North Cascades

North Cascades
Canadian Cascades
Mount Shuksan, one of the most picturesque peaks of the North Cascades
Highest point
Peak	Mount Baker
Elevation	3,286 m (10,781 ft)
Dimensions
Length	434.5 km (270.0 mi) North-South
Width	241 km (150 mi) East-West
Geography
Location map of the North Cascades and the Canadian Cascades
Countries	Canada and United States
Province/State	British Columbia and Washington
Parent range	Cascade Range
Borders on	Lillooet Ranges, Skagit Range

The North Cascades are a section of the Cascade Range of western North America. They span the border between the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. state of Washington and are officially named in the U.S. and Canada^[1] as the Cascade Mountains.^[2] 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 as far north as the town of Lytton, at the confluence of the Thompson and Fraser Rivers.

They are predominantly non-volcanic, but include the stratovolcanoes Mount Baker, Glacier Peak and Coquihalla Mountain, which are part of the Cascade Volcanic Arc.

Geography

The U.S. section of the North Cascades and the adjoining

The large amount of

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

The southern boundary of the North Cascades is less definite. For the purposes of this article, it will be taken as

Geologically, the rocks of the North Cascades extend south beyond Stevens Pass and west into the San Juan Islands. The significance of the geologic transitions to the Okanagan Highland to the east and the Interior Plateau and Coast Mountains to the north are less agreed upon.^[7]

Climate

The

• North Cascades
  • Skagit Range
    • Picket Range
  • Chuckanut Mountains
  • Entiat Mountains
  • Chelan Mountains
  • Methow Mountains (also called Sawtooth Ridge)
  • Skagit River Group

• Canadian Cascades
  • Skagit Range
    • Hope Mountains
    • Cheam Range
  • Hozameen Range
    • Bedded Range
  • Okanagan Range
  • Coquihalla Range (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 cutoff of 1,000 feet (300 m), in order to list only highly independent peaks.)

The following peaks are notable for their topographic prominence:

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.^[13]

Many tall waterfalls occur where meltwater from mountain glaciers drop down a

The bulk of the North Cascades consists of "deformed and

Rocks similar to those in the North Cascades continue north to the vicinity of Mount Meager massif in the Coast Mountains, where they abut the Stikinia Terrane of the Omineca-Intermontane Province that dominates the Interior Plateau 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

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 at the White River Fault Zone.^[7][19]

Glaciers

While

The Cascades north of Snoqualmie Pass have 756 glaciers covering 103 square miles (270 km²) of terrain. For comparison, the entire contiguous United States has about 1,100 glaciers in total, covering 205 square miles (530 km²).^[22]

Ecology

The North Cascades has a diversity of plant species.

On the United States side of the border, early inhabitants of the North Cascades included the

Miners dominated the exploration and development of the range from the 1880s through the early 20th century. For example, mines around the boomtown of

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.[32]

Protected areas

Chief among the protected areas in Washington is

• Mount Baker Wilderness
• Glacier Peak Wilderness
• Boulder River Wilderness
• Henry M. Jackson Wilderness,
• Lake Chelan-Sawtooth Wilderness
• Noisy-Diobsud Wilderness
• Pasayten Wilderness
• Stephen Mather Wilderness
• Wild Sky Wilderness

In British Columbia, protected areas include

• Skagit Valley Provincial Park
• E.C. Manning Provincial Park
• Cascade Recreation Area
• Cathedral Provincial Park
• Sx̱ótsaqel/Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park
• Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park
• Coquihalla Summit Recreation Area

See also

• Ptarmigan Traverse

Notes