Snoqualmis pass in September?

[AKC]

Hi, long time no post...

Can anyone tell me if the Snoqualmie pass in Washington State is usually clear of snow for all of September? Or when the first snow usually falls? Or where I could find that information? I'm planning a trip and the last thing I want to do is be driving through snow and ice. But I'd really like to go in September.

Thank you!

[debit]

Yes - almost always clear in September.
We had a condo at the pass summit for 27 years - September is a dry month.

Road and Updated Weather at the Pass:http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/passes/snoqualmie/
Snow Cams:https://summitatsnoqualmie.com/webcams

Summit Ski Area:www.summit-at-snoqualmie.com


_______________________
Ram 2500 / FR Surveyor 251rks

[OldGal3]

x2 - September is one of the best times to travel any of the passes in WA.

That said, with as weird as the weather has been so far this year...be sure to look at the WA DOT cameras and weather reports.

[bikendan]

Originally Posted by OldGal3

x2 - September is one of the best times to travel any of the passes in WA.

That said, with as weird as the weather has been so far this year...be sure to look at the WA DOT cameras and weather reports.

x3!

[Chief T]

Just watch out for Sasquatch. 3 years ago there were stories being caught on WADOT cams.

[AKC]

Thanks for all the replies. It it does snow in September, it looks like it would be just a light dusting and it would probably melt due to all the traffic, right?

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by AKC

Thanks for all the replies. It it does snow in September, it looks like it would be just a light dusting and it would probably melt due to all the traffic, right?

I actually camp during September next to the lake just a couple miles E of Snoqualmie pass. In the last 4 years the only snowflakes I saw in Sept there were in rainstorms with zero impact on road.

FWIW "carry chains" season starts Nov 1 for our mountain passes.

[ppine]

Snoqualmie is the lowest pass in the WA Cascades. Dry is a relative term in the PNW, but mostly if there is any precip in Sept it will be rain. Your chances are excellent, nothing to worry about.

My grandfather talked about taking the old road when it was still dirt to get to eastern WA. He said there were 29 stream crossings in the old Model A.

[AKC]

Originally Posted by ppine

Snoqualmie is the lowest pass in the WA Cascades. Dry is a relative term in the PNW, but mostly if there is any precip in Sept it will be rain. Your chances are excellent, nothing to worry about.

My grandfather talked about taking the old road when it was still dirt to get to eastern WA. He said there were 29 stream crossings in the old Model A.

(I can't believe there isn't a "faint" emoji???)

[ppine]

The family had a long tradition of driving over to Yakima via Snoqualmie to buy fruit in the fall. They would take the back seat out of the Model A. They would buy all of the apples, cherries, peaches and pears the car would hold. Then they would drive home over the dirt road, and can all of the fruit. It would be their main supply of fruit over the winter stored in jars in the basement.

[ChrisPBacon]

Originally Posted by AKC

Hi, long time no post...

Can anyone tell me if the Snoqualmie pass in Washington State is usually clear of snow for all of September? Or when the first snow usually falls? Or where I could find that information? I'm planning a trip and the last thing I want to do is be driving through snow and ice. But I'd really like to go in September.

Thank you!

I was on the Ski Patrol for one of the ski areas in Snoqualmie Pass for well over a decade, and our patrol usually began fall training there just after Labor Day (chairlift evacuations, first aid/CPR refreshers/recertification, etc) and work days.

I can’t say that in September the Pass always has good weather, but I’ve only seen a dusting of snow at the top of the highest peaks once or twice, never at highway level. We’ve done our training in driving rain, drizzle, cloudless days, and fog — but it’s usually a good month to be up there.

One note: there’s a lot of volcanic dust in the atmosphere (on the evidence of astrophotography and sunset photography), so you may encounter chillier weather than normal. Just my opinion: YMMV.

[TitanMike]

Just to add:

Snoqualmie Pass is an essential commerce route across WA State and even if it does snow the highway dept has usually been able to keep the pass down to "bare pavement" in short order. They plow, scrape, and spray snow melt chemicals in great amounts so just regular all-season tires handle the task fairly easy -----usually until November.

[rowdy boys 3]

Snoqualmie Pass and alot of that area is some beautiful country. I used to travel from seattle to yakima once a month for work (2012-2014), sometimes snowing and sometimes not, but either way its beautiful. I think i even took (if memory serves me correctly), hwy 12 from the yakima area back to the seattle area.

[ChrisPBacon]

Originally Posted by TitanMike

Just to add:

Snoqualmie Pass is an essential commerce route across WA State and even if it does snow the highway dept has usually been able to keep the pass down to "bare pavement" in short order. They plow, scrape, and spray snow melt chemicals in great amounts so just regular all-season tires handle the task fairly easy -----usually until November.

True… but it’s one of the few areas where the steep terrain, wind-deposition and loading of snow, require measures such as the use of 105mm recoilless rifle or the problematic Avalauncher round to keep the highway open.

[TitanMike]

Originally Posted by ChrisPBacon

True… but it’s one of the few areas where the steep terrain, wind-deposition and loading of snow, require measures such as the use of 105mm recoilless rifle or the problematic Avalauncher round to keep the highway open.

I don't know about "one of the few". Steven's Pass, just north of Snoqualmie Pass, also uses all the avalanche control measures as Snoqualmie. In fact Stevens pass recently used a de-commissioned (except for main gun) Patton M-48 (or Patton II/M-60) )tank semi-permanently parked in a snow bank to shoot down cornices before they grew too large.

Also, when I lived in Colorado they had an "artillery division" in CDOT that was regularly out "shooting" after storms. Alaska also uses artillery pieces along the Alsaka Railroad for avalanche control.

[ChrisPBacon]

Originally Posted by TitanMike

I don't know about "one of the few". Steven's Pass, just north of Snoqualmie Pass, also uses all the avalanche control measures as Snoqualmie. In fact Stevens pass recently used a de-commissioned (except for main gun) Patton M-48 (or Patton II/M-60) )tank semi-permanently parked in a snow bank to shoot down cornices before they grew too large.

Also, when I lived in Colorado they had an "artillery division" in CDOT that was regularly out "shooting" after storms. Alaska also uses artillery pieces along the Alsaka Railroad for avalanche control.

I guess I was accurate in citing “one of the few” as opposed to saying “the only one.”

[ppine]

Just drove over Snoqualmie Pass twice last week. Be advised that the traffic around Seattle is terrible. On Sunday afternoon, the traffic west bound back to town was stop and go and took three hours. I can imagine that Friday evenings east bound are just as bad. Avoid the week end if you can.