Passes to Leavenworth, WA

Since you live "here" also then you hopefully understand the traffic flows (or lack of it) to and from Snohomish, King, and Pierce Counties into and away from the 2 main mountain passes (Stevens and Snoqualmies) depending upon the day of the week, time of day, and rush hours. You know the routine: the absolute worse times to be heading east out of the Sound into the mountains is Friday afternoon/evening and heading west back toward the Sound is the same time period on Sunday. Both mountain passes are even worse on holiday weekends.

Using the above as your guide you'll do fine no matter which way you decide to get to and from Leavenworth. Seeing as you say you're leaving Leavenworth on Tuesday, just try to time your travel through Seattle or Tacoma back to Belfair during non-rush hour. Good luck.

If it were me, and you're trying to show Mom diversity of scenery, I would go (and the way I go from Port Orchard to Leavenworth) I-5 to Hwy-18 to I-90 to 970 to 97 to Hwy 2 into Leavenworth.
Return the same way then take Hwy-16 to Bremerton and at Gorst take Hwy-3 into Belfair. On the way home take Hwy-3 south out of Belfair to Shelton to Hwy-101 to I-5 south to home.

Fire5er wrote:
If it were me, and you're trying to show Mom diversity of scenery, I would go (and the way I go from Port Orchard to Leavenworth) I-5 to Hwy-18 to I-90 to 970 to 97 to Hwy 2 into Leavenworth.
Return the same way then take Hwy-16 to Bremerton and at Gorst take Hwy-3 into Belfair. On the way home take Hwy-3 south out of Belfair to Shelton to Hwy-101 to I-5 south to home.

Better yet coming up from the south, take 512 just north of Joint base Lewis/ McChord to Puyallup, then 167 north to HY18. This way you bypass Tacoma!!

Belfair is at the tip of the Hood Canal hook, right? So you'd probably cross the Narrows bridge, unless you do the ferry. So it's south Sound both ways.

In terms of traffic I worry most about east bound on US2 Friday afternoon/evening, and west bound Sunday afternoon. And mostly that's in the semi-suburban parts from Monroe, Sultan, Gold Bar.

Check WSDOT for pass conditions - should be good. There has been construction on I90 on the east side of the pass. WSDOT will have good information on whether that will cause any delays.

From Vancouver US12 to Yakima is an option, as is I84/WA14 to US97. That's scenic in its own way. And you'll still get Blewett.

In a vague sense US2 is more scenic east bound. It takes you gradually into a deeper canyon, then climbs quickly to the pass (best views to the north). Then a gentle drop to the Lake Wennatchee turn off. Then narrow Tumwater canyon, with corner and abrupt entrance to Leavenworth.

Think I would do the SR512 to I90 then to Leavenworth, Then because of Seattle and Tacoma being in the way, I would Ferry to Whidbey Island then Ferry to Port Townsend then on to Belfair. That would give a bunch of xtras to see the savings in gas would makeup part of the Ferry cost. You will want reservations on the Port Townsend ferry.

LEN

Thanks all for the input.

After much discussion with DW and since it's a Saturday so we should avoid the really bad 405 traffic, we are going to go I-5 to 512 to 167 to 405 to 2 into Leavenworth. I'd honestly like to go 18 to 202 to 2, but I have no idea how long 202 would take. Snoqualmie falls is along that route, though.

Then from Leavenworth to Belfair, we'll go 97 to 970 (unless I make a side trip to Iron Horse Brewing in Ellensburg for lunch) to 90 to 18 to 16 to 3. That's on a Tuesday, so I expect traffic in Tacoma, but having done the 16 route for years, I know it clears up right after the Narrows bridge. That's one bridge I'd like Mom to see, too, since there's nothing like it in Utah where she's from.

Going the opposite way and taking the ferry idea is awesome; however, DW vetoed it. Maybe some day. Been across the one from Seattle to Bremerton a few times and the San Juan ones once, but never with an RV. I think she's just nervous about it.

Home from Belfair is easy. We'll head down through Shelton and catch I5 in Olympia.

The trip I'm not looking forward to is in 3 weeks. We have to go from Vancouver WA to Lynden with the horse through Seattle on a Thursday. I don't know which is better, I5 through Seattle or I405 around Seattle. I've heard they are equally bad.

IDoMyOwnStunts wrote:
Thanks all for the input.

After much discussion with DW and since it's a Saturday so we should avoid the really bad 405 traffic, we are going to go I-5 to 512 to 167 to 405 to 2 into Leavenworth. I'd honestly like to go 18 to 202 to 2, but I have no idea how long 202 would take. Snoqualmie falls is along that route, though.

Then from Leavenworth to Belfair, we'll go 97 to 970 (unless I make a side trip to Iron Horse Brewing in Ellensburg for lunch) to 90 to 18 to 16 to 3. That's on a Tuesday, so I expect traffic in Tacoma, but having done the 16 route for years, I know it clears up right after the Narrows bridge. That's one bridge I'd like Mom to see, too, since there's nothing like it in Utah where she's from.

Going the opposite way and taking the ferry idea is awesome; however, DW vetoed it. Maybe some day. Been across the one from Seattle to Bremerton a few times and the San Juan ones once, but never with an RV. I think she's just nervous about it.

Home from Belfair is easy. We'll head down through Shelton and catch I5 in Olympia.

The trip I'm not looking forward to is in 3 weeks. We have to go from Vancouver WA to Lynden with the horse through Seattle on a Thursday. I don't know which is better, I5 through Seattle or I405 around Seattle. I've heard they are equally bad.

It is truly six of one half a dozen of the other for the I5 / I405 Seattle / Bellevue choice. I went the I405 route when we brought the Copper Canyon home from Burlington, WA. We did the Clinton / Mulkto crossing years ago pulling our 20' sail boat with our 64 Econoline van, not a bad experance.