Washington State Route 165

State Route 165 (SR 165) is a state highway in Pierce County, Washington, United States. It travels north–south along the Carbon River between Mount Rainier National Park near Mowich Lake to a junction with SR 410 in Buckley. The highway passes through the towns of Carbonado and Wilkeson and also intersects SR 162 near South Prairie. SR 165 is the only state highway in Washington to include an unpaved section.

State Route 165
Carbon Glacier Highway
Route information
Auxiliary route of SR 410
Maintained by WSDOT
Length	21.18 mi^[1] (34.09 km)
Major junctions
South end	Mount Rainier National Park near Mowich Lake
Major intersections	SR 162 near South Prairie
North end	SR 410 in Buckley
Location
Country	United States
State	Washington
Highway system
State highways in Washington Interstate US State Scenic Pre-1964 1964 renumbering Former
← SR 164 → SR 166

Route description

 

SR 165 near the small town of Wilkeson

SR 165 begins at the western boundary of Mount Rainier National Park on Mowich Lake Road, which continues east for 6 miles (9.7 km) to a campground at Mowich Lake on the northwestern flank of Mount Rainier.^[2] Mowich Lake Road is open seasonally from July to October, remaining closed to vehicular traffic during the winter and spring due to weather conditions.^[3][4] The southernmost section of the highway is an unpaved gravel road—the only one to be included in Washington's state highway system.^[5]

The highway travels northwest along Evans Creek through a section of the Mount Baker–Snoqualmie National Forest, passing several trailheads. At a junction with Fairfax Forest Reserve Road, which serves an alternate entrance to Mount Rainier National Park, SR 165 turns north to follow the Carbon River, which it crosses on the Fairfax Bridge, a single-lane arch bridge. The highway continues along the east bank of the Carbon River to Carbonado, where it passes through the east side of the town and neighboring Wilkeson. SR 165 continues north and intersects SR 162 east of South Prairie, turning northeast to follow the Foothills Trail. The highway terminates at SR 410 in southwestern Buckley.^[6][7]

SR 165 is maintained by the Washington State Department of Transportation (WSDOT), which conducts an annual survey on state highways to measure traffic volume in terms of annual average daily traffic. Average traffic volumes on the highway in 2016 ranged from a minimum of 190 vehicles near its junction with Fairfax Forest Preserve Road to a maximum of 6,900 vehicles near SR 410 in Buckley.^[8]

 

SR-165's Faifax Bridge was the highest bridge in the state when it was built in 1921.^[9]

History

SR 165 was added to the state highway system in 1931 as a part of State Road 5.^[10] The highway had been preceded by a series of logging roads constructed in the early 20th century by private companies with claims near the national park.^[11] An unpaved road along the Carbon River leading to the national park opened in 1921, including the James R. O'Farrell Bridge (now the Fairfax Bridge, which opened on December 17.^[12][13] The Bureau of Public Roads surveyed the route for a potential connection between the Carbon River and Nisqually entrances to Mount Rainier National Park in the 1920s, but did not fund its construction.^[14] The road to Mowich Lake was completed in 1933.^[11]

In 1937, State Road 5 was renamed Primary State Highway 5, and what is now SR 165 was the Enumclaw-Fairfax branch of that highway (except between Enumclaw and Buckley, which is now SR 410). The road to Mowich lake was completed in 1933, but remained closed to vehicular traffic until 1955.^[15] When the current highway numbering system was developed with the 1964 renumbering, the highway became State Route 165.^[16] In 2021, the Washington State Transportation Commission designated SR 165 as the Carbon Glacier Highway to recognize the Carbon Glacier on Mount Rainier.^[17]

Major intersections

The entire highway is in Pierce County.

Location	mi^[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
​	0.00	0.00	Mount Rainier National Park	Road continues as Mowich Lake Road
​	10.91	17.56	Fairfax Forest Preserve Road – Mount Rainier National Park
Carbon River	11.55	18.59	Fairfax Bridge
​	19.56	31.48	SR 162 west – South Prairie, Orting
​	21.18	34.09	SR 410 – Tacoma, Enumclaw, Yakima
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

References

Template:Attached KML/Washington State Route 165

KML is from Wikidata

1. Multimodal Planning Division (February 4, 2020). State Highway Log Planning Report 2019, SR 2 to SR 971 (PDF) (Report). Washington State Department of Transportation. pp. 1058–1060. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
2. (PDF) (Map). National Park Service. May 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 15, 2010. Retrieved April 12, 2008.
3. "Mowich Lake". National Park Service. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
4. National Geographic Guide to National Parks of the United States (Eighth ed.). National Geographic. 2016. p. 404. ISBN 9781426216510. OCLC 1031965314.
5. Washington State Department of Transportation (2014). Washington State Highways, 2014–2015 (PDF) (Map). 1:842,000. Olympia: Washington State Department of Transportation. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
6. Google (June 9, 2021). "State Route 165" (Map). Google Maps. Google. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
7. "Corridor Sketch Summary – SR 165: Mt Rainier National Park Boundary to SR 410 Jct (Buckley)" (PDF). Washington State Department of Transportation. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
8. 2016 Annual Traffic Report (PDF) (Report). Washington State Department of Transportation. 2017. p. 153. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
9. "WSDOT - Historic Bridges". Retrieved May 8, 2009.
10. Session Laws of the State of Washington. 1931 chapter 29.
11. "Carbon River and Mowich Lake - The Quiet Corner". National Park Service. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
12. Crowley, Walt (February 20, 2005). "Fairfax Bridge (James R. O'Farrell Bridge) opens to auto traffic on December 17, 1921". HistoryLink. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
13. "Mount Rainier Roads and Bridges: National Park Service Years". Highways in Harmony. National Park Service. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
14. "Mount Rainier Roads and Bridges: Modern Roads for Modern Times". Highways in Harmony. National Park Service. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
15. "Mount Rainier Roads and Bridges: West Side Story". Highways in Harmony. National Park Service. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
16. Washington State Highway Commission (December 1, 1965). "Identification of State Highways" (PDF). Retrieved April 10, 2008.
17. "Resolution No. 742: Designates State Route 165 the "Carbon Glacier Highway."" (PDF). Washington State Transportation Commission. May 19, 2021. Retrieved August 16, 2023.