North Cascades National Park Service Complex - Backcountry Camps (U.S. National Park Service)

R Gwozdz

Backpackers set up camp at a designated site along the Boulder Creek Trail.

Backcountry camping is allowed throughout North Cascades National Park Service Complex. Within the trail and lake corridors, camping is allowed only in the designated sites. A list of all backcountry sites is below. For a key to explain the table, click here.

Cross-country camping is also allowed, but must be at least 1/2 mile from trails and one mile from designated camps. Camping is not allowed in high passes or on fragile vegetation.

Camp Name	Elev. (in feet)	Access	Camp Sites (number and capacity)	Toilet	Food Storage	Comments
39 Mile	1715	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
39 Mile Stock	1715	Stock	12	Pit	Hang
Basin Creek	3110	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Bear Box	No fires. Rebuilt in 2008, nowon west side of Basin Creek, separate cook area
Bear Creek	2260	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	Brushy, not well maintained
Beaver Pass	3654	Hiker	4,8	Pit	Hang
Beaver Pass Stock	3654	Stock	4	Pit	Hang
Bench Creek	3766	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Big Beaver	1604	Boat, Hiker	12,8,8,8,8,8,8	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Big Beaver Stock	1604	Stock	12	Pit	Bear Box
Boundary	4445	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Bear Box	No Fires
Boundary Bay	1622	Boat	8,8,12	Vault	Bear Box
Bowan	4383	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang	2nd site lost in the brush
Bridge Creek	2112	Hiker	4,4,4,4,4,4	Vault	Hang	Bear wire; stock use group camp - must highline and water via buckets
Bridge Creek Group	2112	Hiker, Stock	12,12	Vault	Bear Box	Stock parties must highline animals
Bullion	1616	Hiker	4,4	Vault	Bear Box
Buster Brown	1325	Boat	4,4,4	Vault	Hang	Dock
Cat Island	1637	Boat	4,4,4,12	Vault	Bear Box	Dock, No wood gathering on island
Copper Creek	3123	Hiker	4,4,4,4,4	Pit	Hang	Camp split; sites on both sides of creek
Copper Lake	5265	Hiker	4,4,4	Composter	Bear Box	No Fires, Fragile vegetation in area
Cosho	3988	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Cottonwood	2752	Hiker	4,4,4,4	Vault	Hang	Bear Wire
Cougar Island	1624	Boat	6,6	Vault	Bear Box	Dock, No wood gathering on island
Dagger Lake	5508	Hiker	12	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Dagger Lake Stock	5508	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Dan's	3971	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Deerlick Stock	1932	Stock	8	Pit	Hang
Desolation	5564	Hiker	8	Pit	Canister	No Fires; Bear can required; No water after snows melt
Devils Creek Stock	1807	Stock	8	Pit	Hang
Devils Hiker	1807	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang	Closest water source is at stock camp
Devils Junction	1673	Boat, Hiker	8	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Dry Creek	1617	Boat	4,4,4,12	Vault	Bear Box
Egg Lake	5173	Hiker	4,4,4	Composter	Bear Box	No fires
Fireweed	3635	Hiker	4,8	Pit	Hang	Bear wire
Fireweed Stock	3635	Stock	8,12	Pit	Hang
Fisher	5252	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang or canister	No Fires, High bear activity
Five Mile Stock	3940	Stock, Hiker	4,4,8	Pit	Hang	Flood damaged, rebuilt 2007
Flat Creek	2290	Hiker	2,2,2,4	Pit	Bear Box
Fourth of July	3438	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang	No Fires
Graybeal	3123	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Graybeal Stock	3123	Stock	12	Pit	Hang
Green Point	1686	Boat, Hiker	4,4,8,8,8	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Grizzly Creek	3133	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire; Camp washed away in 2003 floods
Grizzly Creek Stock	3133	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Harlequin	1210	Hiker	4,4,4,4,4,4	Vault	Bear Box
Harlequin Group	1210	Hiker	24	Vault	Bear Box	Oversize groups can reserve
Heaton Stock	7000	Hiker, Stock	12	Pit	Hang
Hidden Cove	1269	Boat	4	Vault	Hang	Dock
Hidden Hand	2276	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Hidden Meadows Stock	6498	Stock	12	Pit	Hang
Hideaway	3585	Hiker	12	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
High	6000	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire; No Fires; No water late in season
High Bridge	1653	Hiker	6,6	Vault	Bear Box
Hooter	2677	Hiker	4	None	Hang	No toilet - dig cathole; No Fires
Hozomeen Lake	2821	Hiker	4,4,8	Pit	Hang	Bear wire for large site only; Closed Apr. 1 - May 31 for nesting loons
Indian Creek	2352	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Johannesburg	3648	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang	No Fires; Located 200 yards before Cascade Pass trailhead
Juanita Lake	6676	Hiker	4,4	Composter	Hang	No Fires
Juanita Lake Stock	6676	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	No Fires
Junction	3129	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang	Bear bar for 1 site
Junction Stock	3129	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	Past Junction Camp on Thunder Creek Trail
Lightning Creek	1617	Boat, Hiker	8,8,8,12,8	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Lightning Creek Stock	1617	Boat, Stock	8,8	Vault	Bear Box
Little Beaver	1607	Boat, Hiker	4,8,8,8,12	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Little Chilliwack	2070	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang	Camp washed out, not maintained
Lodgepole	1656	Boat, Hiker	8,8,8	Vault	Bear Box
Luna	2518	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang
May Creek	1640	Boat, Hiker	6	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
May Creek Stock	1640	Stock	8	Pit	Hang	Hitch rails repaired
McAlester Lake	5547	Hiker	8,4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
McAlester Lake Stock	5547	Stock	8	Pit	Hang
McAllister	1900	Hiker	4,4,4,4,12	Pit	Hang	Camp rebuilt 2005
McAllister Stock	1900	Stock	8	Pit	Hang
McMillan	1679	Boat	8,8,12	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Monogram Lake	4872	Hiker	4,4	Composter	Bring Canister	No Fires; Lots of bears seen frequently
Neve	1381	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang	Camp rebuilt 2005
Newhalem Creek Stock	1800	Stock, Hiker	8	Pit	Hang	Camp not maintained, washed out
Nightmare	3142	Hiker	12	Pit	Hang
North Fork	2559	Hiker	12,4,4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire; Bears frequently in camp and have gotten food in the past
Panther	2460	Hiker	12	Pit	Hang
Park Creek	2332	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Bear Box
Pelton Basin	4849	Hiker	4,4,4	Composter	Bear Box or hang	No Fires; 2 night maximum stay Bear Wire
Perry Creek	2080	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Pierce Mountain	5400	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	No Fires; small tent site
Ponderosa	1660	Boat	12,12	Vault	Bear Box
Pumpkin Mountain	1614	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang
Purple Point	1167	Hiker	4,4,4,4,4,4	Vault	Bear Box	Groups of more than 8 use Purple Point Overflow camp
Purple Point Stock	1167	Stock	4	None	Bear Box	Use public toilet facility
Purple Point Overflow	1167	Hiker	4,4,4,4	None	Bear Box	Use public toilet facility
Rainbow Bridge	2040	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Rainbow Ford	3179	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang
Rainbow Lake	5630	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang	No Fires
Rainbow Meadows Group	4960	Hiker	12	Pit	Hang	Northernmost of Rainbow Meadows camps
Rainbow Meadows Stock	4960	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	Middle Rainbow Meadow camp
Rainbow Meadows	4920	Hiker	8	Pit	Hang	Southernmost of Rainbow Meadows Camps
Rainbow Point	1686	Boat, Hiker	8,8,8	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Rennie	4081	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Reynolds	5663	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	Site in stock camp.
Reynolds Stock	5663	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	Bear Cable
Roland Creek	1761	Hiker	8,4,4	Pit	Hang
Roland Point	1673	Boat	8	Vault	Bear Box
Ruby Pasture Stock	2053	Stock	4	Pit	Hang	Water access 0.25 miles at Hidden Hand Creek; no hitch rails, highline stock
Sahale Glacier	7686	Hiker	4,4,4,4,4,4	Composter	Canister	No Fires; Very exposed camp at toe of glacier
Shady	1942	Hiker	4	Vault	Bear Box (take rope for back-up)	Camp Repaired 9/16/07
Silesia	5649	Hiker	4,4	Composter	Hang	Bear Pole; No Fires
Silver Creek	1607	Boat	8,12	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Six Mile	2946	Hiker	12	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Skagit Queen	2772	Hiker	4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Sourdough	5055	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	No fires; room for 2 small tents only
South Fork	3208	Hiker	4,8	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
South Fork Stock	3208	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Spencer's	1653	Boat	8,8	Vault	Bear Box	Dock
Stillwell	2486	Hiker	4,4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Sulphide Creek	905	Hiker	8,8	Pit	Hang
Ten Mile Island	1640	Boat	4,4,4	Vault	Bear Box	No wood gathering on islands
Thornton Lake	4504	Hiker	4,4,4	Composter	Hang	No fires; steep rock and log scramble over outlet of lake to get to camp
Thunder	1354	Hiker	4,4,12	Pit	Hang	Group site built 2005
Thunder Basin	4900	Hiker	4,4	Composter	Hang or canister	No fires; thin trees, hanging food requires high line; canisters recommended - bears seen frequently
Thunder Basin Stock	4100	Stock	4,4	Pit	Hang or canister	Bears seen frequently
Thunder Point	1256	Boat	4,4,4	Vault	Hang	Dock
Trapper Inlet	4163	Hiker	4	None	Hang	No fires; no trail - allow extra travel time for routefinding; dig cathole for human waste
Trapper Outlet	4284	Hiker	4,4	None	Hang	No fires; no trail - allow extra travel time for routefinding; dig cathole for human waste
Tricouni	1971	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang	Small sites
Tumwater	1742	Hiker	4,4	Vault	Bear Box
Twin Rocks	2703	Hiker	4,4	Pit	Hang	Flood damage in 2003, now 2 sites only
Twin Rocks Stock	2703	Stock	12	Pit	Hang	Use hitch rail area for tents for large groups
Two Mile	3412	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	Washed out in 2003 floods, camp on trail under bearwire on west side of creek
U.S. Cabin Stock	2595	Stock	12	Pit	Hang
U.S. Cabin	2595	Hiker	4,4,4,4	Pit	Hang
Walker Park	3051	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire
Walker Park Stock	3051	Stock	8	Pit	Hang	Bear Wire; share toilet with Walker Park hiker
Whatcom Pass	5055	Hiker	4,4,4	Composter	Hang	No Fires
Willow Lake	2854	Hiker	4	Pit	Hang

KEY to Trail Camps Table

Elevation – in feet

Access – Hiker (foot trail), Stock (hitch rails, stock accessible), or Boat (on the water) (Note: stock parties must use stock camps; all stock camps are also hiker accessible, but stock parties have preference; camps that indicate Boat only are not accessible via a trail)

Campsites – This column shows the number of sites at each camp, and the total capacity of the camp (i.e. A camp listed as 4,4,4 has 3 sites that can each hold up to 4 people)

Toilet – There are 3 types of toilets at camps

Pit – A simple hole in the ground covered with a box toilet platform for sitting. Primarily in low elevation areas. Pack out all toilet paper, feminine products, and trash.
Composter (Comp) – A self-contained toilet that composts human waste. Primarily in higher elevations or areas where the soils are too thin to dig pit toilets. Pack out all toilet paper, feminine products, and trash; toilets work best with solid human waste only—urinate on rock or bare ground.
Vault – A self contained outhouse-style toilet, periodically pumped out. Located primarily in accessible areas such as Ross and Diablo Lakes and the Stehekin Valley road. Toilet paper and urine are fine, but do not deposit any trash in these toilets.

Food storage options – Food, trash, cooking items, and other scented items must always be properly secured from wildlife whenever you are not actively preparing meals. There are 3 primary methods of food storage:

Hang – Bring a light line at least 50 feet or longer, and be prepared to hang food etc. at least 15 feet up and 5 feet out from the trunk of a tree. This may be accomplished via highline, counterbalance, or a traditional food hang over a large branch. In some camps, there are wires or “bear bars” (wooden poles suspended from trees) for you to throw your line over. If you are not sure how to hang your food safely out of the reach of wildlife, ask at a Ranger station.
Box – Food storage lockers have been installed on all Ross Lake sites, some Stehekin Valley road sites, and a few wilderness camps. These are large, wildlife resistant lockers into which all food and other scented items can be placed. The boxes lock to keep wildlife out.
Canisters – Often referred to as “bear cans,” these wildlife resistant food storage canisters are used in areas where trees are scarce and/or bear activity is traditionally high. All food and scented items are stored in the can, which is then placed away from your camp in a secure location (i.e. in rocks or brush so it will not roll away). Bear cans are available for free loan at all Park Ranger stations.

Comments – Additional points of interest or notable qualities about specific camps