North Cascades Highway Now Open

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Yesterday at 8 a.m. on May 1, the North Cascades Highway officially opened. Each year, the Washington State Department of Transportation spends several weeks plowing this route through the North Cascades. This year's opening was a bit later than usual, but not bad considering the heavy snow pack we had this winter. The forecast looks good for the next week or so, but drivers should always be prepared for additional snowfall and closures. You can find current pass report info here.

So, now that the highway's open, you're itching to hike the North Cascades, right? Well, not quite yet. Just about every trail in North Cascades National Park is under snow, even the easy day hike at Thunder Knob, which isn't far from the highway. Unless you're into snowshoeing (and check in at a North Cascades visitor center to get the latest avalanche condition report) there's not a heck of a lot open for hiking just yet.

Pushing eastward to the Methow Valley, you might have better luck. I've never tried it, but Patterson Mountain, which is described in Craig Romano's new Day Hiking North Cascades guidebook, is a great early-season wildflower hike not far from Sun Mountain Lodge. Read a WTA trip report here, or buy Day Hiking North Cascades for the full write-up. It's a 3.7-mile trip that starts off of the Twin Lakes Road just outside of the town of Winthrop. The trailhead is just opposite of the Patterson Lake boat ramp. Now is the time to go: wildflowers, including bitterroot, should be abundant.

If you have kids in tow and you're over in the Methow Valley, you might try taking a guided children's nature walk in the shrub-steppe ecoystems in Pearrygin Lake State Park. The free hike is Sat. May 17 from 10-11 a.m. and hosted by the Methow Conservancy. More info here.