Attachment F_NOCA Foundation Document.pdf

Foundation Document Overview North Cascades National Park Service Complex Washington

Contact Information For more information about the North Cascades National Park Service Complex Foundation Document, contact: noca_superintendent@nps.gov or 360-854-7200 or write to:

Superintendent, North Cascades National Park Service Complex, 810 State Route 20, Sedro-Woolley, WA 98284

NATIONAL PARK SERVICE • U.S. DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR

Backpacker crossing Indian Creek (photo by Erin McKay)

North Cascades National Park Service Complex (also referred to herein as “the complex”) is located in Washington State along the Canadian border, approximately 100 miles northeast of Seattle, in Whatcom, Skagit, and Chelan Counties.

North Cascades National Park Service Complex comprises three units that, together, protect approximately 680,849.5 acres in the North Cascades:

North Cascades National Park 501,199 acres

Ross Lake National Recreation Area 116,752.4 acres

Lake Chelan National Recreation Area 62,898.1 acres

The complex encompasses a vast “sea of peaks” replete with more than 300 glaciers, sawtoothed rock pinnacles, myriad creek and riverine systems, alpine meadows, and vast expanses of wilderness. Its rugged topography supports a diversity of life. Ancient cedars, Chinook salmon, bald eagles, marmots, mountain goats, bears, and more than 3,000 other identified species of mammals, birds, fish, amphibians and reptiles, vascular and non-vascular plants, fungi, and insects share and are dependent on this diverse and expansive landscape. Human evidence spans almost 10,000 years of habitation, use, and technological development.

The complex is one of many publically owned and protected lands in the region. Others managed by the U.S. Forest Service include the Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest to the east and south and Mount Baker-Snoqualmie National Forest to the west. In Canada, Chilliwack Lake Provincial Park, Skagit Valley Provincial Park, and Manning Provincial Park are directly north of Ross Lake National Recreation Area and are managed by British Columbia Parks.

Ninety-four percent of the complex is part of the legislatively designated Stephen Mather Wilderness, which, when combined with adjacent U.S. Forest Service designated wilderness, protects two million acres of contiguous wilderness. Designated wilderness adjacent to the complex contributes to the extensive nature of the North Cascades ecosystem, making it part of the largest contiguous designated wilderness in Washington State and one of the largest in the lower 48 States. Contiguous designated wilderness areas include Mount Baker, Pasayten, Noisy-Diobsud, Lake Chelan-Sawtooth, Glacier Peak, Henry M. Jackson, and Wild Sky.

The following principles are important in guiding the management of resources and values in North Cascades National Park Service Complex:

• Stewardship. North Cascades National Park Service Complex strives to use science in making informed decisions. This science-based stewardship advances our knowledge and appreciation of the North Cascades.

• Partnerships. North Cascades National Park Service Complex views partnerships as integral to achieving the purposes of North Cascades National Park, Ross Lake National Recreation Area, and Lake Chelan National Recreation Area.

• Transboundary Ecosystem Management. Through its relationship with the Skagit Environmental Endowment Commission and interactions with British Columbia Ministry of the Environment, the U.S. Forest Service, and other parties, North Cascades National Park Service Complex is dedicated to the pursuit of cooperative transboundary activities focused on a wide range of visitor, resource, and operational issues.

• Operations. North Cascades National Park Service Complex maintains park operations at a level that is commensurate with best practices for visitors’ and residents’ experiences, which include safety, enjoyment, and education.

Description

Park Map

North C as cades S cen ic H w y (C lo sed in w in te r)

NORTH CASCADES NATIONAL PARK

NORTH UNIT ROSS LAKE

NRA

Pacific Crest National Scenic

Trail

Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail

LAKE

CHELAN

NRA

NORTH CASCADES

NATIONAL PARK

SOUTH UNIT

Chilliwack Lake

Lake Shannon

Diablo Lake

Ruby Arm

Lake Ann Rainy

Lake

Hozomeen Lake

Gorge Lake

Thornton Lakes

Redoubt Glacier

Eldorado Glacier

Boston Glacier

Trapper Lake

Lake Chelan

Skagit

Skagit

S auk

S uiattle

Lake

Lake

R oss

B ak er

R iver

R iver

R iver

River

B acon

C reek

Ruby

Creek

C reek

Tw isp

River

River

CreekBridge

Creek

Railroad

G ranite

Little Beaver

B eaver

Big

Creek

Creek

Creek

Arc tic

C reek

G o o dell

Stehekin

Ferry

British ColumbiaWashington

CANADAUNITED STATES

North

0 10 Miles5

10 Kilometers5

Picnic area

Campground Wheelchair accessible

Ranger stationHiking trail

Unpaved road

20Forbidden Peak

Eldorado Peak 8672ft 2703m

Cascade Pass 5384ft 1641m

Sahale Mt.

Johannesburg Mountain

Pyramid Peak

7182ft 2189m

Bacon Peak 7067ft 2154m

Ruby Mountain

Devils Dome 6982ft 2128m

Desolation Peak

6102ft 1860m

McMillan Spire

Castle Pass

Hopkins Pass

Woody Pass

Holman Pass

Harts Pass

Methow Pass

Liberty Bell Mt.

7808ft 2380m

Copper Pass

War Creek Pass

Twisp Pass

Booker Mt.

Sourdough Mountain 6106ft 1861m

Mount Challenger 8248ft 2512m

Mount Redoubt 8957ft 2730m

Mount Despair 7293ft 2223m

Mount Terror 7151ft 2484m

Mount Triumph 7271ft 2216m

Damnation Peak 5643ft 1720m

Purple Mountain

Castle Rock 8137ft 2480m

Buckner Mountain 9080ft 2768m

Boston Peak

Glacier Peak 10528ft 3209m

Dome Peak 8595ft 2679m

White Chuck Mountain 6935ft 2114m

Early Winter Spires

Goode Mountain 9206ft 2806m

Fourth of July Pass 3501ft 1067m

Easy Pass 6562ft 2000m

Mount Formidable 8324ft 2537m

Hozomeen Mt.

8068ft 2459m

Mount Fury 8291ft 2527m

Mount Prophet 7579ft 2310m

Jack Mountain 9065ft 2763m

Crater Mountain 8127ft 2477m

Beaver Pass 3619ft 1103m

Rainy Pass 4860ft 1481m

Mount Baker 10775ft 3248m

To Glacier (USFS/NPS information) 4mi 6km

Mount Shuksan 9131ft 2783m

To Mazama 8mi

13km

To Hope, B.C.

40mi 64km

To Information Center at Park Headquarters and Sedro Woolley 23mi 37km

To Fields Point and Chelan via passenger ferry

CONCRETE

DARRINGTON

MARBLEMOUNT

NEWHALEM

DIABLO

ROCKPORT

STEHEKIN

HOLDEN

LUCERNE

Baker Dam

Upper Baker Dam

Ross Dam

Diablo Dam

Gorge Dam

MANNING

PROVINCIAL PARK

MOUNT BAKER

WILDERNESS

MOUNT BAKER

WILDERNESS

PASAYTEN WILDERNESS

M O U N T B A K E R -

S N O Q U A L M I E

N AT I O N A L F O R E S T

M O U N T B A K E R -

S N O Q U A L M I E

N AT I O N A L F O R E S T

( A d m i n i s t e re d b y O k a n o g a n N F )

O K A N O G A N

N AT I O N A L

F O R E S T

LAKE

CHELAN-

SAWTOOTH

WILDERNESS

M O U N T B A K E R -

S N O Q U A L M I E

N AT I O N A L F O R E S T

G L A C I E R P E A K W I L D E R N E S S

W E N AT C H E E N AT I O N A L F O R E S T

Heather Meadows Visitor Center

Rockport State Park

Gorge Creek

Falls

Newhalem Creek

Ross Lake Overlook

Colonial Creek

Goodell Creek

Rainy Pass

Stehekin Landing North Cascades Stehekin Lodge Golden West Visitor Center

Washington Pass Overlook

Diablo Lake Overlook

North Cascades

Visitor Center

Ross Lake

Resort

Wilderness Information Center Backcountry permits

S

KAGIT

GORGE

PIC

KET R

A N

G E

River

Road

C ascade

Cottonwood

Shady

Harlequin

Weaver Point

Moore Point

Purple Point

Rainbow Falls

Old Stehekin School Buckner Place

Dolly Varden

High Bridge Tumwater

Bullion

Park CreekFlat Creek

Glory

Hozomeen

Bridge Creek

Shuttle-bus route

Black Warrior Mine

Cascade Pass Trail

Company Creek Trail

Devore Creek Trail

Twisp Pass Trail

Valley

Mountain

Loop

H ighw ay

Lakeshore Trail

Road

Cascade Monkeyflower (NPS photo)

Diving into Ross Lake (photo by Mike Cook)

Significance statements express why North Cascades National Park Service Complex resources and values are important enough to merit national park unit designation. Statements of significance describe why an area is important within a global, national, regional, and systemwide context. These statements are linked to the purpose of the park unit, and are supported by data, research, and consensus. Significance statements describe the distinctive nature of the park and inform management decisions, focusing efforts on preserving and protecting the most important resources and values of the park unit.

• North Cascades Landscapes. The North Cascades range reaches its finest expression in North Cascades National Park Service Complex, where a dense concentration of jagged glaciated peaks tower above alpine meadows, old growth forests, and deep valleys resulting in supremely majestic scenery.

• Glaciers. North Cascades National Park Service Complex contains more glaciers than any other protected area in the contiguous United States, representing one-quarter of all glaciers in the lower 48 States. Glacial meltwater supports ecosystems, communities, and industries in the Puget Sound and lower Columbia River basins.

• Ecosystem and Biodiversity. North Cascades National Park Service Complex encompasses extreme gradients of climate and topography that contribute to an impressive diversity of habitats and species. This area is the core of a vast mountain ecosystem of protected public lands spanning the border of the United States and Canada.

The ecological integrity of North Cascades National Park Service Complex and the greater North Cascades ecosystem depend on one another.

The purpose of North CasCades NatioNal Park is to preserve a dynamic wilderness landscape of dramatic alpine scenery including a vast expanse of glaciated peaks, countless cascading streams, and deep forested valleys for the benefit and inspiration of all.

The purpose of ross lake NatioNal reCreatioN area is to conserve the scenic, natural, and cultural values of the Upper Skagit River Valley and surrounding wilderness, including the hydroelectric reservoirs and associated developments, for outdoor recreation and education.

The purpose of lake ChelaN NatioNal reCreatioN area is to conserve the scenic, natural, and cultural values of the Lower Stehekin Valley, Lake

Chelan and surrounding wilderness, and outdoor recreation and education while respecting the character of the remote Stehekin community.

SignificancePurpose

Climbing Eldorado (photo by Rob Burrows)

• Research and Education. North Cascades National Park Service Complex provides educational and scientific opportunities that support the understanding and preservation of complex resources and values while contributing to public enjoyment and understanding.

• Skagit River. The Skagit is the largest river draining into Puget Sound, with glacial meltwater helping to stabilize river flows to the benefit of all native species of anadromous salmonids. The Skagit has one of the highest concentrations of wintering bald eagles in the lower 48 States.

• Recreation in Ross Lake National Recreation Area.

Ross Lake National Recreation Area accommodates people with a wide range of interests and abilities and provides a variety of high-quality outdoor recreation opportunities, such as hiking the quick transition from scenic highway corridor into wilderness, boat-accessible campgrounds, fishing and hunting, and recreational continuity across the Canadian border.

• Water-Based Recreation. North Cascades National Park Service Complex provides diverse water-based opportunities allowing visitors to experience scenic reservoirs, lakes, and rivers amidst a mountain wilderness.

There are opportunities to raft and fish the Skagit, Stehekin, and other wild and scenic waterways and to navigate Ross, Diablo, and other large serene water bodies with small motorized and nonmotorized watercraft.

• Lake Chelan. Set in a glacier-carved trough nestled between steep valley walls, Lake Chelan is the nation’s third deepest lake. Fed by the Stehekin River and other glacial melt, it is known for its exceptionally cold and clear water.

• Recreation in Lake Chelan National Recreation Area.

Lake Chelan National Recreation Area provides a spectrum of recreational opportunities that transition from highly mechanized to primitive as one moves from the lake, up the Stehekin Valley, and into the wilderness.

• Stehekin. Within Lake Chelan National Recreation Area, Stehekin is a community that provides visitors with an opportunity to see and experience life in a remote setting that is not accessible by roads and is surrounded by wilderness.

• Wilderness. Envisioned as a wilderness area from its inception, North Cascades National Park Service Complex is part of more than two million acres of federally designated wilderness, one of the largest such areas in the lower 48 States. The Stephen Mather Wilderness and other adjacent wilderness areas were designated to preserve and enhance the qualities of wilderness character.

• Wilderness Recreation. North Cascades National Park Service Complex provides the wilderness traveler with great challenges of physical endurance, route-finding, snow and ice travel, and navigation through on- and off-trail hiking.

The complex contains climbing routes of high quality and aesthetic appeal, guarded by remote, rugged terrain and volatile weather, that provide mountaineering experiences of solitude, mental and physical challenge, and fulfillment.

• Culture and History. Preserved in North Cascades National Park Service Complex is abundant evidence of almost 10,000 years of cultural and technological development. This long history reveals a range of human adaptations to changing climates and environments at all elevations of the North Cascades. Imprinted on the rugged landscape is a legacy of exploration and human occupation. Associated tribal communities retain an enduring connection to the land through traditional uses, material culture, and oral histories.

Significance

Fundamental resources and values are those features, systems, processes, experiences, stories, scenes, sounds, smells, or other attributes determined to merit primary consideration during planning and management processes because they are essential to achieving the purpose of the park and maintaining its significance.

• North Cascades Landscapes. North Cascades landscapes, defined by majestic mountain scenery that includes alpine meadows, countless cascades, towering mountains, and forested valleys, were formed by dynamic ecological and geophysical processes that are still active in the complex today. Natural soundscape, dark night skies, and good air quality predominate, supporting natural ecosystem function and providing an unrivaled wilderness experience.

• Glaciers. Glacial and hydrologic processes that shaped the mountains in the past are still at work today. The complex contains more than 300 active glaciers, including ice fields, cirque glaciers, and hanging glaciers, that create unique microclimates and habitats and are dramatic indicators of climate change.

• Ecosystem and Biodiversity. Extensive tracts of intact habitat, dramatic variability in geology and climate, good air and water quality, and predominantly unimpeded and dynamic ecosystem processes such as fire, flooding, mass wasting, and avalanches all contribute to the outstanding mosaic of habitats and biological communities that make up the North Cascades Ecosystem. The low-elevation old-growth forests along major drainages, extensive alpine meadows maintained by heavy snowfall, and water-associated habitats including glaciers, snowfields, lakes, ponds, tarns, wetlands, rivers, and streams support a diversity of native species and wildlife communities. These distinctive ecological conditions are essential in maintaining a number of rare and listed species, viable populations of resident terrestrial species and anadromous fish species, and habitat for mammal species with extensive home ranges such as wolves, wolverines, fishers, and grizzly bears.

• Wilderness. The North Cascades and its community of life exist as a functioning natural ecosystem that is anchored by more than 2.2 million acres of contiguous, designated wilderness that extends beyond the borders of the complex.

The Stephen Mather Wilderness retains its primeval nature and remains essentially unhindered and free from human control and manipulation; however, important historic structures are preserved. The mixed terrain of the complex, from valley floors and subalpine meadows to glaciers, snowfields, couloirs, and rocky escarpments of solid gneiss and granite, provides for rich wilderness experiences. Extremely rugged terrain and vast areas without trails provide opportunities for exploration, solitude, and unconfined recreation.

• Culture and History. The North Cascades have long inspired history, legends, and traditions, and human experiences in the North Cascades landscape span millennia. Ancient archeological sites within the boundaries of the complex include stone tool quarries, campsites, resource use areas, and rock art at sites such as Desolation Quarry, Stehekin Pictographs, and Cascade Pass that preserve 10,000 years of history. The European-American history of exploration, settlement, extraction, and recreation is preserved at such places as the Buckner Homestead Historic District, Desolation Fire Lookout, and High Bridge Ranger Station. Furthermore, the complex preserves the history of the North Cascades through its collections of artifacts, photographs, historic documents, geological and biological specimens, and oral histories.

Fundamental Resources and Values

Copper Lookout (photo by Abby Sussman)

Rafting the Skagit River (NPS photo)

Diablo Dam (photo by Rob Burrows)

• Access to Authentic Education and Research. The complex provides access to a robust array of authentic resources for education and scientific research in partnership with public and private groups. Staffed interpretive and educational facilities, publications, wayside exhibits and signs, museum collections, interpretive programs, and access to resources support the complex’s educational role. Five research natural areas, the research station, and the museum collection support its research role.

• Diverse Recreation. North Cascades National Park Service Complex has attracted generations of visitors to recreate in its majestic mountain scenery, vast wilderness, and numerous reservoirs, lakes, and waterways. Visitor services and facilities, such as trails, overlooks, campsites, fishing platforms, accessible facilities, and the scenic North Cascades highway, provide for a broad range of visitor experiences, abilities, interests, and needs.

Ross Lake and Lake Chelan National Recreation Areas provide exceptional settings for visitors to experience dispersed lakeshore camping, boating, fishing, hunting, and travel with stock animals. Opportunities for climbing, mountaineering, and backcountry travel abound in the Stephen Mather Wilderness. Trails including the Pacific Crest National Scenic Trail and the Pacific Northwest National Scenic Trail connect the complex with other wilderness areas within the Pacific Northwest.

• Skagit River. The fresh, cold water of the Skagit River is fed by glaciers, snowfields, groundwater, and seasonally abundant rainfall. The river’s in-stream and riparian habitats support an assemblage of terrestrial and aquatic species, including five species of salmon. The river is a year-round destination for whitewater rafting, fishing, and eagle watching. The Skagit River and other associated tributaries are eligible for designation as wild and scenic rivers.

• Lake Chelan and Stehekin River. Clear, cold, exceptionally deep waters characterize Lake Chelan, and the pristine, free-flowing nature of the Stehekin River makes it eligible for designation as a wild and scenic river.

Serving as a primary gateway to the mountains from the south, these water bodies offer remarkable fishing and boating opportunities and a rare perspective on both historic and modern land uses.

North Cascades National Park Service Complex contains other resources and values that may not be fundamental to the purpose and significance of the park, but are important to consider in management and planning decisions. These are referred to as other important resources and values.

• Stehekin. The character of the Stehekin community and the diversity of its public experiences are defined and preserved by its remote and private setting, inaccessibility by roads, and encapsulation by wilderness.

• Hydropower Landscape. The architectural style and scale of infrastructure associated with the Skagit and Newhalem Hydroelectric Projects allowed for engineering accomplishments but left a minimally developed footprint beyond the hydroelectric infrastructure, enabling the future creation of a national park experience in the North Cascades.

Fundamental Resources and Values

Interpretive themes are often described as the key stories or concepts that visitors should understand after visiting a park—they define the most important ideas or concepts communicated to visitors about a park unit. Themes are derived from—and should reflect—park purpose, significance, resources, and values. The set of interpretive themes is complete when it provides the structure necessary for park staff to develop opportunities for visitors to explore and relate to all of the park significances and fundamental resources and values.

• North Cascades Landscape, Ecosystem, and Biodiversity. Geological and ecological processes have sculpted a “sea of peaks” that provides a great range of elevations, variability in climate, and variety of habitats to which thousands of plant and animal species have adapted and which often inspire human curiosity and wonder at the diversity of life.

• Glaciers, Rivers, and Lakes. More than 300 glaciers and a vast array of glacial-fed rivers, tributaries, and lakes, including eligible wild and scenic waterways such as the Stehekin and Upper Skagit Rivers, and Goodell and Newhalem Creeks, have carved a natural landscape that links high mountain wilderness to the sea and ensures adequate flows of water that sustain wild and human life.

• Wilderness. The Stephen Mather Wilderness is part of a national and international resource that is essential to the spirit and health of many people, a critical anchor to the past and the natural world, a refuge for native species— present and future—and a superlative opportunity for personal challenge and exploration.

• Culture and History. For thousands of years, humans have played an integral role in both the Stehekin and Skagit valleys; from native peoples, pioneers, explorers, and entrepreneurs to current visitors, people have found and continue to find refuge, challenge, resources, and inspiration in the North Cascades.

• Research and Education. As a library, laboratory, and classroom, North Cascades National Park Service Complex invites us to explore and understand the natural world and our place in it and apply the acquired knowledge to regional, national, and global challenges.

• Climate Change. The rapid pace of human-caused, long-term changes in climate—higher temperatures, lower snowpack, and altered precipitation patterns— imperils the North Cascades ecosystem and may irreparably alter species diversity, natural fire regimes, economics, and recreation; our actions and their consequences will determine the health of these essential ecosystems and our own survival.

• Outdoor Recreation. Whether hiking the trails, climbing the precipitous peaks, navigating the Skagit and Stehekin Rivers, or exploring Ross, Diablo, Gorge, or Chelan Lakes, the broad spectrum of recreational activities in the North Cascades provides exceptional opportunities for personal challenge, exploration, and renewal in a beautiful and wild setting where outcomes can be uncertain.

Cover photo: Hidden Lake (photo by Will Tarantino)

Interpretive Themes

Thunder Creek (NPS photo)Mountain Goat (NPS photo)