White Pass: Packwood to Naches
59 miles of US Route 12 between Packwood and Naches over White Pass (4,500 ft), southeast of Mount Rainier. About 10 miles of steeper grade on the west-to-east climb to the summit; the east-side descent toward Naches is notably gentler.
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Chains are required to be carried from November 1 through April 1 regardless of conditions on the day — a firm seasonal rule, not general caution. Stays open year-round, unlike the higher passes nearby, but winter driving conditions apply. Check current access · Reviewed 2026-09-23
Planning the drive
White Pass covers 65 bends over 58.9 miles at a moderate 6.0% maximum grade, with a real asymmetry: about 10 miles of steeper climbing on the west side up to the 4,500 ft summit (our own measured high point: 4,476 ft), then a notably gentler descent on the east side toward Naches. That's the opposite of the front-loaded steepness pattern on some other passes, worth knowing before you plan which direction to drive it.
Carrying chains is required by law here from November 1 through April 1 every year, regardless of what conditions actually look like on the day you're driving — a firm date-based rule, not discretionary caution. Unlike Chinook Pass or the North Cascades Highway, White Pass stays open year-round; the chain requirement is the real seasonal constraint here, not a closure. WSDOT: White Pass US 12
Roads to connect
Driving notes updated .
Road shape
- Length
- 58.9 mi
- Bends
- 65
- Switchbacks
- 3
- Bends per mile
- 1.1
- Turning per mile
- 112°
- Curviest rank
- 152of 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
- 7,361ft
- Climb per mile
- 125ft
- Highest point
- 4,476ft
- Steepest grade
- 6%
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 1/3 (Relaxed) is our editorial rating of width, bends and sightlines; “Medium speed” describes character, not a target speed. Full method. Identified from:
- Wikipedia: White Pass (Washington)
- WSDOT: White Pass US 12
- OpenStreetMap road data (44 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.