Last weekend appeared as if it might be last chance I could get up to Mount Shuksan and Mt. Baker National Forest before the snows set in. So, with grand kids again, I went up to see the Fall colors and what happened to the plants that I saw on my last foray a couple of months ago.
This is largely a photo diary of Alpine scenery in the Mt. Baker National Forest and Wilderness Area.
Mount Baker (July 3, 2013)
As the snow melted sufficiently for the snow cats and plows to cut through, one of the most scenic spots in the North cascades, Artist Point was opened recently and afforded us its dramatic 360 degree view. At an elevation of 5,100 feet, Artist Point is situated between Mt. Baker, the live volcano and its neighbor, Mt. Shuksan, a non-volcanic, faulted behemoth. This area is rich in geologic history and features and as the authors of Hiking Washington’s Geology state:
“Standing in the parking lot at Artists Point, you can see as much geology in the 360 degree sweep as in almost any other location in the world.”
This 360 degree sweep from Artist Point is amateurishly illustrated in this iphone video. Standing in the parking lot at Artist Point, the sweep begins at Mt. Shuksan, moves to just seeing the top of Baker, then to Table Mountain, then to the north toward Canada, and finally back to Shuksan:
I was unable to imbed the video but here is URL on You tube) http://youtu.be/efE9hH-nlTI I will try to embed the video in a comment.