Chinook Pass: Enumclaw to Naches
92 miles of State Route 410 from Enumclaw to its junction with US 12 near Naches, crossing Chinook Pass (5,432 ft) along the Chinook Scenic Byway through Mount Rainier National Park's eastern edge. A sustained mountain crossing with real seasonal closure, not a short technical climb.
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Closes every winter, typically mid-November, due to avalanche danger and limited snow storage along the road — reopens around Memorial Day weekend depending on snowmelt. Commercial vehicles are prohibited on the pass section. Check current access · Reviewed 2026-09-23
Planning the drive
SR 410 runs 92 miles end to end with 67 counted bends, a density of 0.7 per mile — the lowest of any Washington road in this catalog, which makes sense for a highway that mostly connects towns rather than climbing continuously. Our own measured summit came back at 5,432 ft against the pass's documented 5,430 ft, essentially exact. The character is a long approach followed by the real mountain crossing near Mount Rainier National Park's eastern boundary, not sustained technical driving the whole way. Wikipedia: Washington State Route 410
This closes every winter, typically mid-November, specifically for avalanche danger and limited snow storage along the road — not just general difficulty driving in snow. It reopens around Memorial Day weekend depending on snowmelt, and commercial vehicles are barred from the pass section even in season. NPS: SR 410 Chinook Pass and SR 123 Cayuse Pass close for the season
Roads to connect
- Stevens Canyon RoadA separate in-park road nearby, reached via SR 123 at the Cayuse Pass junction.
Driving notes updated .
Road shape
- Length
- 91.6 mi
- Bends
- 67
- Switchbacks
- 6
- Bends per mile
- 0.7
- Turning per mile
- 91°
- Curviest rank
- 156of 160
Measured from the OpenStreetMap centreline at a 20 m sampling step — road shape only, not a safety or speed judgement. How bends are counted.
Elevation
- Total climb
- 10,080ft
- Climb per mile
- 110ft
- Highest point
- 5,432ft
- Steepest grade
- 5.7%
Sampled every 100 m from USGS 10 m elevation data, a public-domain federal dataset. Total climb counts vertical change in both directions, so it does not depend on which way you drive. How elevation is measured.
Speed limits
Varies
Unverified
Check posted signs along the road.
No reliable posted limit was found for this selected section. Follow current signs.
Posted signs always govern. How speed evidence is handled.
Sources
Difficulty 2/3 (Winding) is our editorial rating of width, bends and sightlines; “Medium speed” describes character, not a target speed. Full method. Identified from:
- Wikipedia: Washington State Route 410
- NPS: SR 410 Chinook Pass and SR 123 Cayuse Pass close for the season
- OpenStreetMap road data (83 ways in this trace)
Reviewed 2026-09-23. The trace shows selected road sections, not a navigation route.
Roads nearby
Distances are approximate straight lines between road centers, not driving distances or direct connections.