Trails › United States of America › Washington › North Cascades
The Great North Cascades Traverse
Next nearby hike: Fisher-Thunder-Park-Cascade Cross-Park Trek 1.3 mi · 2.0 kmExplore North Cascades →
The Great North Cascades Traverse other trails nearby (tap a dot to open it)
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© OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL) · Full route · OpenStreetMap · Basemap: OpenFreeMap (OpenMapTiles, © OSM contributors).
7-day forecast
Open-Meteo (CC BY 4.0)Best time to hike
Best months: Jun–Sep · highs 12–17 °C (54–63 °F)
- J-5°-10°390
- F-3°-10°264
- M0°-8°226
- A3°-6°143
- M7°-3°98
- J12°1°85
- J17°4°52
- A17°4°52
- S13°1°92
- O5°-4°272
- N-2°-9°460
- D-6°-12°400
Average high °C · low °C · precipitation mm per month. Highlighted: best months.
How we pick months
Best months are those where the 1981–2010 average daily high is 10–27 °C (50–81 °F), the average overnight low is 0 °C (32 °F) or warmer, and average precipitation is 200 mm (7.9 in) or less. Values are long-term monthly averages for the ~1 km cell at the trail point on the map, from CHELSA V2.1 climatologies (Karger et al., CC0), not a forecast. Higher or more exposed parts of a route can be colder, wetter or snowier.
About this trail
The Great North Cascades Traverse is a regional hiking route in North Cascades National Park, Washington, United States of America, about 169 km (105 mi) in length. It is in the North Cascades. It lies about 54 km northeast of Darrington.
Short summary written from the trail facts on this page.
Trail facts
- Length (signed)
- 169 km · 105 mi (OSM distance tag)
- Mapped length
- 84 km · 52 mi (OSM route, Waymarked Trails)
- Mountain range
- North Cascades (Cascade Range › Pacific Coast Ranges; GMBA)
- Nearest town
- 54 km NE of Darrington (Snohomish County, Washington) · GeoNames
- Park or forest
- North Cascades National Park
- Best months
- Jun–Sep
- Country
- United States of America
- Region
- Washington
- Continent
- North America
- Route type
- Regional route
- Operator (OSM)
- North Cascades Natinoal Park
- Route centre
- 48.5819, -120.9905
- Route start
- 48.4990, -120.9630
- OpenStreetMap
- relation 4815933
- Official info
- nps.gov/noca/planyourvisit/long-distance-backcou
How it’s scored
Hikers can rate difficulty from 1 to 10 (1 = flat, short, easy walk for anyone; 3 = gentle hills, a little effort; 5 = moderate climbs, some fitness needed; 7 = steep or long, solid fitness required; 10 = extremely strenuous or technical; long steep climbing; experienced hikers only). The community average is shown once at least 3 people have rated the trail; until then the official or computed score is used when we have one.
More trails in the North Cascades
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distance from the trail startFisher-Thunder-Park-Cascade Cross-Park Trek
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Horseshoe Basin Trail
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Cascade Pass Trail
3.5 mi · 5.6 km · North Cascades National Park
Sahale Arm Trail
4.4 mi · 7.0 km · North Cascades National Park
Upper Stehekin Valley Trail
4.4 mi · 7.0 km · North Cascades National Park
All trails in Washington → · All 36,834 trails in United States of America →