There’s so much snow, this scenic highway may not open until June
Heavy snow this winter will delay the opening of the North Cascades Highway until June, state Department of Transportation officials said.
Road crews have been clearing snow on the highway, also known as state Route 20, for more than three weeks, according to WSDOT’s webpage on the project. But the work might take as many as eight weeks total, which would be the latest opening of the seasonal highway since June 14, 1974.
The scenic highway stretches from the Olympic Peninsula to the Idaho state line, but the 35- to 40-mile portion over the North Cascades is typically closed between late November and mid-December, and usually opens by early May.
The highway has been closed to vehicle traffic since Nov. 21, 2016. While the road clearing work is being done, skiers and bicyclists are allowed past the gates only on Fridays through Sundays.
Some shots from a visit to the SR 20 North Cascades Highway clearing near Winthrop. Crews are below Liberty Bell clearing snow about 25 feet deep in spots. They're about 9 miles from the west side crews but work is expected to be tougher the closer they get. A few other tidbits you can spot in the pictures:1. They have an avalanche spotter on the cleared road below checking for any signs of a slide so they can alert crews to move.2. Poles with red and green tape tell workers that that's an avalanche chute and they should move to one side.3. A trench 20-25 feet deep is dug to catch debris coming down before it reaches the workers.4. The snow has been pretty stable so far but higher temps forecast this week creates some concern about snow melt leading to possible slides.
Posted by WSDOT on Tuesday, May 2, 2017
Crews begin work on both sides of the pass and were about nine miles apart as of Tuesday. But the snow is up to 25 feet deep in spots and avalanches and snowslides remain a concern.
The highway’s closure especially impacts Methow Valley area residents who need to prepare for the lowland fishing season.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
This story was originally published May 2, 2017 at 4:00 PM with the headline "There’s so much snow, this scenic highway may not open until June."