Matt & Taja's visit + hiking on Mount Baker

Sadly, Matt and Taja are long gone; it was great having them around. I've been lazy (actually, trying to find a job), but I've finally uploaded some pics taken during their visit.

This is a two-part entry, so...

On Saturday, Anya and I took a trip to Mt. Baker; click here for those photos.

Mount Baker (10,778') is another of the Cascade volcanoes - of the same ilk as Rainier & St. Helens - about 90 miles north of Seattle. Compared to Mount Rainier, Baker is shorter, less prominent, and less visible - it takes an exceptionally clear day to see it from Seattle. Perched amidst the North Cascades (the 'American Alps'), Baker still gets its fair share of visitors due to its beautiful natural surroundings and spectacular alpine scenery. Its real claim to fame, however, is its ample amounts of snow.

Mount Baker is the snowiest place in the world. There's a ski area at 4300' that averages about 600" of snow per year (yes, that's 50 feet) which is the highest snowfall of any ski area in the world. In the winter of 1998-99 they received 1140" (that's 95 feet of snow), which is more snow than has ever been recorded in a single year anywhere on Earth.

These mountains take the brunt of storms blowing in from the Pacific Ocean, so winter (as you and I would define it) lasts about 9 months of the year - even at a relatively modest 6,000 feet in elevation. Spring comes in mid-July here, and you'll see that the flowers are starting to bloom.

Of course all that precipitation isn't possible without plenty of clouds. We didn't actually see Mt Baker when we visited; at least not the summit area. It was shrouded in clouds despite everywhere else being sunny. The picturesque peak you see in our photos is actually Baker's non-volcanic 9,127-foot neighbor, Mt. Shuksan.

As you can see, there is still plenty of snow left at 5,140' at the top of the dead-end Mount Baker Highway. The pictures at the beginning are from a place called Artist Point; the later ones are from a very scenic valley nearby in an area called Bagley Lakes.