Big Beaver Valley

The Big Beaver Valley is one of my favorite places in the world. I’ve been there maybe six times, and it never disappoints. Big Beaver sits behind Ross Lake, in the North Cascades National Park, many miles from the nearest road. Big Beaver Valley has been designated a natural research area in the National Park, and it is just plain amazing. I did my weekend run there on Saturday.
-
To get there, you have to go to Mile Marker 134 on Highway 20, which is roughly an hour and half east of Mount Vernon. I got up at 4:30 Saturday morning and headed out, coffee in hand, and saw a fox on the way up. The road was empty at that hour, which is pleasant. To get to the valley itself, you can either catch a boat ride from the Ross Lake Resort (which I have done—it’s easy); or cross the dam and run on the West Bank trail for 7 miles, which I did this time. This is a relatively easy run, sort of like the East Baker Lake Trail, but it does have its ups and downs and ankle burner rocks to look out for.
-
Spectacular stuff. Ross Lake itself is really beautiful--it's actually the Skagit River, and the lake is a reservoir formed by the dam. Ross Lake reaches into Canada. The Big Beaver Valley holds the biggest grove of old growth red cedars in the lower 48, according to one guidebook. Real monsters. Some are over a 1000 years old, big, with gnarly bark, glow in the dark moss, and real personalities. Also, the Valley has a bright green river running down it, with the most amazing wetlands, and some fire scorched mountains across the way. I saw a big owl in flight, a jack rabbit, a mule deer, some black squirrels, and the remains of a big bird, feathers and bones scattered on the trail. Also, I saw a bunch of interesting plants—weird mushrooms, vascular plants, wildflowers. There’s much to be said—this place is just amazing. Here are some ok photos below—I do these with my phone--and a link to the National Park’s writeup.
-
http://www.nps.gov/noca/planyourvisit/big-beaver-trail.htm
-
You can take the Big Beaver Trail all the way to Canada, Bellingham, just about anywhere, via some junctions in the middle of the Park, but right now it’s still snowed in at the Pass. I made it a little beyond 39 Mile Camp, five miles up the valley, after which there were downed logs everywhere. The total distance on my “run” was roughly 25 miles. I ate Skittles, GU, and risked beaver fever with the glacial runoff streams. I carried some emergency gear as well, but traveled light. It is a five to six hour run, going casually, but I spent an extra hour kicking around in the Valley, looking at plants and trees. I was home by 4 PM.
-
I’m planning on doing a few other long runs up this way this summer, including maybe Desolation Peak, where Jack Kerouac spent a summer, and a Sourdough Mountain loop of 25 miles. Also, it’s roughly 45 miles to cross the park point to point, which is a possibility. Next up, the Stanley Park Seawall this week, as I’ll be in Vancouver; and maybe Seafair next Sunday.
-