Glacierless Peak? The icy realms of Washington’s North Cascades lose their cool

Glacierless Peak? The icy realms of Washington’s North Cascades lose their cool John Ryan September 19, 2025 / 5:02 pm

The ice fields that give Washington’s Glacier Peak its name are disappearing, though few people may have noticed.

Glacier Peak, the 10,541-foot high point of Snohomish County, is sometimes called Washington’s forgotten volcano.

Unlike the icy white cones of Mount Rainier or Mount Baker, Glacier Peak is hard to see from the population centers of the I-5 corridor. While it stands nearly as tall as Baker, Glacier is surrounded by other jagged peaks of the North Cascades.

“It is visibly less glaciated,” said glacier researcher Mauri Pelto. “At least a third of the area of glaciers is gone.”

Since July, the 6-million-acre Glacier Peak Wilderness has been in extreme