascades. The eastern slopes and mountain passes can receive significant snowfall. Cold Arctic air can flow south from
British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
through the
Okanogan River The Okanogan River (known as the Okanagan River in Canada) is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately 115 mi (185 km) long, in southern British Columbia and north central Washington. It drains a scenic plateau region called th ...
valley into the bowl-like basin east of the Cascades.
Cold air damming Cold air damming, or CAD, is a meteorological phenomenon that involves a high-pressure system (anticyclone) accelerating equatorward east of a north-south oriented mountain range due to the formation of a barrier jet behind a cold front associated ...
causes this Arctic air to bank up along the eastern Cascade slopes, especially into the lower passes, such as
Snoqualmie Pass Snoqualmie Pass is a mountain pass that carries Interstate 90 (I-90) through the Cascade Range in the U.S. state of Washington. The pass summit is at an elevation of , on the county line between Kittitas County and King County. Snoqualmie ...
and
Stevens Pass Stevens Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass through the Cascade Range, Cascade Mountains located at the border of King County, Washington, King County and Chelan County, Washington, Chelan County in Washington (state), Washington, United States. ...
. The milder, Pacific-influenced air moving east over the Cascades is often forced aloft by the cold air held in place in the passes due to cold air damming. As a result, the passes often receive more snow than higher areas in the Cascades. This effect makes the relatively low elevation ski resorts at Snoqualmie Pass (about ) and Stevens Pass (about ) possible.


Subranges

*North Cascades **
Skagit Range The Skagit Range ( ) is a Mountain range#Sub-ranges, subrange of the Cascade Range in southwestern British Columbia, Canada and northwestern Washington (state), Washington, United States, which are known in Canada as the Canadian Cascades or, offi ...
***
Picket Range The Picket Range is a small, extremely rugged subrange of the North Cascades in the northwestern part of the American state of Washington. It is entirely contained within North Cascades National Park. It is about long, running northwest–south ...
** Chuckanut Mountains ** Entiat Mountains **
Chelan Mountains The Chelan Mountains, or Chelan Range is a mountain range in the U.S. state of Washington. Located west of the Columbia River, north of the Entiat River, and south of Lake Chelan, the range is part of the North Cascades section of the Cascade Rang ...
** Methow Mountains (also called Sawtooth Ridge) ** Skagit River Group *Canadian Cascades **
Skagit Range The Skagit Range ( ) is a Mountain range#Sub-ranges, subrange of the Cascade Range in southwestern British Columbia, Canada and northwestern Washington (state), Washington, United States, which are known in Canada as the Canadian Cascades or, offi ...
*** Hope Mountains *** Cheam Range **
Hozameen Range The Hozameen Range (spelled Hozomeen Range in the United States) is a mountain range in southwestern British Columbia and northern Washington, straddling the division between the Coast and Interior regions of that province. It is a subrange of ...
*** Bedded Range **
Okanagan Range The Okanagan Range or Okanogan Range is a small subrange of the Cascade Range straddling the border between British Columbia and Washington south of the Similkameen River on the inland side of the range. The range is the northeasternmost extremi ...
**
Coquihalla Range The Coquihalla Range is an informally named mountain range in British Columbia that lies between the Coquihalla River and the Fraser Canyon. It is part of the Canadian Cascades, which are officially named the Cascade Mountains and are the norther ...
(name is unofficial) *** Llamoid Group (name is unofficial) *** Anderson River Group (name is unofficial)


Notable peaks

The following North Cascades peaks are notable for their height (absolute elevation): (The above table uses a
topographic prominence In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
cutoff of , in order to list only highly independent peaks.) The following peaks are notable for their
topographic prominence In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...
: The following peaks are notable for their large, steep rise above local terrain. Peaks are listed in descending order by elevation.


Highest waterfalls

The North Cascades are known for having many extremely tall glacial-fed waterfalls; the ten highest measured waterfalls are listed. Many tall waterfalls occur where meltwater from mountain glaciers drop down a
headwall In physical geography and geology the headwall of a glacial cirque is its highest cliff. The term has been more broadly used to describe similar geomorphic features of non-glacial origin consisting of a concave depression with convergent slopes ty ...
, which are common occurrences in the North Cascades. Many waterfalls, despite their great height, are non-notable as they are not clearly visible and often have low volume. Seahpo Peak Falls, despite its great height at nearly , is an example of one of these waterfalls. A few notable exceptions do occur;
Sulphide Creek Falls Sulphide Creek Falls is a tall, moderately large volume waterfall within North Cascades National Park in Washington state. The falls drop from Sulphide Lake (elevation ) on the southeast side of Mount Shuksan down a narrow flume-like canyon to ...
occurs where meltwaters from two of the largest
Mount Shuksan Mount Shuksan is a glaciated massif in the North Cascades National Park. Shuksan rises in Whatcom County, Washington immediately to the east of Mount Baker, and south of the Canada–US border. The mountain's name ''Shuksan'' is derived from t ...
glaciers are forced through a narrow chute over a headwall at the head of Sulphide Valley.


Geology

The bulk of the North Cascades consists of "deformed and
metamorphosed Metamorphic rocks arise from the transformation of existing rock to new types of rock in a process called metamorphism. The original rock (protolith) is subjected to temperatures greater than and, often, elevated pressure of or more, causi ...
, structurally complex pre-
Tertiary Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...
rocks In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks form the Earth's ...
". These originated in diverse locations around the globe: the area is built of several ("perhaps ten or more") different
terrane In geology, a terrane (; in full, a tectonostratigraphic terrane) is a crust fragment formed on a tectonic plate (or broken off from it) and accreted or " sutured" to crust lying on another plate. The crustal block or fragment preserves its own ...
s of different ages and origins. These terranes are separated by a series of ancient faults, the most significant being the Straight Creek Fault, which runs north–south from north of
Yale, British Columbia Yale is an unincorporated town in the Canadian province of British Columbia, which grew in importance during the gold rush era. Located on the Fraser River, it is generally considered to be on the dividing line between the Coast and the Inter ...
, through Hope,
Marblemount, Washington Marblemount is a Census-designated places, census-designated place in Skagit County, Washington, United States. The population was 203 at the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census. It is included in the Mount Vernon, Washington, Mount Vernon&ndash ...
, and down to Kachess Lake near Snoqualmie Pass. There is evidence of significant strike-slip movement on this fault in the past, with similar rocks on either side of the fault separated by dozens of miles. This is thought to be related to northward tectonic movement of the West Coast relative to the rest of North America. Since about 35 million years ago,
oceanic crust Oceanic crust is the uppermost layer of the oceanic portion of the tectonic plates. It is composed of the upper oceanic crust, with pillow lavas and a dike complex, and the lower oceanic crust, composed of troctolite, gabbro and ultramafic cumu ...
from the
Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
has been
subducting Subduction is a geological process in which the oceanic lithosphere is recycled into the Earth's mantle at convergent boundaries. Where the oceanic lithosphere of a tectonic plate converges with the less dense lithosphere of a second plate, the ...
under the
continental margin A continental margin is the outer edge of continental crust abutting oceanic crust under coastal waters. It is one of the three major zones of the ocean floor, the other two being deep-ocean basins and mid-ocean ridges. The continental margin ...
, which has formed the current
volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates are ...
es as well as a number of
igneous Igneous rock (derived from the Latin word ''ignis'' meaning fire), or magmatic rock, is one of the three main rock types, the others being sedimentary and metamorphic. Igneous rock is formed through the cooling and solidification of magma or ...
intrusion In geology, an igneous intrusion (or intrusive body or simply intrusion) is a body of intrusive igneous rock that forms by crystallization of magma slowly cooling below the surface of the Earth. Intrusions have a wide variety of forms and com ...
s composed of
diorite Diorite ( ) is an intrusive igneous rock formed by the slow cooling underground of magma (molten rock) that has a moderate content of silica and a relatively low content of alkali metals. It is intermediate in composition between low-silic ...
and
gabbro Gabbro () is a phaneritic (coarse-grained), mafic intrusive igneous rock formed from the slow cooling of magnesium-rich and iron-rich magma into a holocrystalline mass deep beneath the Earth's surface. Slow-cooling, coarse-grained gabbro is che ...
. The current
uplift Uplift may refer to: Science * Geologic uplift, a geological process ** Tectonic uplift, a geological process * Stellar uplift, the theoretical prospect of moving a stellar mass * Uplift mountains * Llano Uplift * Nemaha Uplift Business * Uplif ...
of the Cascade Range began around 8 million years ago. Rocks similar to those in the North Cascades continue north to the vicinity of
Mount Meager massif The Mount Meager massif is a group of volcanic peaks in the of the Coast Mountains in southwestern British Columbia, Canada. Part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc of western North America, it is located north of Vancouver at the northern end of the P ...
in the
Coast Mountains The Coast Mountains (french: La chaîne Côtière) are a major mountain range in the Pacific Coast Ranges of western North America, extending from southwestern Yukon through the Alaska Panhandle and virtually all of the Coast of British Columbia ...
, where they abut the Stikinia Terrane of the Omineca-Intermontane Province that dominates the
Interior Plateau The Interior Plateau comprises a large region of the Interior of British Columbia, and lies between the Cariboo and Monashee Mountains on the east, and the Hazelton Mountains, Coast Mountains and Cascade Range on the west.''Landforms of British C ...
of British Columbia. This geologic similarity between the North Cascades and Coast Mountains results in a fairly arbitrary boundary between the two. In British Columbia, the western geologic boundary of the North Cascades is defined as the Fraser River as it follows the Straight Creek Fault, while in the United States the western boundary is defined by the Puget Lowlands in the west, although there are significant westward extensions of rocks similar in origin to those in the North Cascades found in the
San Juan Islands The San Juan Islands are an archipelago in the Pacific Northwest of the United States between the U.S. state of Washington and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of Washington state, and form the core of ...
. The eastern geologic boundary of the North Cascades may be marked by the Chewack-Pasayten Fault. This fault separates the easternmost portion of the North Cascades, the Methow Terrane, from the Quesnellia Terrane, one of the Omineca and
Intermontane Belt The Intermontane Belt is a physiogeological region in the Pacific Northwest of North America, stretching from northern Washington into British Columbia, Yukon, and Alaska. It comprises rolling hills, high plateaus and deeply cut valleys. The ro ...
s. The fault also separates the
Methow River The Methow River ( ) is a tributary of the Columbia River in northern Washington in the United States. The river's watershed drains the eastern North Cascades, with a population of about 5,000 people. The Methow's watershed is characterized by re ...
valley, part of the Methow Terrane, from the
Okanagan Range The Okanagan Range or Okanogan Range is a small subrange of the Cascade Range straddling the border between British Columbia and Washington south of the Similkameen River on the inland side of the range. The range is the northeasternmost extremi ...
, part of the Quesnellia Terrane. The
Columbia River Basalt Group The Columbia River Basalt Group is the youngest, smallest and one of the best-preserved continental flood basalt province on Earth, covering over mainly eastern Oregon and Washington, western Idaho, and part of northern Nevada. The basalt grou ...
bounds the North Cascades to the southeast. The southern limit of what is geologically considered the "North Cascades" may variously be defined as being the southern limit of exposure of igneous and metamorphic terranes which is generally north of Snoqualmie Pass, Snoqualmie Pass itself, or
Naches Pass Naches Pass (elevation ) is a mountain pass in the Cascade Range in the state of Washington. It is located about east of Tacoma and about northwest of Yakima, near the headwaters of tributary streams of the Naches River on the east and the ...
at the White River Fault Zone.


Glaciers

While
alpine glacier A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...
s are a defining feature of the Cascade Range as a whole, this is especially true of the North Cascades. The stratovolcanoes (Mount Baker and Glacier Peak) are the most obviously glaciated peaks and have the largest glaciers, but many of the smaller, nonvolcanic peaks are glaciated as well. For example, the portion of the Cascades north of
Snoqualmie Pass Snoqualmie Pass is a mountain pass that carries Interstate 90 (I-90) through the Cascade Range in the U.S. state of Washington. The pass summit is at an elevation of , on the county line between Kittitas County and King County. Snoqualmie ...
(roughly the North Cascades as defined in this article) These glaciers all retreated from 1900 to 1950. From 1950 to 1975 many but not all North Cascades glaciers advanced. Since 1975 retreat has become more rapid with all 107 glaciers monitored retreating by 1992. 2015 was an especially damaging year for Cascadian Glaciers, an estimated mass loss of five to ten percent, the single greatest loss in over 50 years. There are approximately 700 glaciers in the range, though some have already disappeared. Since a brief advancing period in the 1950s, most of these glaciers have been retreating. This is a serious concern to water managers in the region, as the glaciers (and the winter snowpack) form a large reservoir of
water Water (chemical formula ) is an inorganic, transparent, tasteless, odorless, and nearly colorless chemical substance, which is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known living organisms (in which it acts as a ...
. As snow and ice melts in the summer, the resulting
meltwater Meltwater is water released by the melting of snow or ice, including glacial ice, tabular icebergs and ice shelves over oceans. Meltwater is often found in the ablation zone of glaciers, where the rate of snow cover is reducing. Meltwater can be ...
compensates for the seasonal decrease in precipitation. As glaciers retreat they will provide less summer runoff. The Cascades north of Snoqualmie Pass have 756 glaciers covering of terrain. For comparison, the entire
contiguous United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...
has about 1,100 glaciers in total, covering .


Ecology

The North Cascades has a diversity of plant species. It contains more than 1630
vascular plant Vascular plants (), also called tracheophytes () or collectively Tracheophyta (), form a large group of land plants ( accepted known species) that have lignified tissues (the xylem) for conducting water and minerals throughout the plant. They al ...
species There are eight distinct
life zone The life zone concept was developed by C. Hart Merriam in 1889 as a means of describing areas with similar plant and animal communities. Merriam observed that the changes in these communities with an increase in latitude at a constant elevation ar ...
s that support thousands of plants separately and in their own way. Traveling west to east through the range, one would intersect a number of distinct ecoregions, first getting higher and colder, then getting warmer, yet drier. Each of these component ecoregions can be described by either a tree
indicator species A bioindicator is any species (an indicator species) or group of species whose function, population, or status can reveal the qualitative status of the environment. The most common indicator species are animals. For example, copepods and other sma ...
, or by a lack of trees:
Western hemlock ''Tsuga heterophylla'', the western hemlock or western hemlock-spruce, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, with its northwestern limit on the Kenai Peninsula, Alaska, and its southeastern limit in northern Sonoma ...
,
silver fir Silver fir is a common name for several trees and may refer to: *''Abies alba ''Abies alba'', the European silver fir or silver fir, is a fir native to the mountains of Europe, from the Pyrenees north to Normandy, east to the Alps and the Car ...
, subalpine
mountain hemlock ''Tsuga mertensiana'', known as mountain hemlock, is a species of hemlock native to the west coast of North America, found between Southcentral Alaska and south-central California. Description ''Tsuga mertensiana'' is a large evergreen conifer ...
,
Alpine tundra Alpine tundra is a type of natural region or biome that does not contain trees because it is at high elevation, with an associated alpine climate, harsh climate. As the latitude of a location approaches the poles, the threshold elevation for alp ...
,
subalpine fir ''Abies lasiocarpa'', the subalpine fir or Rocky Mountain fir, is a western North American fir tree. Description ''Abies lasiocarpa'' is a medium-sized evergreen conifer with a very narrow conic crown, growing to tall, exceptionally , with a ...
, and
grand fir ''Abies grandis'' (grand fir, giant fir, lowland white fir, great silver fir, western white fir, Vancouver fir, or Oregon fir) is a fir native to the Pacific Northwest and Northern California of North America, occurring at altitudes of sea leve ...
/
Douglas-fir The Douglas fir (''Pseudotsuga menziesii'') is an evergreen conifer species in the pine family, Pinaceae. It is native to western North America and is also known as Douglas-fir, Douglas spruce, Oregon pine, and Columbian pine. There are three va ...
. The range also has a rich diversity of animals, including
bald eagle The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...
s,
wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; plural, : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been reco ...
,
grizzly bear The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America. In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...
s,
mountain lion The cougar (''Puma concolor'') is a large cat native to the Americas. Its range spans from the Canadian Yukon to the southern Andes in South America and is the most widespread of any large wild terrestrial mammal in the Western Hemisphere. ...
s and
black bear Black bear or Blackbear may refer to: Animals * American black bear (''Ursus americanus''), a North American bear species * Asian black bear (''Ursus thibetanus''), an Asian bear species Music * Black Bear (band), a Canadian First Nations group ...
s. The range is home to at least 75 species of mammals and 200 species of birds that either pass through or use the North Cascades for a breeding area. There are also 11 species of fish on the west side of the Cascades. Examples of amphibian species occurring in the North Cascades include the
western toad The western toad (''Anaxyrus boreas'') is a large toad species, between long, native to western North America. ''A. boreas'' is frequently encountered during the wet season on roads, or near water at other times. It can jump a considerable distan ...
(''Bufo boreas'') and the
rough-skinned newt The rough-skinned newt or roughskin newt (''Taricha granulosa'') is a North American newt known for the strong toxin exuded from its skin. Appearance A stocky newt with rounded snout, it ranges from light brown to olive or brownish-black on ...
(''Taricha granulosa''). The biodiversity of the area is threatened by
global climate change In common usage, climate change describes global warming—the ongoing increase in global average temperature—and its effects on Earth's climate system. Climate change in a broader sense also includes previous long-term changes to E ...
and invasive exotic plant species. These exotic plants thrive by utilizing manmade structures such as roads and trails. These invasive plants include the
diffuse knapweed ''Centaurea diffusa'', also known as diffuse knapweed, white knapweed or tumble knapweed, is a member of the genus ''Centaurea'' in the family Asteraceae. This species is common throughout western North America but is not actually native to the ...
(''Centaurea diffusa'') and
reed canary grass ''Phalaris arundinacea'', or reed canary grass, is a tall, perennial bunchgrass that commonly forms extensive single-species stands along the margins of lakes and streams and in wet open areas, with a wide distribution in Europe, Asia, northern ...
(''Phalaris arundinacea'').


History

On the United States side of the border, early inhabitants of the North Cascades included the Nooksack, Skagit, and
Sauk-Suiattle Sauk-Suiattle ( lut, saʔqʷəbixʷ-suyaƛ̕ʔbixʷ), or ''Sah-Ku-Me-Hu,'' is a federally recognized Native American tribe in western Washington state in the United States. The tribe historically lived along the banks of the Sauk, Suiattle, Cas ...
tribes on the west, and the
Okanagan people The ''Syilx'' () people, also known as the Okanagan, Okanogan or Okinagan people, are a First Nations and Native American people whose traditional territory spans the Canada–US boundary in Washington state and British Columbia in the Okanagan C ...
on the eastern side, with the
Nlaka'pamux The Nlaka'pamux or Nlakapamuk ( ; ), also previously known as the ''Thompson'', ''Thompson River Salish'', ''Thompson Salish'', ''Thompson River Indians'' or ''Thompson River people'', and historically as the ''Klackarpun'', ''Haukamaugh'', ''Kni ...
people of what is now Canada claiming hunting territory in the heart of the range, south across the border into Washington. The tribes living and using the range on the Canadian side of the border are the
Nlaka'pamux The Nlaka'pamux or Nlakapamuk ( ; ), also previously known as the ''Thompson'', ''Thompson River Salish'', ''Thompson Salish'', ''Thompson River Indians'' or ''Thompson River people'', and historically as the ''Klackarpun'', ''Haukamaugh'', ''Kni ...
, Sto:lo and the Upper and Lower Similkameen subgroups of the Okanagan. A now-extinct group known as the
Nicola Athapaskans The Nicola Athapaskans, also known as the Nicola people or Stuwix, were an Athabascan people who migrated into the Nicola Country of what is now the Southern Interior of British Columbia from the north a few centuries ago but were slowly reduced in ...
also inhabited and hunted in the area now occupied by the Similkameen. Many current geographic names in the region are derived from native terms, either by transliteration or translation. Beckey notes that "Many names were derived from Chinook Jargon, mostly applied by the
United States Forest Service The United States Forest Service (USFS) is an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 154 national forests and 20 national grasslands. The Forest Service manages of land. Major divisions of the agency inc ...
from 1910 to 1940...." Fur traders entered the area in the first half of the 19th century, coming from
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
and from Astoria on the
Columbia River The Columbia River (Upper Chinook: ' or '; Sahaptin: ''Nch’i-Wàna'' or ''Nchi wana''; Sinixt dialect'' '') is the largest river in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. The river rises in the Rocky Mountains of British Columbia, C ...
. One of the earliest was Alexander Ross of the
North West Company The North West Company was a fur trading business headquartered in Montreal from 1779 to 1821. It competed with increasing success against the Hudson's Bay Company in what is present-day Western Canada and Northwestern Ontario. With great weal ...
, who crossed the range in the summer of 1814, probably via
Cascade Pass Cascade Pass (formerly also known as Skagit PassOregon Country Oregon Country was a large region of the Pacific Northwest of North America that was subject to a long dispute between the United Kingdom and the United States in the early 19th century. The area, which had been created by the Treaty of 1818, co ...
gave way following partition along the 49th Parallel to a period of tentative
U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...
exploration in tandem with violent subjugation of Indian tribes on the American side of the frontier in the second half of the century. With the partition, the
Hudson's Bay Company The Hudson's Bay Company (HBC; french: Compagnie de la Baie d'Hudson) is a Canadian retail business group. A fur trading business for much of its existence, HBC now owns and operates retail stores in Canada. The company's namesake business div ...
was forced to seek an alternative to its older
Brigade Trail The Hudson's Bay Brigade Trail, sometimes referred to simply as the Brigade Trail, refers to one of two routes used by Hudson's Bay Company fur traders to transport furs, goods and supplies between coastal and Columbia District headquarters at Fort ...
via the
Okanogan River The Okanogan River (known as the Okanagan River in Canada) is a tributary of the Columbia River, approximately 115 mi (185 km) long, in southern British Columbia and north central Washington. It drains a scenic plateau region called th ...
and the construction of a new route over the northern spine of the Canadian Cascades from the area of
Spuzzum Spuzzum is an unincorporated settlement in British Columbia, Canada. Because it is on the Trans-Canada Highway, approximately north of the community of Hope, it is often referred to as being "beyond Hope". Environment Spuzzum lies in a constrict ...
into the valley of the Coldwater River to connect
fort Langley Fort Langley is a village community in Township of Langley, British Columbia, Canada. It has a population of approximately 3,400 people. It is the home of Fort Langley National Historic Site, a former fur trade post of the Hudson's Bay Company ...
on the lower Fraser with its northern posts in
New Caledonia ) , anthem = "" , image_map = New Caledonia on the globe (small islands magnified) (Polynesia centered).svg , map_alt = Location of New Caledonia , map_caption = Location of New Caledonia , mapsize = 290px , subdivision_type = Sovereign st ...
. The route was impracticable and was soon abandoned, though more southerly routes through what is now
Manning Park E.C. Manning Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. It is usually referred to as Manning Park, although that nomenclature is also used to refer to the resort and ski area at the park's core. The park covers 83,671 hecta ...
laid the foundations for later routes such as the
Dewdney Trail The Dewdney Trail is a trail in British Columbia, Canada that served as a major thoroughfare in mid-19th century British Columbia. The trail was a critical factor in the development and strengthening of the newly established British colony of Bri ...
and the modern
Crowsnest Highway The Crowsnest Highway is an east-west highway in British Columbia and Alberta, Canada. It stretches across the southern portions of both provinces, from Hope, British Columbia to Medicine Hat, Alberta, providing the shortest highway connection b ...
via
Allison Pass Allison Pass (el. ) is a highway summit along the Crowsnest Highway in British Columbia, Canada. It is the highest point on the highway between the cities of Hope and Princeton. It is located in the middle of Manning Park, at the divide between ...
, and was later similar to a route via the
Coquihalla Pass Coquihalla Summit (el. ) is a highway summit along the Coquihalla Highway in British Columbia, Canada. It is the highest point on the highway between the cities of Hope and Merritt. It is located just south of the former toll booth plaza on the ...
for its southern mainline. South of the boundary, reconnaissance for possible
railroad Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport that transfers passengers and goods on wheeled vehicles running on rails, which are incorporated in tracks. In contrast to road transport, where the vehicles run on a pre ...
routes (none of which were viable north of the one eventually put in over Stevens Pass, at the southern edge of the North Cascades) and various mining rushes. Miners dominated the exploration and development of the range from the 1880s through the early 20th century. For example, mines around the boomtown of Monte Cristo, in the southwest portion of the North Cascades, produced "between $1 and $2.7 million in silver and gold". The Holden Mine, on the east side of the main divide, produced 106,000 tons of copper and 600,000 ounces of gold. Discovery of gold by American prospectors on the banks of the
Thompson River The Thompson River is the largest tributary of the Fraser River, flowing through the south-central portion of British Columbia, Canada. The Thompson River has two main branches, the South Thompson River and the North Thompson River. The river ...
at its confluence with the
Nicoamen River The Nicoamen River is a tributary of the Thompson River in the southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, located upstream from its confluence with the Thompson at Lytton. The Nicoamen forms the extreme northeast boundary of the Cascade Mount ...
, at the northern tip of the range, helped trigger the
Fraser Canyon Gold Rush The Fraser Canyon Gold Rush, (also Fraser Gold Rush and Fraser River Gold Rush) began in 1858 after gold was discovered on the Thompson River in British Columbia at its confluence with the Nicoamen River a few miles upstream from the Thompson's c ...
of 1858-1860 which in turn prompted the declaration of the
Colony of British Columbia The Colony of British Columbia refers to one of two colonies of British North America, located on the Pacific coast of modern-day Canada: *Colony of British Columbia (1858–1866) *Colony of British Columbia (1866–1871) See also *History of Br ...
to affirm British possession of territories north of the 49th Parallel. The Fraser rush led to exploration of the Cascades to the east of the canyon and in the valley of the
Similkameen River The Similkameen River runs through southern British Columbia, Canada, eventually discharging into the Okanagan River near Oroville, Washington, in the United States. Through the Okanagan River, it drains to the Columbia River. The river is said ...
, with minor rushes in the area of
Princeton, British Columbia Princeton (originally Vermilion Forks) is a town in the Similkameen region of southern British Columbia, Canada."The rich history of Princeton or how Vermilion Forks made it on the map...", Princeton 2008 Visitors Guide, p. 4. It lies just east o ...
in 1859 through the early 1860s and the creation of non-native towns (on top of much older native ones) at
Boston Bar Boston Bar is an unincorporated community in the Fraser Canyon of the Canadian province of British Columbia. Name The name dates from the time of the Fraser Canyon Gold Rush (1858–1861). A "bar" is a gold-bearing sandbar or sandy riverbank, and ...
, Lytton and Hope, as well as Princeton. Early settlers also arrived in the foothills of the North Cascades in the latter half of the 19th century, and utilized the range in a limited way as a source of timber and grazing land. However, the range is so rugged that this exploitation was less dramatic than in other more gentle landscapes. Early recreational use of the range included expeditions by the local
climbing Climbing is the activity of using one's hands, feet, or any other part of the body to ascend a steep topographical object that can range from the world's tallest mountains (e.g. the eight thousanders), to small boulders. Climbing is done fo ...
clubs, The Mountaineers and The Mazamas. These groups did not fully explore the inner reaches of the range and ascend the most difficult peaks until the 1930s and 1940s. It was not until the 1970s, that most peaks were climbed in the most isolated areas, making it one of the last explored ranges in the contiguous United States.


Climbing

The North Cascades are often referred as the "American Alps" by hikers, climbers and mountaineers because of the sea of steep, jagged peaks that span across the range. This range's rugged approaches and exceptional alpine terrain make it a premiere training ground for mountain climbers.


Protected areas

Chief among the protected areas in Washington is
North Cascades National Park North Cascades National Park is an American national park in the state of Washington. At more than , it is the largest of the three National Park Service units that comprise the North Cascades National Park Complex. North Cascades National Par ...
, occupying much of the area between
Mount Baker Mount Baker (Lummi: '; nok, Kw’eq Smaenit or '), also known as Koma Kulshan or simply Kulshan, is a active glacier-covered andesitic stratovolcano in the Cascade Volcanic Arc and the North Cascades of Washington in the United States. Mount ...
and the Cascade divide. Contiguous with the Park are
Ross Lake National Recreation Area Ross Lake National Recreation Area is a US national recreation area in north central Washington just south of the Canada–US border. It is the most accessible part of the North Cascades National Park Complex which also includes North Cascades ...
and
Lake Chelan National Recreation Area Lake Chelan National Recreation Area is a national recreation area located about south of the Canada–US border in Chelan County, Washington. It encompasses an area of including the northern end of Lake Chelan and the surrounding area of the ...
. Designated
wilderness area Wilderness or wildlands (usually in the plural), are natural environments on Earth that have not been significantly modified by human activity or any nonurbanized land not under extensive agricultural cultivation. The term has traditionally re ...
s in the range include: *
Mount Baker Wilderness Mount Baker Wilderness is a wilderness area within the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest in the western Cascade Range of northern Washington state. Its eastern border is shared with the boundary of the Stephen Mather Wilderness and North ...
*
Glacier Peak Wilderness Glacier Peak Wilderness is a , , wilderness area located within portions of Chelan, Snohomish, and Skagit counties in the North Cascades of Washington. The area lies within parts of Wenatchee National Forest and Mount Baker National Forest ...
*
Boulder River Wilderness Boulder River Wilderness is a wilderness area within the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest in the western Cascade Range of Washington state. Topography Boulder River Wilderness is made up of dense forests and steep ridges that rise to ...
* Henry M. Jackson Wilderness, *
Lake Chelan-Sawtooth Wilderness The Lake Chelan-Sawtooth Wilderness is a protected wilderness area located within the Okanogan and Wenatchee national forests in Washington State. The wilderness borders Lake Chelan National Recreation Area and North Cascades National Park an ...
* Noisy-Diobsud Wilderness *
Pasayten Wilderness The Pasayten Wilderness is a protected area located within Okanogan–Wenatchee National Forest and Mount Baker National Forest in Washington state, centered on the Three Forks () of the Pasayten River, a tributary of the Similkameen River. Al ...
*
Stephen Mather Wilderness The Stephen Mather Wilderness is a wilderness area honoring Stephen Mather, the first director of the National Park Service. It is located within North Cascades National Park, Lake Chelan National Recreation Area, and Ross Lake National Recreat ...
*
Wild Sky Wilderness The Wild Sky Wilderness is a wilderness area in the western Cascade Range of Washington state. The wilderness is within the Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest north of the U.S. Highway 2 towns of Index and Skykomish. The wilderness flan ...
In British Columbia, protected areas include *
Skagit Valley Provincial Park Skagit Valley Provincial Park is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada, centred on the Skagit River and its tributaries. The park is 27,964 Hectares. The park borders E. C. Manning Provincial Park in Canada and Ross Lake National Recreati ...
* E.C. Manning Provincial Park *
Cascade Recreation Area The Cascade Recreation Area was a Provincial Parks of British Columbia, Provincial Recreation Area in the Hozameen Range of the Cascade Mountains of British Columbia, Canada, located north of and was added to E.C. Manning Provincial Park in 2010.
*
Cathedral Provincial Park Cathedral Provincial Park and Protected Area, usually known as Cathedral Provincial Park and also as Cathedral Park, is a provincial park in British Columbia, Canada. It is located east of E.C. Manning Provincial Park, south of BC Highway 3, an ...
*
Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park, popularly called the Othello Tunnels is a provincial park located near Hope, British Columbia focused on the canyon of the Coquihalla River and a decommissioned railway grade, now a walking trail, leading eventu ...


See also

* Ptarmigan Traverse


Notes


References

* * * * * * *


External links

* , including the Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas {{Authority control . Cascades north Cascades north