Elk and Blewett Pass

Hiya,

Just a random pic... Taken in June or July, I think; maybe spring. Taken on our way to Seattle up on Blewett Pass, or perhaps over by Cle Ellum.

I used to drive that way quite a bit, when I worked at Central. I'm kind of glad that I don't anymore. Especially when this time of year comes around. The drive is just over an hour under ideal conditions.

However, during the fall and winter quarters, the roads almost always have ice or snow or both on them. Then there's the falling rocks and the deer. It's beautful country, that's for sure. And I always enjoyed the trip, travelling alongside an icy stream, through shear rock walls, and past a coniferous forest that turns gold as winter approaches. Often in the winter, you drive up into the clouds and back out again. And then, sometimes, when you turn off the pass and look out over Ellensburg, the whole valley is fogged in and the snow on the mountains off in the direction you just came sparkles in the sun. It's sunny and bright until you drive back down into the valley's mist, which freezes to your windshield. Freezing fog. Can you believe it?

Today, it's a pretty clear day up on Blewett, as you can see. No problems. And in the time that I worked at Central, I never had to use my chains. Rarely did things get bad enough that I couldn't take this route (there's another, longer way, with lower elevation).

There's no doubt that it's a beautiful trip. But this time of year, it's a difficult trip. You never know how the weather is going to be.

I remember one Thanksgiving when Jen and I decided to drive to Sea-Tac airport in Seattle to fly back to Illinois. As we rounded the first curve on the pass, there was a car on its side blocking one of the lanes. That was the last time that we drove to Seattle to catch a plane. Now we fly over to Seattle from Wenatchee.