Mount Rainier Washington Summit Of Chinook Pass Real Photo Postcard
Chinook Pass, nestled in Washington State's Cascade Range, serves as a crucial scenic and transportation route, especially as the eastern gateway to Mount Rainier National Park. Reaching an elevation of 5,430 feet at its summit, the pass connects the Puget Sound lowlands with the eastern side of the Cascades. Its development in the early 20th century was part of a broader effort to improve access to national parks and facilitate regional travel.
The formidable snow depths encountered at the summit, as depicted in this postcard likely from the late 1930s or early 1940s, illustrate the immense annual undertaking of opening the pass for summer traffic. This yearly effort, often involving weeks of work by snow removal crews and heavy equipment, transformed the pass into a popular tourist route, highlighting the era's dedication to creating accessible scenic drives and supporting nascent automobile tourism.
The formidable snow depths encountered at the summit, as depicted in this postcard likely from the late 1930s or early 1940s, illustrate the immense annual undertaking of opening the pass for summer traffic. This yearly effort, often involving weeks of work by snow removal crews and heavy equipment, transformed the pass into a popular tourist route, highlighting the era's dedication to creating accessible scenic drives and supporting nascent automobile tourism.
