North Cascades Scenic Highway

Marked by the massive bulk of Liberty Bell and Early Winters spires, Highway 20 — also known as the North Cascades Scenic Highway — is a 140-mile designated byway located on the Cascade Loop. It is surrounded by jagged peaks and valleys, waterfalls and more than 300 glaciers within the North Cascades National Park. Several peaks rise well above 9,000 feet in elevation! Not surprisingly, hiking, climbing and camping are hugely popular here. (A nice perk about North Cascades National Park is that there is no entry fee, a rarity among national parks.) 

Continue onward and upward until you reach the brilliant turquoise-colored Ross and Diablo lakes. Views over these glacier-fed lakes reach north to Canada and south into the most-glaciated valley in North America outside of Alaska. Colonial Creek and Newhalem campgrounds offer the most vehicle-accessible campsites in the park with summer programs and ancient forest hikes.

Frequently Asked Questions from Washington State Department of Transportation

We will begin with our regular mountain pass reports Nov. 1, which populates with real-time pass updates. Crews will plow the road as needed. As soon as the team determines the route must close, we will share that information through our GovDelivery listserv topic “North Cascades Highway Newsletter” and Facebook.

Frequently asked questions

Whether this is your 1st year or 51st year following North Cascades Highway news, here are some of the frequently asked questions about the North Cascades and the seasonal closure:

• When was the earliest winter closure date? October 17th, 2003 
• Why don’t we just set a date for the closure? Every season is different and keeping the North Cross open for as long as possible provides a more direct route for freight, recreation, and the communities on each side of the mountains.
• Can I park at the closure points? The gate closure locations are in place for the safety of the traveling public, safety of our crews and at locations where adequate parking is available for backcountry users while still providing access and maneuverability for crews clearing the road to the gate.
• Am I allowed to go beyond the gate for recreation? Yes! But remember, this is a very active avalanche area that sees a huge amount of snow and has lots of potential hazards. So always be prepared if you choose to ski, snowshoe, snow mobile, etc., beyond the closure gates.
• Why aren’t there any traffic cameras on Rainy or Washington passes? Since the passes close for up to half the year, the expense of installation and maintenance of cameras doesn’t justify the need. With tons of avalanche activity potentially damaging the equipment and no traffic, there’s little value in having cameras up there. There are cameras on other parts of SR 20 that remain open all year.
• What is the elevation of the North Cascades? Rainy Pass is 4,855 feet and Washington Pass is 5,477 feet.
• There is a snow park at Silver Star gate, why don’t we stay open all winter to the park? At a certain point in the winter, the snowpack will become too deep for our equipment to manage and we need to focus resources on priority routes.

No matter the reason you follow NCH news, we want you to be prepared. While we handle the road, there is much more going on in the North Cascades. Here are some links to keep up-to-date on other happenings in the national park and forest:

• North Cascades National Park Service: https://www.nps.gov/noca/index.htm
• US  Forest Service: https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/mbs/recreation/recarea/?recid=17650&actid=29
• Northwest Avalanche Center: https://nwac.us/