Middle and Northern Cascades tour late September 2015

[robertDthomas]

I have been planning a week tour through the middle and northern cascades late this September and early October.  I would travel from Seattle to route 2 and then circle around to route 20. There have been a lot of fires in the area but I am hoping that will be over and the route open by then.  Any thoughts about this tour this early fall?

[Caslon]

Its a nice drive, roads should be open. Haven't been over in a few years, you will certainly see some fire damage near Chelan.
Don't expect a lot of fall color, have you been to Mt. Baker? Mt. Rainier?

[robertDthomas]

Thanks for your reply.  I have been to Mt. Rainer about 5 years ago but have not been to Baker.  I have a good book on "Photographing Washington" which points out a number of good locations and hikes along the route.  Yes Chelan seems to have had a major fire for an extended period.  tragic for the people and wildlife.

[pcgpcg]

I would prepare for smoky skies if the current fire situation doesn't dramatically improve over the next few weeks. Recent rains have helped the fire situation slightly, but many fires are still raging and, depending on wind direction, you may find your location socked in with smoke, even if there are no fires nearby. This is what the Columbia River Gorge looked like just east of Portland a few days ago, even though the fire causing this was 50 miles away. It's pretty unsettling to find "golden light" at noon. This was when the wind was out of the east. Now it's out of the west and all is clear, but when the wind changes it will be smoky again.

You can monitor the current fire situation here...
http://gacc.nifc.gov/nwcc/information/firemap.aspx

and smoke info here...
http://wasmoke.blogspot.com/
Keep in mind that the smoke info is for how safe the air is to breathe, and gives no info about how it affects landscape viewing.

[Vladimir Steblina]

I am in Wenatchee and was working on the fires earlier this month.

The fire situation is getting better pretty rapidly day by day.  The Okanogan Valley, Ferry and Stevens County fires might be around a bit longer, but they should not affect your trip.

Keep an eye on the smoke site. 

UNLESS we get new fires things should be fine for your trip.