Winthrop, camping!

September 26-October 1, 2021

This very late September camping trip turned out to be perfect, with perfect weather. You never know in autumn, up in the high mountains, in northern Washington State, and with a campground that is just a bit on the east side of the mountains (usually hotter in summer but much colder in winter). You never know … but … this trip was great.

Besides the perfect weather, friends of mine and I had planned this trip so we could bring our two “Escape” trailers and hang out together for a week or so. It was fantastic. 🙂

So, where’s Winthrop? Where did we go? Here’s the map of Washington State …

“HOME” is down near Olympia, WA, at the south end of Puget Sound. I drove north on the major I-5 freeway (the solid red line), up to Burlington, then turned east onto highway 20 which is known as the “north cross state highway” (or “north Cascades highway”) because there is no road further north of this road that crosses the mountains (the Cascade Mountains). In the winter, the “north cross state highway” is closed because of snow and ice and danger of avalanches, etc. So we kept checking the weather … we were fine. 🙂

The solid red line on the map above is the route I took from home at the beginning of the trip. I’m getting so I really don’t like driving on I-5, even without the trailer in tow. There are a bazillion cars, and a whole mess of major cities to go through, the highway is old enough that it has not been widened to accomodate the amount of traffic, and so many people seem so intent on getting somewhere really FAST! But I hadn’t been over that “north cross state highway” for about 35-40 years. I had a vague memory that it was beautiful. And I wanted to see it in autumn when it was particularly beautiful. So I decided to bite the bullet and drive up I-5 in order to drive across the “north cross state highway” this autumn. Oh boy, did I make the right choice … it was stunningly beautiful!

[NOTE … a week later, on my way home from this camping trip, I opted not to drive west to I-5, then south on I-5, but took the (dotted red) roads on the eastern side of the mountains south to where I could cut across a mountain pass closer to my home. The drive took a little longer but it was easier, calmer, had more trees and rivers to drive alongside, more small towns to enjoy, and there were thousands of places to pull over for a break, whereas on I-5 there are only two rest areas.]

So, let’s get going on this camping trip! I loved the drive across the northern Cascade Mountains on that “north cross state highway”. Oh, I loved it. It is so magnificent. As with most magnificent vistas, photos don’t do them justice. But I’ll share a few photos from one of the places where I pulled off the road after I was about half way across the mountains (but not quite up to the very top of the pass).

Even in late September, there’s still a bit of ice and snow on the rock walls. And there are LOTS of waterfalls. (Click on photos to enlarge them.)

 

 

Just to the right of where I had pulled off and parked was the river (below). The sounds of the river and the birds … and no traffic, no towns … heavenly. I scrabbled down the river bank and sat by the water for a long time.

This is the Skagit River, one of the longest rivers in the State of Washington (it starts up in Canada actually), it drains more water into Puget Sound than any other river in the state, it is the only river in Washington that has healthy populations of all five native Salmon, and it has the largest number of Bald Eagles in the entire contiguous USA. My mother was born in a small town on this river, in a home where she could see the river and play in the river as a child. This river means a lot to me.

Obviously, the Skagit up here in the mountains is a lot smaller than lower downstream, but it’s every bit as amazing.

 

Above, looking downstream. The green water is glacial melt.

And then further on up the road, up through the mountains and almost to the top of the pass, I drove into alpine timber/trees, close to the treeline. I pulled around one corner (below) and spied the mountain in the distance so, like lots of other folks here, I pulled over and snapped some photos. The western sun was behind me so I had a perfect view of the mountain.

 

I believe this mountain is called Stilleto Peak (7,660 feet). With Switchblade Peak and Jackknife Peak off-camera to the east of Stilleto, the names seem to fit! As fearsome and wondrous as these mountains are, they are among the smaller mountains of the Cascade Range in Washington.

Eventually, I drove on over the pass and then arrived in the small town of Winthrop, turned left, followed a road out into the country, then turned right and drove into the campground at Pearrygin Lake State park. In the photo below, you can see a bit of the lake reflecting the surrounding trees. It’s dry country here, except for areas directly adjacent to water.

But not to worry, the campground was right on the shore of the lake and was very green and lush and comfortable. Here’s the big white truck and Towhee the Trailer in their campsite … right on the edge of the lake.

I stepped outside the door of trailer and this was my view (below).

And then I stook a few steps to my left, to stand next to my big white truck, and there just around the corner, through the trees, were my friends in their Escape trailer already set up, with their view of the lake too.

Happy campers!

We see some interesting stuff here. Stay tuned. 🙂