Hiker Headlines: Harts Pass Rd closed, road to Enchanted Valley damaged, Rainier and North Cascades permits, Mountain Loop Hwy opens

It's April 23. The road to Hart's Pass, a key Pacific Crest Trail access point, is closed due to storm damage. Graves Creek Road, which provides access to the Enchanted Valley trailhead in Olympic National Park, is closed due to erosion. Mount Rainier and North Cascades national parks are set to release more backcountry permits. The Dear Creek gate on the Mountain Loop Hwy is open. And summer-long construction on Forest Road 29 (Sitkum-Sol Duc Road) is about to kick off. Here's some news you might have missed while you were out on trail this week. 

Enchanted Valley in 2025. Photo by trip reporter splitmyplants.

Harts Pass Road closed: Harts Pass Road is closed to vehicles until further notice due to storm damage. The 10-mile road climbs up out of Mazama and is a key access point to Slate Peak and the northern section of the Pacific Crest Trail. It's unclear if the road will be repaired this summer. An extended closure could add extra pain for trail maintenance crews and Pacific Crest Trail hikers (especially northbound hikers who are no longer allowed to enter Canada and have to backtrack from the border to exit the trail). The road remains open to foot traffic.

Enchanted Valley trailhead inaccessible. Graves Creek Road is closed to vehicles until further notice due to erosion at mile 4.1. This restricts access to Enchanted Valley and Graves Creek, although one hiker recently reported on the state of things after traveling the closure on a bicycle. 

Rainier and North Cascades permits: The remaining Mount Rainier permits become available to the public on April 25, and North Cascades permits become available to public on April 29. (If you need a refresher, here's info on how backcountry permits work.) 

Mountain Loop Highway open at Deer Creek gate. The Forest Service has opened Deer Creek gate near Granite Falls on the Mountain Loop Highway. The road remains gated at Barlow Pass and Bedal. A portion of the loop closes every winter, and is a beloved hiking destination in the Cascades. 

Summer road repairs: Road work on Forest Road 29 (aka Sitkum-Sol Duc Road, location here) starts April 29 and will continue intermittently at various locations along the road through October; here's a full schedule of construction dates and closures. 

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