OPEN
NO RESTRICTIONS
Last updated at: NOV 5, 2026, 8:55 AM PST · WSDOT · Pass report Thu, Nov 5, 7:29 AM
Stevens Pass is open, no restrictions in either direction, 36 degrees at the summit, road surface bare and wet with ice in places, updated Thu, Nov 5, 7:29 AM.
Both of Washington's Seattle Cascade crossings, live, on one page. Stevens on US 2, Snoqualmie on I-90.
Eastbound over Stevens Pass
Summit 4,061 ft · 36°F at the summit · Bare and wet with ice in places.
Westbound over Stevens Pass
Summit 4,061 ft · 36°F at the summit · Bare and wet with ice in places.
OPEN
NO RESTRICTIONS
OPEN
NO RESTRICTIONS
Snoqualmie Pass is open, no restrictions in either direction, 40 degrees at the summit, road surface bare and wet, updated Thu, Nov 5, 4:37 AM.
Dead heat: both passes carry the same posting right now, so choose by destination and traffic, not by conditions.
From live WSDOT reports · Stevens Thu, Nov 5, 7:29 AM · Snoqualmie Thu, Nov 5, 4:37 AM
Stevens Pass is the older, higher, narrower crossing: 4,061 feet, two lanes for long stretches, avalanche paths over the road, and a ski area at the crest. Snoqualmie Pass is the engineered crossing: 3,022 feet, a wide interstate with room to plow and room to pass, and a chain of ski areas and a small town at the top. In fair weather the choice is geography, Stevens for Leavenworth and the north Sound, Snoqualmie for Ellensburg and everywhere east. In winter the choice is the live posting, because a thousand feet of elevation and a storm track's width of latitude routinely give the two passes different weather on the same afternoon.
The full Snoqualmie picture, its cameras, and its own history live on our sister site, i90live.com. Drivers crossing to central Washington also weigh Blewett Pass on US 97, the link between the two corridors; when Stevens closes, Snoqualmie plus Blewett is the way around, and when both I-90 and US 2 are in trouble, the correct move is usually to wait, because Blewett shares the same storm.
Which pass is better today, Stevens or Snoqualmie?
The verdict at the top of this page is computed from the live postings: a closed pass loses, a chains required pass loses to a traction tires pass, and an unrestricted pass beats both. When the postings tie, the lower, wider road usually wins on time, and the pass closer to your destination wins on miles.
How much longer is the Snoqualmie detour when Stevens is closed?
From the Seattle side, the detour runs I-90 over Snoqualmie Pass to Ellensburg, then US 97 north over Blewett Pass to US 2 at Cashmere: roughly an extra two hours in good conditions, more when every Stevens driver has the same idea at once.
Why are the two passes posted differently on the same day?
Stevens sits about a thousand feet higher and takes the northern storm track, while Snoqualmie is lower and wider with more lanes to clear. A storm that buries Stevens can be a traction tires day on I-90, and a warm storm can reverse the picture, rain at Snoqualmie and snow at Stevens.
