#8 of 26 sights in North Cascades
Sight · North Cascades National Park
A public road crosses the 389-foot dam beside Diablo Lake.
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Plan your stop
The highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.
North Cascades Tour Guide
Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for North Cascades National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.
See the North Cascades audio tourRecorded for this place
Diablo Dam: Across the Crest“You’re approaching Diablo Dam, where the public road runs across the curved crest above the reservoir. Take this detour if you’re interested in the engineering as well as the scenery.”
Plays as you drive up to Diablo Dam in the Parkwolf North Cascades Tour Guide.
More stories near here in the app
“Fantastic app with many points of information… It’s great to just turn on while you’re driving and it gives you an audio tour of the national Park. We love it!!!!”
Guide
Diablo Dam is a curved concrete hydroelectric dam at the outlet of Diablo Lake in the Skagit River valley. A public access road crosses its crest; that crossing and the reservoir views are the visitor experience, rather than a verified public dam tour. From SR 20 near milepost 127.5, turn onto Diablo Dam Road. If you are going to the North Cascades Environmental Learning Center, the access directions continue over the dam to a lot at the road's end. No dam-side parking or public interior access is verified.
The dam's long curve and pale ornamental lamps make a striking line above the green reservoir and forested slopes. A broad view from the highway side shows the full sweep of the structure; from the crossing itself, the roadway rides along the crest. The separate Diablo Lake Vista Point farther east is a different stop.
Construction began in 1927. Completed in 1930 at 389 feet, Diablo Dam was then the world's tallest dam, but it did not begin generating electricity until 1936. Seattle City Light superintendent James Delmage Ross had pursued the Skagit project; a 1917 federal permit covered a dam in Diablo Canyon, a six-mile tunnel and a powerhouse.
Diablo is one of three City Light power-generating facilities in the Skagit River Hydroelectric Project, along with Gorge and Ross dams. The current project supplies about 20% of Seattle City Light's electricity. City Light adjusts flows seasonally and day to day to support salmon and steelhead life cycles.
Wildlife
101 sightingsMountain GoatMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
70 sightingsBlack BearMost seen around 8 PMSighting map
20 sightingsMule DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map
77 sightingsSooty GrouseMost seen around 6 AMSighting map
23 sightingsWhite-tailed PtarmiganMost seen around 6 PMSighting map
75 sightingsWestern ToadMost seen around 8 PMSighting mapSighting maps show where each species has been reported across North Cascades. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.
Keep exploring
ModerateDiablo Lake Trail7.6 mi · 4.5 hr · 0.7 mi awayA long forest climb earns a high bridge over Diablo Lake
ModeratePyramid Lake Trail4.2 mi · 2.8 hr · 0.7 mi awaySteep miles to a tiny lake threaded with floating logs.
ChallengingSourdough Mountain Trail10.4 mi · 9 hr · 0.7 mi awayNearly 5,000 feet of climbing for the Diablo Lake panorama.
ModerateSourdough Creek Trail3.5 mi · 2.8 hr · 0.7 mi awayA forest path to Sourdough Creek Falls, with a rocky finish.
EasyDeer Creek Loop0.3 mi · 15 min · 0.8 mi awayA quarter-mile loop winds beside Deer Creek Shelter.
ModerateStetattle Creek Trail6 mi · 3.5 hr · 0.9 mi awayA rocky creekside start opens to a mossy forest traverse.
ModerateThunder Knob Trail3.8 mi · 2.5 hr · 2.1 mi awayTake the steady climb for broad views over turquoise Diablo Lake.
ChallengingFourth of July Pass via Thunder Creek10.4 mi · 7 hr · 2.7 mi awayA shady creek walk gives way to steep climbing and glacier views.
Sight · 0.8 mi awayNorth Cascades Environmental Learning CenterBook a program for lakeside learning, meals and trail days.
Campground · 0.9 mi awayGorge Lake CampgroundEight simple sites, a lakeside launch, and a night by the water.
Campground · 1.4 mi awayThunder Point CampA quiet three-site boat-in camp on Diablo Lake.
Campground · 1.4 mi awayHidden Cove CampA single-site camp with a sheltered dock, reached only by boat.
Campground · 1.5 mi awayBuster Brown CampA lake camp reached by water, with its own boat dock.
Sight · 1.6 mi awayDiablo Lake OverlookA quick roadside view of glacial turquoise beneath the Cascades.
Campground · 2.1 mi awayColonial Creek North CampgroundA wooded Diablo Lake campground with an accessible pier and boat launch.
Sight · 2.2 mi awaySourdough Mountain LookoutA historic fire lookout crowns a demanding climb above Diablo Lake.Parkwolf’s North Cascades ranking
The audio tour guide for the drive, plus offline maps, trails, and wildlife heatmaps for when the signal drops.
