Mount Rainier road conditions and closures.

Every Mount Rainier road and its status.

Mount Rainier doesn't publish a road calendar. Its road status table lists each road as open or closed and is updated when status changes; its last update before we checked was September 8, 2026. The directions page gives only rough seasons: Ohanapecosh on SR 123 is generally open from late May to early November, and the road to Sunrise is usually open by July 1. In winter, SR 123 and SR 410 are closed, most park roads are closed, and only the Nisqually Entrance is open. Mount Rainier isn't using a timed entry reservation anywhere in the park in 2026, and our Mount Rainier reservations page has the details.

The one road in all year.

The road from the Nisqually Entrance, in the southwest corner of the park, is the year-round way in. NPS says the road from the entrance to Longmire stays open all winter except in extreme weather. From Longmire to Paradise, 12 miles, the road closes every night from November 1 through winter and reopens the next morning depending on snow removal and conditions. Even outside winter, NPS says it may close at any time depending on weather and road conditions.

In winter the Longmire gate keeps a typical schedule, conditions permitting: it opens at 9:00 am, the uphill gate closes at 4:00 pm, and the downhill gate closes at 5:00 pm. NPS recommends leaving Paradise by 4:30 pm. The gate can open late, close early, or stay closed all day for weather, avalanche or road conditions, so check the park Alerts after 4:00 pm the day before. If Paradise's parking lots fill, rangers may meter traffic at the gate, letting one car up for each one that comes down. In spring 2026, NPS ended the regular nightly closures on April 6. Our Mount Rainier in winter page covers snowshoeing and sledding at Paradise.

2026: the Sunrise fires and the Fairfax Bridge.

Sunrise is the big 2026 closure. Because of the Grand Park 2 and Wonderland Complex fires in the northeast corner of the park, the Sunrise area has been closed since August 13, 2026, until further notice. White River Road and White River Campground reopened September 5, 2026. From that day, Sunrise Road stays closed to vehicles but is open to walkers and bicyclists. If you go up on foot or by bike, watch for administrative and fire crew traffic, and bring water, food, and supplies. All trails in the Grand Park area are closed until further notice, and so is the Wonderland Trail from the Carbon River Suspension Bridge to White River Campground. White River Road has limited parking, and traffic may be metered at the White River Entrance.

In a normal year, NPS says the road to Sunrise is usually open by July 1 through early September. From late September it closes every night at the White River Campground junction, and the whole road closes for winter in mid-October or earlier with the first heavy snowfall. The park's Sunrise page gives a slightly different pattern: opening in late June or early July, closing in late September to early October. NPS has not announced when Sunrise Road reopens to vehicles.

On the northwest side, there's no public access to Carbon River or Mowich Lake from SR 165. The Fairfax Bridge outside the park is closed to pedestrians, bicycles, and vehicles, and there is no alternate route, according to a WSDOT news release of April 22, 2025. NPS publishes no reopening timeline. Our Mount Rainier camping page lists which campgrounds you can reach.

Tire chains, November 1 to May 1.

Every vehicle must carry tire chains in the park from November 1 to May 1, four-wheel drive included, whatever your tires and whatever the weather that day. Cable chains count, and AutoSocks are allowed for passenger vehicles under 10,000 pounds. NPS explains the rule is stricter than Washington's pass rules because Paradise, at 5,400 feet, sits higher than most of the state's highway passes, and its roads don't have the width or the safety pullouts of a state highway.

In winter, Cayuse Pass (SR 123) and Chinook Pass (SR 410) are closed, so NPS sends winter visitors to the east side of the park by I-90 and US 12. Vehicle access into the park in winter is only from the Nisqually Entrance. From US 12, NPS gives Stevens Canyon Road as the summer route to Paradise, and SR 7 and SR 706 to the Nisqually Entrance as the winter route. It publishes no opening or closing dates for Stevens Canyon Road or the passes.

How crowds follow summer.

Mount Rainier's crowd follows summer. May averages 20% of the visits of July, the busiest month. June, with Ohanapecosh generally open from late May, is 53%, and July, when the road to Sunrise is usually open, is the peak.

Fall drops quickly. September averages 56% of July, October 32%, and November, when the chain rule starts on November 1, just 7%. In 2026, Sunrise is off the list by car while its fire closure lasts. NPS says entrance waits at Nisqually and White River can top an hour on the busiest summer weekends and holidays, and that entering before 10 am or after 2:30 pm can help. The best time to visit Mount Rainier page weighs the months, and the September guide covers the month White River reopened.

Tunnels, RVs and commercial vehicles.

Two tunnels set height limits: 12 feet 6 inches on Stevens Canyon Road and 13 feet 1 inch on SR 123. Commercial vehicles are prohibited at all times on SR 123 (Cayuse Pass) and SR 410 (Chinook Pass). On Sunrise Road, NPS recommends that RVs and vehicles with trailers longer than 25 feet not go beyond the White River Campground intersection, because the road is steep, narrow, and winding; standard-length unmodified motor coaches have no restriction.

Two smaller roads have their own quirks. Westside Road is listed open, but it's an active geohazard zone, so vehicles must park south of the barricade at Dry Creek because of rockfall danger. Paradise Valley Road is a one-way scenic route from Paradise to Stevens Canyon Road.

Common questions.

Is Paradise at Mount Rainier open today?

Paradise is open year-round when road conditions allow, and in winter you reach it only from the Nisqually Entrance. On the park's September 8, 2026 road table, Longmire to Paradise was open. From November 1 through winter, the Longmire gate closes every night and typically opens at 9:00 am, conditions permitting, and it can stay closed all day. The park Alerts carry the daily gate status, so check them before you drive.

Is Mount Rainier National Park open?

Yes, all year, 24 hours a day. In 2026, Sunrise Road is closed to vehicles because of fires, Carbon River and Mowich Lake have no road access, and in winter only the Nisqually Entrance is open. Mount Rainier isn't using a timed entry reservation in 2026. The NPS road status page has each road's latest status.

Do I need tire chains at Mount Rainier?

From November 1 to May 1, yes. Every vehicle must carry chains in the park, four-wheel drives included, whatever your tires or the weather. Cable chains count, and AutoSocks are allowed for passenger vehicles under 10,000 pounds. The NPS tire chain FAQ has the details.

Does a government shutdown close Mount Rainier's roads?

Generally, no. The current National Park Service contingency plan says park roads, lookouts, trails, and open-air memorials will generally remain accessible to visitors during a lapse in appropriations. It also says parks will not provide regular road or trail condition updates, and that an area must be closed if access becomes a safety issue, such as weather or road conditions. In winter, that could mean the daily Longmire gate alerts don't keep up.

Where these facts come from

Road status, the Carbon River and Mowich Lake closure, WSDOT pass lines, tunnel heights, commercial vehicle and RV rules, Westside and Paradise Valley roads, the GPS warning, and the chain window come from the NPS road status page (updated September 8, 2026); the Sunrise fire closure, the White River reopening, and trail closures from the NPS current conditions page (updated September 3, 2026); the year-round Nisqually road, the nightly Paradise closure, rough seasons, winter pass closures, and summer and winter routes from the NPS directions page. The Longmire gate schedule, metering, and winter access from the NPS winter travel page (updated April 6, 2026); park hours, entrance waits, and winter vehicle access from the NPS hours page (updated September 8, 2026); the Sunrise Road pattern from the NPS Sunrise page; chain alternatives and the Paradise elevation reason from the NPS tire chain FAQ; the 2026 reservation decision from the NPS fees page. The shutdown answer comes from the September 2025 National Park Service contingency plan posted on the Department of the Interior shutdown page. The road lines on the map are OpenStreetMap geometry between OSM nodes, routed by OSRM (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL); they show where each road runs, not its closure gates. Crowd numbers are five-year monthly means (2021 to 2025) of recreation visits from the NPS Visitor Use Statistics Data Package on NPS IRMA Stats. Independent site, not affiliated with the National Park Service.