I arrived at North Cascades National Park. It’s an interesting park, in that it’s just a road crossing the mountains, and you don’t even need a park pass to visit. But it does deliver jaw dropping scenery around every turn!

This is definitely the grandest trail sign I’ve seen. It was a sweet trail with a suspension bridge and a grove of cedars along the Skagit River in Newhalem.

I followed it with another NCNP hike at Gorge Creek Falls. It’s on the site of a 1920s hydroelectric power station and you have to cross a long suspension bridge to get there. The path goes up many many (many) stairs to a pretty waterfall. There are trails and stairs winding all around the hillside behind the plant. I don’t know why the power company built all that but it made for a good workout!

This color, right? Diablo Lake in the north Cascades. All the water up here is this turquoise blue and so cold and clear.

More happy tootsies. I took a short hike at Rainy Pass to Rainy Lake. The hike in is only about a mile, along a flat broad trail. There were only a few people here, once again the glory of weekday adventures. I was able to enjoy a peaceful moment with my thoughts. And my thoughts were, wow wow wow, I am so lucky to be here right now!

I met a couple there who were visiting from Australia but were originally from Ukraine. They have family there still. It is hard to hold these two worlds in my mind, so amazing and so horrible at the same moment.

One more for now. These mountains!!

I sacked out at Lone Fir Campground, where I had yet another wonderful, unreserved, peaceful campsite.