Coordinated evaluations by officials with Great Basin Incident Management Team 4, Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), and National Park Service (NPS) have determined State Route 20, the North Cascades Highway, may open as soon as Sunday (Aug. 30), according to press release Friday afternoon (Aug. 28). Fire officials with the Great Basin Incident Management […]
North Cascades Highway
Upper Skagit Complex Fire still blocking Highway 20
The fire that is blocking travel on the North Cascades Highway, creating a huge barrier to Methow Valley tourism traffic, remains 0 percent contained this week, the Upper Skagit Complex incident command reported on Tuesday (Aug. 25). Highway 20 remains closed from the town of Newhalem to Rainy Pass (milepost 157) due to hazardous road […]
Teen walks out of N. Cascades after surviving plane crash
Autumn Veatch, the 16-year-old Bellingham girl who survived a plane crash in the North Cascades, was expected to be released Tuesday evening (July 14) from Three Rivers Hospital in Brewster, where she was …
From Back Issues
20 years ago, April 6, 1995 30 years ago, April 4, 1985 Nail spill: Sonnichsens get point, after point,…. Approximately 17 boxes containing thousands of nails fell off a delivery truck and scattered across the Loup Loup Highway, prompting highway workers to re-route traffic and the Sonnichsen family to scoop up pounds of shiny nails. […]
North Cascades Highway scheduled to open Friday
In good news for Methow Valley tourism, the North Cascades Highway is expected to open to traffic this weekend.
“The plan is that Friday morning (April 3) at 10 a.m., we’re going to kick the gates open,” said Don Becker of the …
North Cascades Highway may open next week
Highway crews expect to have the North Cascades Highway open by next week, or early the following week, making this year one of the earliest openings in a decade. Barring equipment breakdowns or other unforeseen …
Low snowpack levels point to early opening for North Cascades Highway
Transportation crews began clearing the North Cascades Highway from the Methow Valley side on Monday (March 16), opening up about 7 miles and stopping just below the Silver Star gate at the end of the first day. With far less snow and fewer avalanches than normal on the roadway, the highway is expected to be open …
North Cascades Highway clearing to begin March 16
The annual effort to reopen the North Cascades Highway will begin Monday (March 16) from the east side, and work from the west side will start on March 23, the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT said Wednesday (March 11). “Stabilization work on a rock slope west of Rainy Pass is expected to be finished […]
Snow slides close North Cascades Hwy. for winter
The Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT) said Monday (Nov. 24) that the North Cascades Highway is closed for the winter. WSDOT temporarily closed Highway 20 at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday (Nov. 23) due to heavy snowfall and a snow slide in the Liberty Bell zone east of Washington Pass. After Monday’s assessment by maintenance […]
Highway 20 part of national bike route system
More than 400 miles of state Highway 20, including the North Cascades Scenic Highway portion, have been designated as Washington’s first interstate bike route that will be part of the U.S. Bicycle Route System. The American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials approved official recognition, which will be included in future updates of the […]
