Isolation Traverse

This 7‑day guid­ed trek and climb through the heart of the North Cas­cades might not be as well known as the Ptarmi­gan Tra­verse (the Isolation’s south­ern exten­sion) but it cer­tain­ly deserves equal awe and respect. 

Start­ing near Dia­blo Lake on the North Cas­cades High­way, the Iso­la­tion Tra­verse links three dis­tinct and impor­tant alpine zones along the north­ern Cas­cade Crest, all heav­i­ly glaciat­ed, very alpine, and very remote. These areas include the Snow­field /​Colonial Peak zone, the Back­bone Ridge, and the Eldorado/​Inspiration Glac­i­er zone. Iso­la­tion Peak is one of the key land­marks that makes this tra­verse pos­si­ble. Along the way you’ll find straight­for­ward glac­i­er trav­el, won­der­ful wild­flow­ers, high lakes and ridges, and no crowds. 

For a trip of this length, the fact that only a few hours are spent in ​“bush­whack” ter­rain is a tes­ta­ment to its alpine fla­vor. The major­i­ty of Iso­la­tion is high and alpine and has numer­ous easy sum­mits that can be climbed along the way – Colo­nial, Snow­field, Dora­do Nee­dle, and Eldo­ra­do Peak to name a few. With sol­id nav­i­ga­tion skills and good route-find­ing we’ll make our way south to a fin­ish at Eldo­ra­do Creek and the Cas­cade River.