Travel

Water Cascades Down the Mountains in This Breathtaking National Park

And pools at the bottom in emerald lakes.

Lidija Kamansky/Moment/Getty Images
Lidija Kamansky/Moment/Getty Images
Lidija Kamansky/Moment/Getty Images

Welcome to National Parks Uncovered, where we’ll help you discover the beauty of America’s most underrated (and least-crowded) national parks-from sweeping landscapes where you can get up close and personal with mountains, glaciers, and volcanoes, to sunny paradises hiding out near major cities like Chicago and LA. To find out what natural wonders you’ve been missing out on, check out the rest of the package here.About two hours from Seattle, a spectacular land awaits. Amid the greenery of Northern Washington, Highway 20 veers through a valley of fertile fields and quiet farmlands. Onward, the road meanders between gently rolling foothills along the icy-green waters of the upper Skagit River (where you might spot a bald eagle or two). Then suddenly, right around the puny town of Marblemount, something magnificent appears ahead: the land shoots up to the sky with the lush forests and snow-capped peaks of the North Cascade Mountains.

Here, the highway gains elevation fast, curving past the Diablo Dam at Newhalem-the last clutch of habitations for more than 200 miles-and by the time you come upon the expansive, green surface of Ross Lake, you’re really up in the thick of it: the North Cascades National Park. There are dramatic mountain peaks left and right. Douglas Fir, Ponderosa Pine, and Western Red Cedar abound as far as the eye can see. And around just about every turn in the road there seems to be another gush of water cascading down the slope. These are the bursts of glacial runoff from which the region takes its name.

Having arrived at this natural wonderland, you’ve got a full buffet of outdoor activities to feast from. Hiking through world-class trails spanning quick jaunts to extensive backcountry treks, perhaps? Or maybe you prefer small-craft water fun on the many lakes and rivers scattered about the area. Or if you like to cruise on two wheels (whether via motor or pedal power), you’ll quickly find out why bikers and cyclists come from all over the globe to blast over the pass. Maybe you’d prefer simply to kick back at camp and enjoy the stars sans light pollution, for the closest city is a long ways away. Whatever the case, North Cascades delivers an outstanding outdoor experience. Here’s what to do once you’ve climbed the road to the peaks.

Alan Majchrowicz/Stone/Getty Images
Alan Majchrowicz/Stone/Getty Images
Alan Majchrowicz/Stone/Getty Images

Pick your season

Washington State is rather famous for its unpleasantly drizzly weather in fall and winter, meaning that late-spring and summer tend to be the best time to visit-but that statement comes with a few caveats.

First of all, winter is certainly not off-limits. While Highway 20, which passes through the national park, closes annually once the heaviest snows hit, many winter sport enthusiasts elect to drive the long way around to the rear of the park via Highway 90 to take advantage of the remote, relatively untouched powder.

And while summer is prime time in the Cascades, these days it’s advisable to come somewhat earlier in the season. After about mid-July the fire danger looms, and while that likely poses no direct danger to visitors, burn bans do go into effect. In other words, if you’re eager for roasting s’mores, then you should shoot for the time between mid-May and mid-summer.

If you’re flexible with your campfire needs, however, the period spanning mid-May to mid-September tends to be generally glorious.

Zi Yang Lai/Moment/Getty Images
Zi Yang Lai/Moment/Getty Images
Zi Yang Lai/Moment/Getty Images

Drive to sweeping vistas

Perhaps the most common way visitors experience the park is simply by spending the day road tripping through it. Along its roughly five-hour round-trip route, you’ll encounter numerous opportunities to pull off and take in the splendors of nature from well-placed viewpoints. These are, simply put, a photographer or nature-lover’s dream.Standout stop-offs include the Gorge Lake Overlook, Diablo Lake Vista Point, and the sprawling views of the Ross Lake Overlook. From this last option, you can get a glimpse of Desolation Peak, which became famous after Jack Kerouac spent a summer working on it as a fire watch, an experience he immortalized in The Dharma Bums and Desolation Angels. You can actually hike your way to the peak itself, though it is something of an undertaking (more on that below).

At the apex of the park-well, really just east of its bounds, but we’re going to go ahead and lump it in, because it’s an essential part of the experience-is the Washington Pass Overlook. With its expansive view of one of Highway 20’s key hairpin turns and Liberty Bell Mountain looming gorgeous off in the distance, it’s a must-see. The short, paved path to the viewpoint also makes for a pleasant place to get out of the car and stretch your legs.

 

Cavan Images/Cavan/Getty Images
Cavan Images/Cavan/Getty Images
Cavan Images/Cavan/Getty Images

Stroll through pines and peaks

The entirety of North Cascades National Park is crisscrossed with hiking trails of widely varying difficulty levels from short, easy jaunts to extensive backcountry roams. Do your research to make sure you know what you’re getting into before you hit the trails, but here are a few suggestions ordered from easiest to most difficult.

On the western edge, Trail of the Cedars Nature Walk is a flat, short trail (a mere third of a mile) that will bring you through old-growth forest along the Skagit River. Further up the highway, the two-mile-long Rainy Lake is a paved path that will bring you to a lovely viewpoint from which you can look over the diverse landscape of the upper-Skagit. A little further up the road, Thunder Knob clocks in at just under four miles, and with its moderate climb in elevation, it makes for a solid family hike through the thin cedar forest that emerges at a vantage over Ross Lake.

Maple Pass Loop-which is the longer route that breaks off Rainy Lake-steps up the difficulty with a 7.2-mile route of rapid ascension. Pack your fitness with you, because it’s a real leg-acher. But you will be rewarded with mind-blowing views of the entire park.

The aforementioned Desolation Peak hike is definitely no slouch. When Kerouac did it, he had the help of pack mules. Much of it can be simplified by taking a boat across Ross Lake, but things get steep for 10 miles from there. If you decide to forego the boat shortcut, you tack on another 16 miles. It’s a great hike for literary and nature enthusiasts who are prepared to put in some hard walking.

If you’re willing to work even harder for some of the best views in the park, the 12-mile stretch of Cascade Pass and Sahale Arm will provide. But be warned: with its rough, uneven terrain and rapid ascent, this is for more experienced hikers.

Go boating on glacial lakes

If you feel like hitting the water, boating-on a small scale-is an option.

Ramps at both lake Diablo and Ross allow you to put in smaller, quieter launches like kayaks, canoes, or boats with small-bore engines (four-stroke max) that can be used for exploring and camping along the far shores, or fishing. Speaking of fishing, the season spans July 1 to October 31, during which you’ll have the opportunity to catch some of the region’s native rainbow trout.

Ross Lake Resort will provide portage for the duration of your visit, and rents out small motorboats if you don’t have your own.

Stuart Westmorland/Royalty-free/Getty Images
Stuart Westmorland/Royalty-free/Getty Images
Stuart Westmorland/Royalty-free/Getty Images

Where to stay in North Cascades National Park

When it comes to accommodations, you basically have two options: shack up in one of the small towns on the eastern or western edges of the park, or camp in one of the handful of campgrounds within it.A number of campgrounds can be reached via boat on Ross Lake, while others require extreme backcountry hiking, but there are several attractive options that are easily accessible along the highway. Colonial Creek Campground is the most popular of these. Not only does it have a well-planned camping area with forested sites that provide reasonable privacy, it also provides central access to trails, viewpoints, and nearby lakes and streams.

There are zero hotel accommodations in or directly adjacent to the park itself, but lodgings can be found a short drive away in Marblemount on the west side, or (more desirably, in my humble opinion) to the east in Winthrop and Twisp. The trifecta of Winthrop, Twisp, and Mazama (otherwise known as the Methow Valley: and that’s “met-ow,” not “meth-ow”) is a charming area that serves as the ideal jumping-off point for whatever outdoor activity happens to be your pleasure.

Travel

Ditch your Phone for ‘Dome Life’ in this Pastoral Paradise Outside Port Macquarie 

A responsible, sustainable travel choice for escaping big city life for a few days.

nature domes port macquarie
Photo: Nature Domes

The urge to get as far away as possible from the incessant noise and pressures of ‘big city life’ has witnessed increasingly more of us turn to off-grid adventures for our holidays: Booking.com polled travellers at the start of 2023 and 55% of us wanted to spend our holidays ‘off-grid’.  Achieving total disconnection from the unyielding demands of our digitised lives via some kind of off-grid nature time—soft or adventurous—is positioned not only as a holiday but, indeed, a necessity for our mental health. 

Tom’s Creek Nature Domes, an accommodation collection of geodesic domes dotted across a lush rural property in Greater Port Macquarie (a few hours’ drive from Sydney, NSW), offers a travel experience that is truly ‘off-grid’. In the figurative ‘wellness travel’ sense of the word, and literally, they run on their own independent power supply—bolstered by solar—and rely not on the town grid. 

Ten minutes before you arrive at the gates for a stay at Tom’s Creek Nature Domes, your phone goes into ‘SOS ONLY’. Apple Maps gives up, and you’re pushed out of your comfort zone, driving down unsealed roads in the dark, dodging dozens of dozing cows. Then, you must ditch your car altogether and hoist yourself into an open-air, all-terrain 4WD with gargantuan wheels. It’s great fun being driven through muddy gullies in this buggy; you feel like Laura Dern and Jeff Goldblum in Jurassic Park.  As your buggy pulls in front of your personal Nature Dome, it’s not far off that “Welcome…to Jurassic Park” jaw-dropping moment—your futuristic-looking home is completely engulfed by thriving native bushland; beyond the outdoor campfire lie expansive hills and valleys of green farmland, dotted with sheep and trees. You’re almost waiting to see a roaming brachiosaurus glide past, munching on a towering gum tree…instead, a few inquisitive llamas trot past your Dome to check out their new visitor. 

To fully capture the awe of inhabiting a geodesic dome for a few days, a little history of these futuristic-looking spherical structures helps. Consisting of interlocking triangular skeletal struts supported by (often transparent) light walls, geodesic domes were developed in the 20th century by American engineer and architect R. Buckminster Fuller, and were used for arenas. Smaller incarnations have evolved into a ‘future-proof’ form of modern housing: domes are able to withstand harsh elements due to the stability provided by the durable materials of their construction and their large surface area to volume ratio (which helps minimize wind impact and prevents the structure from collapsing). As housing, they’re also hugely energy efficient – their curved shape helps to conserve heat and reduce energy costs, making them less susceptible to temperature changes outside. The ample light let in by their panels further reduces the need for artificial power. 

Due to their low environmental impact, they’re an ideal sustainable travel choice. Of course, Tom’s Creek Nature Domes’ owner-operators, Cardia and Lee Forsyth, know all this, which is why they have set up their one-of-a-kind Nature Domes experience for the modern traveller. It’s also no surprise to learn that owner Lee is an electrical engineer—experienced in renewable energy—and that he designed the whole set-up. As well as the off-grid power supply, rainwater tanks are used, and the outdoor hot tub is heated by a wood fire—your campfire heats up your tub water via a large metal coil. Like most places in regional Australia, the nights get cold – but rather than blast a heater, the Domes provide you with hot water bottles, warm blankets, lush robes and heavy curtains to ward off the chill.

nature domes port macquarie
Photo: Nature Domes

You’ll need to be self-sufficient during your stay at the Domes, bringing your own food. Support local businesses and stock up in the town of Wauchope on your drive-in (and grab some pastries and coffee at Baked Culture while you’re at it). There’s a stovetop, fridge (stocked as per a mini bar), BBQs, lanterns and mozzie coils, and you can even order DIY S’More packs for fireside fun. The interiors of the Domes have a cosy, stylish fit-out, with a modern bathroom (and a proper flushing toilet—none of that drop bush toilet stuff). As there’s no mobile reception, pack a good book or make the most of treasures that lie waiting to be discovered at every turn: a bed chest full of board games, a cupboard crammed with retro DVDs, a stargazing telescope (the skies are ablaze come night time). Many of these activities are ideal for couples, but there’s plenty on offer for solo travellers, such as yoga mats, locally-made face masks and bath bombs for hot tub soaks. 

It’s these thoughtful human touches that reinforce the benefit of making a responsible travel choice by booking local and giving your money to a tourism operator in the Greater Port Macquarie Region, such as Tom’s Creek Nature Domes. The owners are still working on the property following the setbacks of COVID-19, and flooding in the region —a new series of Domes designed with families and groups in mind is under construction, along with an open-air, barn-style dining hall and garden stage. Once ready, the venue will be ideal for wedding celebrations, with wedding parties able to book out the property. They’ve already got one couple—who honeymooned at the Domes—ready and waiting. Just need to train up the llamas for ring-bearer duties! 

An abundance of favourite moments come to mind from my two-night stay at Tom’s Creek: sipping champagne and gourmet picnicking at the top of a hill on a giant swing under a tree, with a bird’s eye view of the entire property (the ‘Mountain Top picnic’ is a must-do activity add on during your stay), lying on a deckchair at night wrapped in a blanket gazing up at starry constellations and eating hot melted marshmallows, to revelling in the joys of travellers before me, scrawled on notes in a jar of wishes left by the telescope (you’re encouraged to write your own to add to the jar). But I’ll leave you with a gratitude journal entry I made while staying there. I will preface this by saying that I don’t actually keep a gratitude journal, but Tom’s Creek Nature Domes is just the kind of place that makes you want to start one. And so, waking up on my second morning at Tom’s —lacking any 4G bars to facilitate my bad habit of a morning Instagram scroll—I finally opened up a notebook and made my first journal entry:

‘I am grateful to wake up after a deep sleep and breathe in the biggest breaths of this clean air, purified by nature and scented with eucalyptus and rain. I am grateful for this steaming hot coffee brewed on a fire. I feel accomplished at having made myself. I am grateful for the skittish sheep that made me laugh as I enjoyed a long nature walk at dawn and the animated billy goats and friendly llamas overlooking my shoulder as I write this: agreeable company for any solo traveller. I’m grateful for total peace, absolute stillness.” 

Off-grid holiday status: unlocked.

Where: Tom’s Creek Nature Domes, Port Macquarie, 2001 Toms Creek Rd
Price: $450 per night, book at the Natura Domes website.

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