Crater Lake National Park · seasonal road
East Rim Drive: when it opens, year by year
Last verified Official record 2004–2023NPS page updated October 3, 2026 (source page); history table page: July 9, 2023
From North Junction (left turn from the North Entrance Road) to Munson Valley near Steel Visitor Center; Cloudcap Overlook and Pinnacles Road branch off it Typically opens: Last to open (after West Rim Drive and North Entrance Road); 'it is often mid-July before all of the road can open, depending on snowpack'. Closes: With the first big snowstorm or on November 1, whichever comes first.
- 2026 opening
- —
- not yet posted
- Median opening
- Jul 10
- 19 years
- Earliest opening
- Jun 11
- 2015
- Latest opening
- Jul 22
- 2011
- Median closing
- Oct 24
- 13 years
The official record
20 years of East Rim Drive
Each dot is a date from the park’s (or WSDOT’s) published table: gold opening, brick closing. Missing dots are years the table leaves blank.
2000s
Jul 6
average opening · 6 yrs
2010s
Jul 8
average opening · 10 yrs
2020s
Jul 8
average opening · 3 yrs
Show the full table ↓
| Year | Opened | Closed | Season (days) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | — | — | — |
| 2022 | Jul 15 | — | — |
| 2021 | Jun 25 | Oct 21 | 118 |
| 2020 | Jul 11 | Nov 1 | 113 |
| 2019 | Jul 11 | Oct 17 | 98 |
| 2018 | Jun 16 | Oct 29 | 135 |
| 2017 | Jul 21 | Oct 13 | 84 |
| 2016 | Jul 13 | Oct 14 | 93 |
| 2015 | Jun 11 | Nov 1 | 143 |
| 2014 | Jul 1 | Oct 27 | 118 |
| 2013 | Jul 2 | Oct 1 | 91 |
| 2012 | Jul 17 | Oct 23 | 98 |
| 2011 | Jul 22 | Nov 1 | 102 |
| 2010 | Jul 9 | Oct 23 | 106 |
| 2009 | Jun 30 | Oct 13 | 105 |
| 2008 | Jul 11 | — | — |
| 2007 | Jun 29 | — | — |
| 2006 | Jul 14 | — | — |
| 2005 | Jun 29 | — | — |
| 2004 | Jul 3 | — | — |
Table source: www.nps.gov/crla/planyourvisit/hours.htm
In the park's words
What Crater Lake says about East Rim Drive
“East Rim Drive From North Entrance Road it is a left turn at North Junction.” source
“Please note that it is often mid-July before all of the road can open, depending on snowpack and other factors.” source
“The roads reopen in stages beginning in May (depending on snowfall) with West Rim Drive, then North Entrance Road, and finally East Rim Drive.” source
“These roads close for the season with the first big snowstorm, or on November 1, whichever comes first.” source
“In preparation for winter it closes on November 1, or earlier. In spring, as snow gradually melts, plows will begin clearing and opening the road in segments” source
“it is expected that all of East Rim Drive will be open in 2027.” source
Worth knowing
- History: NPS 'Operating Hours & Seasons' page, last updated July 9, 2023 - closing dates 2009-2021 and opening dates 2004-2023 (two tables). Each table row is keyed by year: the closing in year Y is the fall-Y closing; the opening in year Y is the spring-Y opening. Years outside those ranges are not published in the capture.
- The 2023 opening row has an empty East Rim Drive cell, so 'June 30' belongs to the North Entrance & West Rim Drive column and East Rim Drive's 2023 opening is not published.
- 2026 status (conditions page updated Oct 3, 2026): 'Rim Drive is OPEN!'; the East Rim Drive rehabilitation project is mostly complete and 'it is expected that all of East Rim Drive will be open in 2027'; the page notes 'it is often mid-July before all of the road can open'. The 2026 opening dates are not stated on any captured page.
About this page
Dates are the park’s and WSDOT’s own, captured on 2026-10-05 and re-checked at every build. Medians and extremes are arithmetic on the published rows; we do not forecast. Weather closes passes without notice, so check live alerts for Crater Lake before you drive. Other seasonal roads in the park: North Entrance Road and West Rim Drive.
Sources · 3
- 1.Crater Lake National Park — East Rim Drive (official page) · National Park Service
- 2.East Rim Drive — historical opening dates table · National Park Service
- 3.Seasonal road pages and historical opening-date tables on nps.gov and wsdot.wa.gov, read and quoted · National Park Service; Washington State DOT
FAQ
East Rim Drive questions
- When does East Rim Drive open?
- Crater Lake says: Last to open (after West Rim Drive and North Entrance Road); 'it is often mid-July before all of the road can open, depending on snowpack'. Across 19 recorded years the median opening is Jul 10, ranging from Jun 11 (2015) to Jul 22 (2011).
- When does East Rim Drive close for the season?
- Crater Lake says: With the first big snowstorm or on November 1, whichever comes first. In the official record the median closing is Oct 24 (13 years), earliest Oct 1 in 2013. For 2026: In preparation for winter it closes on November 1, or earlier (East Rim Drive); Pinnacles Road and Cloudcap close when East Rim Drive closes
- Is East Rim Drive open right now?
- Check the park's road-status page (linked under Sources) or its alerts: our “Is Crater Lake open?” page shows the live NPS alerts.
Park'd · free on iPhone & Android
Pass open? Go.
Park'd keeps the trip — dates, photos, the view from the top — with the park checked off.
