Reopening of North Cascades Highway

ROCKPORT – Contractor crews are stabilizing the slope above State Route 20 and on track to reopen the highway near Rockport early next month.

Crews working for the Washington State Department of Transportation will spend the next two weeks drilling into the hillside to insert rock dowels. These long metal rods will reinforce the hillside to prevent future rockfall. Grout will anchor the rods and metal plates will be attached to hold the large rocks in place.

Once the hillside is stabilized, crews will remove the remaining fallen rocks and debris and reopen SR 20.

Background The initial rockslide occurred the night of June 10, dumping about 150 cubic yards of debris onto both lanes of the highway at milepost 98. By morning, more rocks had fallen, piling up to 1,000 cubic yards of debris, enough to fill about 70 dump trucks.
WSDOT wants to thank the Washington family of the Upper Skagit Tribe for their cooperation and support to gain access to the slope above SR 20.
Funding for this project comes from Washington state’s preservation funds and is expected to cost around $700,000.
Detour route Until further notice, all travelers must detour via SR 530, Rockport Cascade Road and Cascade River Road.