Rockslide closes Cayuse Pass

[Webmaster]

By Seattle Times staff

Cayuse Pass is closed inside Mount Rainier National Park due to the risk of falling rocks.

Earlier today a rockslide blocked the northbound lane of the highway.

Crews cleared the slide, but large, unstable rocks remain perched above the highway. The highway will remain closed until crews working for Mount Rainier National Park and the Federal Highway Administration can safely remove the rocks.

The road, Highway 123, is closed between the Highway 410/Highway 123 junction and Stevens Canyon Road. The unstable rocks are at milepost 10.2. Chinook Pass is not affected by this closure

from: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004011859_webcayuse13m.html

[Webmaster]

Cayuse Pass may remain closed through Thanksgiving
By Susan Gilmore

Seattle Times staff reporter

The rock slide that closed Cayuse Pass inside Mount Rainier National Park on Tuesday may keep the pass closed through Thanksgiving, according to the Washington Department of Transportation.

"Federal geotechnical experts may not be able to get to the area to assess the danger until Monday," said Park Superintendent Dave Uberuaga. "If they determine the slope above the highway is too unstable, we will have to bring in a contractor to remove the hazardous rocks and that's not likely to occur Thanksgiving week."

Two large rocks are perched above the highway and the ground supporting these rocks is saturated. Several rocks fell onto the highway Tuesday morning. No one was hurt. The road was closed pending more investigation into the rock slide. The pass, Highway 123, is closed from Stevens Canyon Road intersection to the Highway 410/Highway 123 junction.

Park visitors can still access the Grove of the Patriarchs Trail at the Stevens Canyon Road entrance. Stevens Canyon Road remains closed for repairs due to the large landslide that occurred during the November 2006 flood.

Cayuse Pass is not a heavily traveled highway. Fewer than 1000 vehicles each day use the pass. Chinook Pass on Highway 410 remains open.

Drivers can stay on top of this closure through the holiday by visiting the Cayuse Pass Web page at www.wsdot.wa.gov/traffic/passes/cayuse or by calling the 511 travel-information line

from http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2004016079_webcayuse15m.html