winter drive Bellevue to Ellensburg (Seattle, Issaquah: apartment, rent, home)

[marianne1952]

My husband is going to be working in Bellevue . We are moving from sunny Colorado. Since the clouds and rain in B is going to depress me (the wife!) we have been pondering about bbuying a home in Ellensburg where there is more sun as I have read. My husband will rent an apartment in B and drive to Ellensburg on friday night and return on monday morning. I know the drive in spring summer autumn won't be too hard. Would like any input on what the drive is like in the winter.
Thanks!

[Mark S.]

The passes do sometimes close in the winter. They seldom stay closed for more than a day or two, but they do close.

Don't despair too much over the rain. Actually, summers here are more pleasant than in Colorado. The stereotypical "gloomy Seattle" isn't true in the summer at all. We get hardly any rain from July through September. We haven't had anything but two tiny sprinkles since mid-June.

The downside to this is that when the rains stop, the smog sets in. It's not L.A. bad, but it's real close some days.

[silverfox]

I know for a fact there are people driving from the CleEllum area to Bellevue
and not just on weekends either. You must Love the Sun very much to want to endure this arrangement. Be prepared for difficult times thru the winter as the pass has the potential to be closed for a short time when things get tough. Every winter is different, so some are fairly mild. Make sure you have the proper type of auto with all wheel or 4 wheel drive, and proper chains in a good state of repair along with warm clothing, gloves, shorty boots etc. in the vehicle during these times. Also carry some snacks and bottled water. I would also carry a cell phone. You might want to be thinking about refreshing your thoughts on how to drive in ice and snow and considering there are many large trucks crossing the passes that throw road junk all over your vehicle. It can be very destructive when they have sanded the roads and all that debris comes flying at you as cars go buy and also pass you.
My wife took our new Toyota Camery from Seattle to CleEllum and back during the winter and when she got home there was $500 damage to the car because she got caught in a situation and didn't know how to handle it. The larger sand particles had sandblasted the front end paint and even broken one headlight.
On the other side of the equation, my wifes sister lives in CleEllum and travels the passes all the time. She is a very good driver and isn't fussy about her chevy blazer which does just fine in all kinds of weather. In case you don't already know, CleEllum is just approx. 20 miles closer to Bellevue than Ellenesburg. During the summer, the pass is a pretty drive if you travel during daylight hours. As far as traffic goes, well....you'll have to figure that one out as you start making the trip. Lots of cars driving I-90 from Issaquah to Seattle.
Personally if I had to choose living in that area, I would pick Elleneburg over CleEllum.

Hope this helps a little.

Silverfox

[marianne1952]

Thanks so much guys! We are trying to figure out what is best for us...so my husband and I can both be happy. I wish I had never lived in CO we are sooooooo terribly spoiled with the 300 sunny days per year!!