When I knew I had a few days to go anywhere I wanted in the PNW, this place was the first to come to my mind.

There are plenty of amazing spots all through Oregon and Washington, and while the Columbia Gorge and Mt Hood will always be my favorites, there's no other place in the region that took my breath away as the North Cascades did in our first visit last year.

So clearly, I had to spend a few more days there and take as much as I could in. The trip didn't start well, with the car leaking water (it was concerning because we had some things done not long ago, water pump among other things), highways closed due to snow and terrible traffic.

But everything worked out at the end and I got to spend 2 amazing days driving around the park.

This is the first part of a series of 3 videos: I start taking photos at Diablo Lake, drive through the Cascades and finish just outside of Winthrop. The other 2 coming soon!