Mt Baker Wilderness

The morning started out cloudy but we are learning that by mid morning the clouds break up and the sun appears. A scenic drive was on tap today so down I5S to Lake Whatcom Blvd (Exit 253) which took us through forest and past lots of tree farms. The road led through little towns like Van Zandt and we followed the lake road along the edge of Lake Whatcom. It’s a typical lake community with nice homes lining the banks. Sudden Valley Golf Course came up on our right, but it’s too wet to play after all the rain we’ve had. The south end of the lake had a number of old camps and as we passed we could smell the smoke from the woodstoves.

We turned onto Rte 9 N toward the old logging town of Deming and home of the Nooksack Indian Tribe. The road passes several dairy farms and is very busy with cattle and logging trucks. The Stewart Mountains are on our left and there are patches of blue sky while the Twin Sister Range on our left is completely hidden in clouds. We had only planned to do a small part of this scenic drive, but it was so beautiful driving along the Nooksack River we decided to keep going.

At the junction of Rte 9 and the Mount Baker Highway (Rte 542) we turned right. The road wound in and out of sleepy settlements like Maple Fall with the sign “last gas” before entering the Mt. Baker Wilderness. The sunbeams were streaming through the thick trees as we rolled along. Soon we saw a sign for Nooksack Falls. Turning right down a gravel side road we could hear the cascading water before we saw it. We had the place to ourselves as we watched the river rush out of the forest, over smooth gigantic boulders and fall to the river below. This was one of the prettiest falls we’ve seen on our trip. At the bottom this cascade was joined by a second one and all of the water went crashing through the rocks into the river. The sound was thunderous.

Back on the road it became narrow and climbed switching back and forth. We watched the temperature go from 44 to 38 in minutes. We reached 3,000 feet and there was snow on the ground. It got deeper as we climbed further passing Goat Mountain (6,891 ft) and Mt Sefrit (7,191 ft). The views were spectacular. Continuing up we reached the Panorama Dome and Mt Baker Ski Area at 5,000 ft. Now it has started to snow and sleet so we decided it was time to head back down. It was like we had entered another world up here. On the way down we could see areas where snow had slid down the mountain due to melting.

On the way back we stopped at the Harvest Moon Bakery. It was just a little A frame, but the sign said New England Clam Chowder - hmm- lets see if it really is. We met a young girl in the parking lot from Vermont and talked as we walked to the bakery. She was going to school out here. Inside we ordered the chowder and went to sit in the sun outside on the deck. The owner asked where we were from and when we told him, he said he wanted our honest opinion…..ok. Well the chowder was great and he was happy.

Back at camp we relaxed and decided to go to Anthony’s on Bellingham Bay. Very nice restaurant, but I wouldn’t call it a relaxing place. The atmosphere was nice but the whole place seemed chaotic. However, the food was very good - great Halibut. After dinner we walked along the harbor and watched the sun set. It was another perfect day

Pictures: Nooksack River going to falls, Nooksack Falls, 2nd Falls, Road to Mt Baker Ski Area, Mt Baker 4000 ft, Road to the top, Mt Baker Slide Area, View of Goat Mountain, Harvest Moon Bakery, Sunset over Bellingham Bay