North Cascades
Stop 35 of 51 on the loop. Stay in Winthrop WA, give it 2 nights, and plan the day around WA-20 / Diablo Lake.
- State
- WA
- Stay in
- Winthrop WA
- Nights on this route
- 2
- Month on this route
- June
- Don't miss
- WA-20 / Diablo Lake
- Getting here
- 265 mi from Ashford WA, about 6 h 20 min.
- Next stop
- Glacier, 455 mi, about 9 h 56 min.
About the Park
Less than three hours from Seattle, an alpine landscape beckons. Discover communities of life adapted to moisture in the west and recurring fire in the east. Explore jagged peaks crowned by more than 300 glaciers. Listen to cascading waters in forested valleys. Witness a landscape sensitive to the Earth's changing climate. Help steward the ecological heart of the Cascades.
Description from the National Park Service.
Where to Stay
On this route you sleep in Winthrop WA. Gateway towns have more lodging, groceries and fuel than the park itself. If you want an in-park lodge instead, the busiest parks book up as early as 13 months out.
Entrance Fees
The NPS lists no entrance fee for this park. Tours, ferries, parking or campgrounds may still cost money.
An $80 America the Beautiful annual pass covers entry at every national park; on a trip like this it pays for itself after three parks. Fees from the NPS, checked 2026-10-18.
Nearby Parks
- Mount Rainier about 147 mi as the crow flies
- Olympic about 151 mi as the crow flies
- Glacier about 284 mi as the crow flies
Official site: https://www.nps.gov/noca/. Route data checked 2026-10-19.