Is the Kootenay Pass open right now?
Open511's roads reading from 5 min ago shows no closures on Highway 3 over the pass, and DriveBC has posted no advisory mentioning it.
Updated Pacific Time.
Status now
Open
Open511's roads reading from 5 min ago shows no closures on Highway 3 over the pass, and DriveBC has posted no advisory mentioning it. DriveBC's road-weather station near the summit reports the pavement as dry.
Road events from DriveBC Open511.
Summit webcams
DriveBC keeps one camera at the summit and several more along Highway 3 through Salmo and Creston.
Kootenay Pass and Highway 3 cameras
5 min agoKootenay Pass
Highway 3 at Salmo Creston Highway Summit, looking east.
DriveBC.ca
Salmo
Highway 3 at Highway 6 junction, looking west on Highway 3.
DriveBC.ca
Creston - S
Highway 3 and Highway 3A junction in Creston, looking south.
DriveBC.ca
Leadville Road
Highway 3 about 18 km east of Creston in Kitchener, looking east.
DriveBC.ca
Meadows Junction
Highway 3 at Highway 3B junction looking westbound.
DriveBC.ca
Creston - N
Highway 3 and Highway 3A junction in Creston, looking north.
DriveBC.ca
Creston - W
Highway 3 and Highway 3A junction in Creston, looking west.
DriveBC.ca
Camera images and ferry status from DriveBC.ca, BC Ministry of Transportation and Transit.
Weather at the summit
25 min ago- Air temperature
- 16°C
- Road temperature
- 22°C
- Snow depth
- —
- Pavement
- Dry
- Wind
- 13 km/h SW
Measured at Kootenay Pass, 1780 m.
Camera images and ferry status from DriveBC.ca, BC Ministry of Transportation and Transit.
Avalanche rating today
Avalanche Canada is not issuing a forecast for this area right now, which happens outside the winter season. Avalanche forecast from Avalanche Canada.
Winter tire and chain rules on Highway 3
Winter tires or chains are required on Highway 3 through the pass from October 1 to April 30. Winter tires or chains are required on most BC routes, including mountain-pass highways like this one, from October 1 to April 30. A handful of lower-elevation, non-mountain-pass routes end the requirement March 31 instead — Kootenay Pass is not one of them.
Verified on 2026-09-22 against the province’s winter tire and chain-up routes page.
How high is the Kootenay Pass?
The Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure’s own TranBC site states the summit at 1,774 m, calling it BC’s highest mountain pass travelled by vehicle. "The Kootenay Pass Avalanche Team [operates] above BC's highest mountain pass that's travelled by vehicles, at 1,774 metres" — TranBC, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure's own site. DriveBC's road-weather station at the Kootenay Pass Maintenance Yard, a short distance from the true summit, separately reads 1,780 m.
Verified on 2026-09-22 against TranBC’s article on the avalanche program.
Where is it
Kootenay Pass, also called the Salmo–Creston, carries Highway 3 (the Crowsnest Highway) over the summit between Salmo and Creston. Highway 6 joins Highway 3 at Salmo and the two run together 14 km south to the Burnt Flat junction; east of Burnt Flat, Highway 3 climbs through Kootenay Pass and reaches Creston 69 km further on — 83 km Salmo to Creston in total.
The alternative route around the pass is the Kootenay Lake ferry, a free crossing between Balfour and Kootenay Bay that avoids the summit entirely. See the ferry schedule and cameras for its timetable.
This is the road route this site describes for a driver coming from Calgary or from Kelowna; a driver coming from Spokane reaches the lake at Nelson instead, without crossing the pass.
Verified on 2026-09-22 against Highway 3’s Wikipedia article.
Common questions
What are the current road conditions on the pass?
Kootenay pass weather 14 day
Is the ferry faster when the pass is closed?
kootenaylake.org is an independent guide published by Delcaro Media in Kitchener, BC. It is not affiliated with Nelson Kootenay Lake Tourism, the Kootenay Lake Chamber of Commerce, the BC Ministry of Transportation and Transit, Western Pacific Marine, BC Parks or any business listed on it.