'''Northwest Cascades''' is in the North Cascades region of Washington.
Regions
Cities
Anacortes - gateway to the San Juan Islands
Bellingham - county seat of '''Whatcom County''' and last US city before Canada on I-5
Birch Bay
Blaine - major border crossing with Canada
Burlington
Concrete
Ferndale
La Conner - famous for the local tulips
Lummi Island
Lynden
Mount Vernon - capital of '''Skagit County'''
Point Roberts - community that you have to travel through Canada to reach
Sedro-Woolley
Sumas
Other destinations
Birch Bay State Park[http://www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.asp?selectedpark=Birch%20Bay], on the coast 20 miles north of Bellingham and 10 miles south of Blaine
Bay View State Park[http://www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.asp?selectedpark=Bay%20View], on Padilla Bay, 7 miles west of Burlington and 14 miles east of Anacortes
'''Larrabee State Park'''[http://www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.asp?selectedpark=larrabee], six miles south of Bellingham on SR 11/Chuckanut Drive
Mount Baker ski resort, on a mountain of the same name
:Artist Point[http://www.experiencewashington.com/v5/poi/poi.aspx?poiId=41] on Mount Baker, a stiff hike to 5140', with a grand view at the top.
:Mt Baker Vista at the end of Glacier Creek Road (Forest Road 39)
North Cascades National Park - Jagged peaks, deep valleys, cascading waterfalls and over 300 glaciers adorn the North Cascades National Park
'''Peace Arch State Park'''[http://www.peacearchpark.org/]
Rasar State Park[http://www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.asp?selectedpark=rasar], on the Skagit River, 14 miles east of Burlington
Rockport State Park[http://www.parks.wa.gov/parkpage.asp?selectedpark=Rockport], in an old-growth forest 8 miles east of eight miles east of Concrete
Commercial Establishments
Lake Whatcom Railway[http://www.lakewhatcomrailway.com/], on Highway 9 east of Lake Whatcom and Bellingham
Skagit Speedway[http://www.skagitspeedway.com/], Burlington
Deming Speedway[http://www.demingspeedway.com/], a 1/6 mile clay oval auto racing track, 12 miles east of I-5 (Bellingham) on the Mount Baker Highway
Skagit Valley Casino[http://www.theskagit.com/], Burlington
Swinomish Northern Lights Casino[http://www.swinomishcasino.com/], Anacortes
Understand
This subregion consists of '''Whatcom County''' and '''Skagit County'''
Talk
Get in
By plane
Bellingham International Airport (BLI) is the primary airport serving the region. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport (SEA), while located a way to the south of Seattle, is the closest national-grade airport in the USA. Vancouver International Airport (YVR), while across the border in the Lower Mainland of British Columbia, Canada, is sometimes convenient.
By car
There are five land border crossing points, between the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada and the Northwest Cascades region of Washington state, USA. They are referred to by different terms in Canada and the US.
{| border="1" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="3"
! Canadian name !! US name !! Location !! Hours !! Comments
Visitors travelling to Vancouver by car across the U.S. border should be aware that there are often lengthy lineups at the border, in either direction. During summer, waits at the border can exceed three hours during peak times.
Inform yourself about the waits, and you can either delay your crossing until the lines subside, or choose the quickest crossing, or at least set your expectations. You can see current wait time forecasts for both directions on the '''Canada Border Services Agency''' website [http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/general/times/menu-e.html], and for US-bound traffic on the US '''Customs and Border Protection''' website [http://apps.cbp.gov/bwt/index.asp]. Washington State also maintains graphs of estimated times in both directions [http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/Congestion/border/TravelDelays.htm]. It can be helpful to view webcams of the border lineups; Canada-bound on I-5 [http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/border/] and US-bound at most crossings [http://www.th.gov.bc.ca/ATIS/index.htm]. Two AM stations give regular updates on border lineups in both directions: '''News 1130''' (1130 on the AM dial) every 10 minutes beginning at one minute past the hour, and '''AM 730''' every 10-15 minutes. Electronic signs near the border on I-5, BC 99, and BC 15 give the current wait times at both the Peace Arch and Pacific Highway crossings, allowing you to choose the shorter option.
The '''Nexus Land''' program[http://www.cbsa-asfc.gc.ca/prog/nexus/menu-eng.html] lets travellers who fill out an application and pass a security check use express lanes through US-Canada land borders by presenting a Nexus card. However, you may only use the express lanes if everyone in your car has a Nexus card. There are also Nexus programs for air and marine travel.
By boat
Ferries from Alaska and Victoria, Canada dock at the Bellingham Ferry Terminal. Several towns in the region, including Bellingham and Anacortes, have marinas for private boats.
Get around
See
Itineraries
Do
Eat
Drink
Stay safe
Get out