Newhalem, Washington facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Newhalem, Washington
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Newhalem from nearby Trappers Peak, North Cascades National Park
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 Newhalem, Washington
Location in Washington (state)
Newhalem, Washington
Location in the United States
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| Country | United States |
| State | Washington |
| County | Whatcom |
| Elevation | 515 ft (157 m) |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| Area code(s) | 360 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1523641 |
Newhalem (in the Lushootseed language: dxʷʔiyb) is a small town in Whatcom County, Washington, United States. It is located on the Skagit River in the western part of the North Cascades mountains. Newhalem is an unincorporated community, which means it is not officially a city or town with its own local government.
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About Newhalem
Newhalem is a special kind of town called a company town. This means it is owned by a company, Seattle City Light, and only its employees live there. People who do not work for Seattle City Light or other local government groups cannot live in Newhalem permanently.
The town is surrounded by the Ross Lake National Recreation Area. The North Cascades National Park is also very close, about one mile north and south of Newhalem. Newhalem does not have its own zip code. For mail, it uses the zip code for Rockport.
The Name Newhalem
The name Newhalem comes from a local Native American language. It means 'Goat Snare'. This is because native people used to trap mountain goats in the area. Long ago, before European settlers arrived, the Upper Skagit tribe lived in this place.
Schooling in Newhalem
Newhalem used to have its own school. However, it was taken down because fewer people lived in the town. Now, students from Newhalem take a long bus ride, about 1.5 hours, to attend school in Concrete.
Newhalem's Weather
Newhalem gets a lot of rain all year. It rains much more in the winter months than in the summer. The climate here is known as an oceanic climate. This means it has cool summers and mild winters.
| Climate data for Newhalem, Washington, 1991–2020 normals, extremes 1909–present | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 63 (17) |
71 (22) |
78 (26) |
91 (33) |
101 (38) |
113 (45) |
109 (43) |
108 (42) |
99 (37) |
83 (28) |
74 (23) |
61 (16) |
113 (45) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 48.8 (9.3) |
52.8 (11.6) |
63.3 (17.4) |
75.7 (24.3) |
86.4 (30.2) |
89.8 (32.1) |
94.5 (34.7) |
93.8 (34.3) |
86.8 (30.4) |
70.5 (21.4) |
54.9 (12.7) |
48.5 (9.2) |
97.3 (36.3) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 40.1 (4.5) |
43.7 (6.5) |
49.4 (9.7) |
57.9 (14.4) |
66.5 (19.2) |
70.4 (21.3) |
78.0 (25.6) |
78.6 (25.9) |
71.0 (21.7) |
57.0 (13.9) |
45.4 (7.4) |
39.5 (4.2) |
58.1 (14.5) |
| Daily mean °F (°C) | 36.2 (2.3) |
38.3 (3.5) |
42.2 (5.7) |
48.7 (9.3) |
56.1 (13.4) |
60.2 (15.7) |
65.8 (18.8) |
66.4 (19.1) |
60.6 (15.9) |
50.3 (10.2) |
41.2 (5.1) |
36.0 (2.2) |
50.2 (10.1) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 32.2 (0.1) |
32.9 (0.5) |
35.0 (1.7) |
39.5 (4.2) |
45.7 (7.6) |
49.9 (9.9) |
53.7 (12.1) |
54.3 (12.4) |
50.3 (10.2) |
43.7 (6.5) |
36.9 (2.7) |
32.5 (0.3) |
42.2 (5.7) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 22.1 (−5.5) |
25.0 (−3.9) |
28.1 (−2.2) |
32.2 (0.1) |
36.7 (2.6) |
43.1 (6.2) |
47.6 (8.7) |
47.8 (8.8) |
43.4 (6.3) |
35.1 (1.7) |
27.8 (−2.3) |
23.2 (−4.9) |
15.7 (−9.1) |
| Record low °F (°C) | 0 (−18) |
4 (−16) |
14 (−10) |
23 (−5) |
30 (−1) |
35 (2) |
39 (4) |
40 (4) |
32 (0) |
20 (−7) |
7 (−14) |
5 (−15) |
0 (−18) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 12.40 (315) |
7.16 (182) |
8.36 (212) |
4.65 (118) |
3.01 (76) |
2.58 (66) |
1.40 (36) |
1.68 (43) |
3.55 (90) |
8.78 (223) |
13.58 (345) |
11.70 (297) |
78.85 (2,003) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 10.2 (26) |
7.7 (20) |
2.8 (7.1) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
2.4 (6.1) |
6.3 (16) |
29.5 (75) |
| Average extreme snow depth inches (cm) | 8.3 (21) |
4.8 (12) |
2.5 (6.4) |
0.1 (0.25) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
0.0 (0.0) |
1.1 (2.8) |
7.5 (19) |
12.4 (31) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 18.5 | 15.2 | 19.1 | 16.5 | 13.2 | 12.8 | 6.7 | 6.6 | 11.3 | 17.3 | 20.6 | 19.1 | 176.9 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 3.3 | 2.5 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.5 | 3.1 | 12.1 |
| Source: NOAA | |||||||||||||
Newhalem in Books and Movies
Newhalem has appeared in some well-known stories.
This Boy's Life
The writer Tobias Wolff lived in Newhalem when he was a boy in the late 1950s. His mother moved there and married a mechanic who lived in one of the company houses. In his book, This Boy's Life, he calls this isolated town "Chinook." He wrote about how the closest high school was a long bus ride away in a slightly bigger town called Concrete. In the 1993 movie based on the book, This Boy's Life, starring Robert De Niro and Leonardo DiCaprio, the two towns are combined and called "Concrete."
WarGames
Parts of the 1983 Hollywood movie WarGames, which starred Matthew Broderick, were filmed in Newhalem. The scenes showing the "Cheyenne Mountain Complex" were actually filmed in an old gravel pit northwest of the town.
Alan Wake
Some places in the video game "Alan Wake" were inspired by parts of Newhalem.
Newhalem Summer Softball Tournament
Since 1977, a "mushball" softball tournament has been held in Newhalem every third weekend of July. Teams from the Skagit Valley compete in this event. Players camp about a mile from the fields. On the second morning, there is a pancake breakfast at the fire station. The single field used for the tournament has unique challenges not usually found at other softball tournaments. The games also start very early on Saturday, at 7 AM.
Highway 20 and Supplies
Newhalem is the last place on Highway 20 where you can buy supplies. This is before you cross Rainy Pass and enter Eastern Washington.
See also
In Spanish: Newhalem (Washington) para niños
