By: Bill Lucia – April 18, 2024
THE WASHINGTON STANDARD
State Route 20 through the North Cascades will open for the year on Friday, April 19 at 10 a.m., according to the Washington State Department of Transportation.
The road closes each winter on both sides of Washington Pass due to heavy snowfall and avalanche hazards. Most years it reopens in April or May after crews clear snow and make repairs. This winter was light on snow, and east and west side clearing crews reached each other about a week ago. Last year, the pass opened on May 11.
Highway 20 is the northernmost route in Washington across the North Cascades. Traveling from the west, the road runs out of the Puget Sound region, over Washington Pass, topping out at around 5,400 feet, and then dropping down into the Methow Valley before continuing east.
The transportation department cautions travelers using the roadway in the days ahead that there are limited places to pull off and no cell service along stretches in the mountains.
In the winter, Highway 20 closes on the west side at milepost 134 at the Ross Dam Trailhead and on the east side, at milepost 171 at the Silver Star Gate, near Mazama.
The final segment of the North Cascades Highway was completed in 1972. The road didn’t close in the winter of 1976-1977, which was “infamously warm,” according to HistoryLink. The earliest the road opened for the year was March 10 in 2005. The latest was June 14 in 1974.