Scenic Drives

from Central Washington Visitor's Guide 2021

Winter Experiences

Taking a drive anywhere in Kittitas County is sure to live up to expectations. Enjoy the leaves changing colors in the fall and the livestock grazing in the spring. In the summer, roll down that window and let the fresh rural air cool you off. Scenery can be spectacular in the winter too with the surrounding hills covered in snow.

n YAKIMA RIVER CANYON

Drive the 22-mile Yakima River Canyon Highway (State Route 821) southeast of Ellensburg to Selah, and you might catch a glimpse of bighorn sheep, deer, or bald eagles. Any time of year, you’ll view stunning scenery and interesting geology. Turn around at Selah and come back through again and you’ll see things differently the other direction.

The U.S. Bureau of Land Management offers recreation areas, restrooms, hiking trails, and campsites along the highway. The river offers worldclass fly fishing and is popular with floaters during the summer.

n VANTAGE HIGHWAY

The old Vantage Highway from Ellensburg to Vantage travels through rolling farmland to a dramatic shrub steppe landscape. It travels past the Wild Horse Wind and Solar Facility, which is open to the public, and ends near Ginkgo Petrified Forest Park at the Columbia River. n LIONS ROCK

This scenic drive goes 23 miles from the Kittitas Valley floor up steep slopes north of Ellensburg to an elevation of 6,300 feet. Head north on Reecer Creek Road, and go past its end on gravel to Forest Service Road 35.

n ROSLYN TO SALMON LA SAC

Drive along state Route 903 north of Roslyn for tremendous views of jagged Cascade peaks, the Cle Elum River and quiet mountain lakes. The paved route ends at Salmon la Sac, which has 67 camp sites and a free day-use picnic area nestled between the Cle Elum and Cooper rivers. The area is popular for camping, hiking, boating, cross-country skiing, berry picking, kayaking, picnicking, and more.

The Gallagher trailhead near the Salmon la Sac area provides a popular motorized off-road vehicle area. Horses can be lodged in the corrals at the Forest Service’s Cayuse Horse Camp, near the Salmon la Sac guard station. The road is plowed all the way to Salmon la Sac in the winter.

n STATE ROUTE 10

If you are looking for a scenic alternative to the traffic on Interstate 90, try State Route 10, which runs from Ellensburg to Cle Elum. The route follows the Yakima River. You’ll see picturesque farmland, wind turbines, and people fishing and floating. It’s a particularly scenic drive in September and October when the leaves begin to change color.

n TEANAWAY ROAD

The Teanaway Road offers dazzling views of the Teanaway River and valley. While the paved portion of the Teanaway Road is in good condition, high-clearance vehicles are advised for the unpaved portion of the road about 15 miles into the valley. n BARN QUILT TRAIL

Starting in 2012, a group of local volunteers made it their mission to set up a self-guided route of folk-art murals on barns around Kittitas County. They quickly succeeded. Today there are more than 100 murals on area barns, and each painted quilt block has its own story.

Visitors will be able to spot some of the quilt squares at the Kittitas County fairgrounds and in downtown Ellensburg, but there also are several scenic routes you can take to find the quilt squares. The county’s arid climate has preserved old barns, and many are still in use today for hay and livestock.

For more information and maps of the locations, go to myellensburg.com or stop by the Kittitas County Chamber of Commerce office in Ellensburg or Cle Elum.