The Cascade Range
A chain of volcanoes in the Pacific Northwest
The Cascade Range runs about 700 miles from northern California through Oregon and Washington into Canada, forming the great wall that divides the wet Pacific Northwest from the dry interior. Unlike most ranges, the Cascades are studded with volcanoes — a line of towering, snow-capped cones rising above the forested ridges, including Mount Rainier, Mount Hood, Mount Shasta, and Mount St. Helens. They are part of the Pacific Ring of Fire.
These volcanoes are fed by the slow dive of an ocean plate beneath the continent, and several remain active — Mount St. Helens erupted catastrophically in 1980, and others smolder quietly. The range catches the full force of Pacific storms, drenching its western slopes in rain and snow and casting a deep rain shadow over the deserts to the east. Mount Rainier, at 14,411 feet, is the highest and most heavily glaciated peak in the chain.
Related
- Crater LakeThe deepest lake in the United States
- Lassen Volcanic National ParkThe southernmost active Cascade volcano and its boiling hydrothermal basins
- North Cascades National ParkGlacier-clad peaks in Washington, among the least-visited U.S. parks
- Snoqualmie FallsSacred Snoqualmie site and early hydropower landmark east of Seattle
- Columbia River GorgeThe great river’s cut through the Cascade Range
- Mount RainierA glacier-clad volcano looming over Seattle
- Mount St. HelensThe volcano that erupted catastrophically in 1980
- WashingtonThe Evergreen State, the wet and dry sides of the Cascades