a gorgeous view, you might see military jets making practice runs through what they call “Star Wars Canyon.” At Mesquite Flat Sand Dunes you can make an easy 2-mile hike along the largest dune field in the park. Just beyond the dunes is the Salt Creek Interpretive Trail, a wooden boardwalk that leads through a salt marsh habitat for a rare species of pupfish. Zabriskie Point, just a quarter mile off Hwy 190, features a spectacular panorama of golden-colored badlands that are especially beautiful at sunrise and sunset. An element of the park’s history can be explored at the Harmony Borax Works, where processing ruins and an original 20-mule team wagon remind visitors that the mineral used as a household cleaner was once the most profitable resource mined in the park. The nearby Furnace Creek Visitor Center offers park information, restrooms and refreshments. Saving the best until last, we’ll take a short but sweet 9-mile loop around Artists Drive. This cluster of rainbow-colored hills features rocks in striking shades of greens, oranges, reds, and pinks that are most dramatic just before dusk. Vehicles exceeding 25 feet in length are prohibited due to sharp turns.
One of the most remote, rugged and least-visited of America’s 63 nationals parks, North Cascades National Park offers plenty of backcountry camping possibilities.
Washington’s North Cascades National Park is home to more than 300 glaciers, many of which are popular among backcountry hikers and skiers.
North Cascades Highway, North Cascades National Park, Washington
North Cascade Highway traverses North Cascades National Park—one of the most remote, rugged and least visited national parks in the contiguous United States. Located about three hours east of Seattle, the 30-mile highway (SR 20) takes roughly an hour to drive, in one direction only, east to west. It offers stunning views of rocky snowcapped peaks, roaring waterfalls, and icy alpine glaciers. The park is home to more than 300 glaciers. Requisite stops include the park’s visitor center, just past Goodall Creek Campground, where you can obtain maps and park information, George Creek Falls, a 242-foot-tall waterfall best viewed from a pedestrian walkway, and the Happy Creek Forest Walk, a short, comforting stroll through a serene old-growth forest. Farther along, the overlook at Diablo Lake provides panoramic views of the ice-blue glacial lake, as well as trail access to view Ross Lake, the Davis Peaks, and Jack Mountain.
For more information: https://www.nps.gov/deva 760-786-3200
North Cascades Highway reveals stunning views of glacier-carved valleys and rocky snow-capped peaks.
EIGHT GREAT NATIONAL PARK SCENIC DRIVE
COAST TO COAST MAGAZINE SPRING 2023 | 17
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