Chinook Pass To Reopen For The Season Friday

MOUNT RAINIER, WA — Chinook Pass will reopen at 8 a.m. Friday, restoring another key route to Mount Rainier National Park, according to the Washington State Department of Transportation. This year's opening arrives a couple of weeks later than average and follows weeks of hard work to clear snow from the roads amid an especially challenging spring.

Chinook Pass carries drivers on State Route 410 between Enumclaw and Naches and serves as Mount Rainier National Park's east entrance.

Chinook and Cayuse passes both closed in November and the latter opened just before Memorial Day weekend — right on the annual target. Officials said conditions on Chinook, however, required a delayed opening, thanks to "relentless winter weather with continued snowfall."

WSDOT said more than 12 feet of snow remained at the summit last Thursday, and crews were hard at work to make conditions safe for clearing avalanche-prone areas. Officials confirmed the Friday reopening date on Wednesday, thanking its teams for reaching the finish line on a "standing ovation year."

While Chinook Pass typically opens for the season sometime in May, this year will not be its latest on record, including June 11 in 2018 and June 23 in 2011.

It still looks a lot like winter inside the boundaries of Mount Rainier, where the snowpack at Paradise remains well north of average and winds above 100 mph Thursday up at Camp Muir. Paradise Inn, National Park Inn, and the Cougar Rock and Ohanapecosh campgrounds are among the places that are open, but many areas remain closed while officials move forward with their spring opening efforts.