Glacier Peak Wilderness
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| Glacier Peak Wilderness | |
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| IUCN Category Ib (Wilderness Area) | |
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| Location: | Washington, USA |
| Nearest city: | Seattle, WA |
| Coordinates: | |
| Area: | 572,000 acres (2315 km²) |
| Established: | 1964 |
| Governing body: | United States Forest Service |
The Glacier Peak Wilderness, created by Congress in the original 1964 wilderness legislation, is located within portions of Chelan County, Snohomish County, and Skagit Counties in the North Cascades of Washington. The area, 572,000 acres (2315 km²) in size, 35 miles (56 kilometers) long and 20 miles (32 kilometers) wide, is characterized by heavily forested stream courses, steep sided valleys, and dramatic glacier-crowned peaks. Forest vegetation is comprised of several species of fir, Douglas-fir, hemlock, redcedar as well as stands of mixed pine and Douglas-fir on its eastern slopes. Various species of wildlife inhabit the area and include deer, elk, black bear, mountain goat, cougar, marten, and lynx. Smaller animals, such as field mice are common. The high mountain lakes often give good catches of fish during their ice-free months. The primary fishery is cutthroat trout, however, other species do exist.
Most years the Wilderness is still buried under 10-20 feet (3-6 m) of snow in May. Usually most trails and passes are snow free by mid-August, but this varies from year to year. Snow and cold rain can occur in mid-summer.
No roads approach Glacier Peak, and one must hike many miles through extremely rough terrain to reach its base. Normally, Hikers can reach the volcano from the west via the White Chuck Valley, or the Suiattle River Valley; from the east, it may be approached from the western tip of Lake Chelan. However, on October 20, 2003, there was a record-setting flood event when over 10 inches (250 mm) of rain fell on the Wilderness. The warm rain melted snow and ice driving massive amounts of water, trees and debris into the rivers. Downstream, roads, bridges, campgrounds and trails were damaged and destroyed. The destruction was particularly devastating to the Pacific Crest Trail (PCT). Eight trail bridges and one stream ford on a 30-mile section of the trail below Glacier Peak were destroyed. Little or no evidence remains that some of these bridges ever existed. The two most notable losses were bridges over the Upper White Chuck River and the Suiattle River. Both crossings are dangerous fords under the best of conditions. Additionally, five major trails that provided access to the PCT in the area sustained varying degrees of damage from fairly light (North Fork Skykomish Trail) to severe (White Chuck Trail). Kennedy Hot Springs was buried in a mudslide and completely destroyed.
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[edit] External links
- USFS home page of Wilderness (adapted PD source)
- USFS web page about flood damage (adapted PD source)
