Clearing snow, repairs of damaged roadways continues

information released

It’s Thursday, North Cascades Highway fans, and I know there’s a big question on many minds right now, so let’s get to it:

Damaged areas are a priority

Two areas of the west side of SR 20 North Cascades Highway are in need of substantial repairs: a rockslide west of the Ross Dam Trailhead (milepost 131) and washouts around milepost 145. Fixing both of these is a priority for us, and we’re hoping to get a contractor on board soon.

This means we still don’t have a timeline for when we can expect the work to be done or when we expect the road to open. Some folks have asked why we’re just now addressing this damage. The impacted areas were under snow and in an avalanche area, so we had to wait for the snow to melt so our engineers could get on site and begin designing repairs.

We’ll keep you updated as we learn more.

Remaining snow cleared, culverts cleaned

On the east side, maintenance crews spent the week clearing the remaining snow. They also worked on clearing culverts and drop boxes that got plugged during the December storms.

Avalanche control crews observed that snowpack has a strong, consistent structure, and no significant avalanches were triggered during recent control work. They also report that Washington Pass is around 70% of normal snowpack.

Remember to check current avalanche conditions before heading into the area.

What does this mean for recreators?

We’ve gotten a lot of questions about what the west side damage means for cyclists and other recreators. With the snow cleared, recreators are still able to access the road behind the east side gate at the Early Winters closure point (milepost 178) outside of scheduled work hours (Monday through Thursday from 6 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.).

That said, we ask you to avoid traveling through the areas that have the rockfall or washouts (again, that’s MP 131 and MP 145). You can see the pictures on our Flickr album; it’s not a small amount of damage. Remember that since the road is still closed, no one is patrolling to offer assistance if you get stranded or injured, and there’s no cell service on the pass.

Once work begins, those areas will be a seven-day-a-week work zone, and only approved personnel wearing proper personal protective equipment are allowed. As always, any changes to the work schedule will be shared on the real time travel map.

Thanks for bearing with us as we navigate the work ahead.

Safe travels, and have a great weekend!

Rachel Terlep, Statewide Social Media Manager
rachel.terlep@wsdot.wa.gov