According to ICBC there were 32 fatal crashes between 2004 and 2013, and an estimated 400-500 accidents occur during the winter seasons. Highway 97C travels on this freeway 82 km (51 mi) northwest to Aspen Grove, where it converges with Highway 5A. Its infamy is borne on the backs of all those who failed to make it over her 1,244-metre mountain pass, which connects the coastal rainforest of B.C.s Lower Mainland with the desert climate of its interior. premier", "New route changed the face of the province forever", "Construction of the Coquihalla: Still Amazing After 30 Years", "B.C. The road is named after Coquihalla River. It is typically open all year round, with the occasional closure in winters due to dangerous weather conditions. (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); This 'travel news' services website is privately owned. Winds SW at 10 to 15 km/h. Lane closures and short duration traffic stoppages will be in effect periodically. As Davis puts it, Its you, your vehicle, and a very lonesome feeling. While such words may be apropos for a hurtin song, they carry a far more serious meaning when delivered by Davis. Stunningly beautiful in the Summer! It's a 12-mile hill for those of you watching from the United States and might end up in British Columbia going down one of the more notorious hills, made famous by the TV series, "Highway thru Hell." So we're going to do today, we're going to give you a bit of information on the descent down the hill from the Coquihalla summit. can be used for maintenance on other BC highways. "The heavy rain will begin to transition to snow this afternoon as a cold front crosses the region and snow levels drop," the weather agency said. #Coquihalla 2:20pm March 3 Sunshine and clouds mixed. Initial repair estimates include temporary reopenings consisting of temporary bridges, operational for early 2022 with full repair completed in September 2022. Othello Road Coquihalla Canyon Provincial Park, Hope, British Columbia V0X 1L1 Canada Full view Best nearby Restaurants 30 within 5 kms Home Restaurant 670 2.7 km$$ - $$$ American Diner Canadian Starbucks 6 2.9 kmAmerican Spice & Grill 2 2.9 km See all Attractions 19 within 10 kms Kawkawa Lake 4 1.2 kmBodies of Water Nature & Wildlife Areas This stretch of road, which carries 97 South and 5 North on the same lanes (and vice versa), is the only other wrong-way concurrency in British Columbia, along with 99 North and 12 South, near the town of Lillooet. A diamond interchange at Exit 336 provides an important turn off to Logan Lake on Highway 97D and Lac le Jeune. 7 day. 3 day. Think again. Smart drivers have lots of gas, carry winter clothing, a candle (for warmth) and sleeping bag in the car ' just in case' (chances are that you will never need those extras). Hello Anne and thank you for your message. Winds NE at 10 to 15 km/h. Hes been the one constant along the hellish stretch of road that truckers rely upon, and as such hes seen it all more than once. They chose to confront the Coq without a full tank, not realizing that idling a car for warmth hour after hour depletes an already dangerously low fuel tank. High 1C. And make no bones about it, being stuck on the Coq or any other remote highway when the mercury dips to minus 27 degrees Celcius is nothing short of a battle for survival. [16][17], Effective July 2, 2014, the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure increased the speed limit of Coquihalla Highway from 110km/h (68mph) to 120km/h (75mph) after conducting an engineering assessment and province-wide speed review. Until Sat Mar 4. 1 Year I was hoping you could either confirm or deny this. Watch for slippery sections between Loon Lake Rd and Merritt for 24.2 km (Merritt). Members are encouraged to submit articles about driving the Coquihalla. Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure shares with you what we do and why we do it. Low -4C. We used to use the guns for avalanche control in the area, but the ministry now use helicopters to detonate explosives and trigger controlled avalanches. Driving the Smasher on the Coquihalla highway mid winter 2011 Astronomer Paul 187 subscribers Subscribe 68K views 11 years ago A cruise over the summit of the Coquihalla highway and down the. The Coquihalla section was a toll road until 2008. A series of protected areas were established along the route in 1986. Coquihalla Conditions for Hwy 5 Coquihalla highway & Hwy 97C Okanagan connector for today. [2] After 10 years in office, Waterland retired from the Cabinet in 1986 a few months after seeing this part of the project through to its completion. Traffic pattern changed back to 2 lanes each direction. Chance of snow 60%. Do you guys know the annual snowfall for Thar peak? Many of the catastrophic mistakes he bears witness to involve typical cars and SUVs rather than big rigs. A rescue is currently underway using helicopters to airlift people stuck between two landslides on Highway 7 near Agassiz. Touring the world with friends one mile and pub at a time; southlake carroll basketball. Now that you are a Highway thru Hell fan you might be interested in some of our Highway Thru Hell content: https://www.tranbc.ca/2012/11/01/5-things-to-learn-from-watching-highway-thru-hell/ Chance of snow 60%. But being its a high mountain road, you have to be prepared and drive to the conditions. Snow accumulations less than 2cm. Chance of snow 60%. Coquihalla, BC 10-Day Weather Forecast - The Weather Channel | Weather.com 10 Day Weather - Coquihalla, BC As of 04:40 PST Winter Storm Warning Today -5/ -12 90% Sun. According to St:l oral history, the skw'exweq (water babies, underwater people) who inhabit a pool close by the rock, would swim out and pull the salmon off the spears, allowing only certain fisherman to catch the salmon."[2]. Expect minor delays. The rules imposed by the United States Dec 2 2021 requiring a test 24hours before flying to the USA do not apply at the land border however You are still required to be fully vaccinated to drive to USA. It's called British Columbia Highway 5 (Coquihalla Highway). 2.2m members in the Roadcam community. Snow showers. Snow accumulations less than 2cm. This could include surveying, flagging and staking the right-of-way, mobilization of crews and equipment, preparing the right-of-way, clearing and grading, delivery and staging . Visit our Community Guidelines for more information and details on how to adjust your email settings. There isnt actually a single number to answer the question, because freezing levels very so much in the mountains around the Coquihalla. Hourly weather forecast . The original statistic should have read 3.3 million annual VKT/km, instead of 3.3 million annual VKT. thecanadaweather.com Canada British Columbia Coquihalla. Highway 5, in both directions. A particularly important intersection is the signal lights at Halston Drive, which is one of only two access points to the north half of Kamloops. Tomorrow. Wow, is David Poile ever rolling out the red carpet for his GM successor Barry Trotz. There are many tools engineered into the design of the Coquihalla Highway to reduce the likelihood of avalanches affecting the route, which is why the Coquihalla sees less frequent closures for avalanche hazard and avalanche control than many other mountain passes in the province. Pothole Lake East Highway 97C Weather Cameras (Okanagan Connector), near Pothole Lake about 7 km east of Aspen Grove, looking east. [15], In 2011, the British Columbia government replaced the standard British Columbia Highway 5 shields with Yellowhead Highway 5 shields south of Kamloops, which at the time drew some concern that the Coquihalla Highway would be officially renamed. Thanks for bringing this to our attention. The toll booth once marked the halfway point of the formerly tolled Hope-to-Merritt portion of the highway. For highway rescuer Jamie Davis, those words of wisdom come from 10 years of pulling wrecks from gullies along the snowbound Highway Thru Hell, otherwise known as B.C.'s . Watch premium and official videos free online. We cant say for sure however, we can venture a guess that this term was coined by commercial truck operators who experienced one or more vehicle incidents at the summit/tunnel location. And what is the % gradient? Road construction work between Exit 231: Mine Creek Rd and Exit 250: Larson Hill for 18.6 km (31 to 12 km north of Coquihalla Summit). Hope that this helps. Highway 1, 3, 7 and 5 in Coquihalla suffered extensive damage . Brace yourself winter is here. minor incident | last updated Sat Mar 4 at 6:32 AM PST. Why pay for it again? [7] In order to offset the cost of fast-tracking construction, Phase 1 was made a toll highway, with a toll plaza constructed at the summit of Coquihalla Pass; was designed to accommodate 13 toll booths for 14 lanes of traffic. Drivers could avoid becoming stranded and helpless if they were more conscientious about filling their gas tanks at each opportunity and carrying cable chains. Hello John, This rock is a good platform for spearing salmon. [12] In response to strong opposition from the public, and numerous businesses, in the Interior of British Columbia, the provincial government shelved the move three months later. Scattered snow showers during the evening. They dont look quite as dapper after chilling roadside a few hours. Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion and encourage all readers to share their views on our articles. We reached out to our weather and avalanche group for clarification and they let us know that the issue is the difference between measurement of precipitation and snowfall. Theres no help around the corner, so you must rely upon your own smarts to survive. [4], Coquihalla Summit Recreation Area is a provincial recreation area centred around Coquihalla Summit. Elkhart West Hwy 97C (Okanagan Connector), about 25 km east of Hwy 5A/97C Junction, looking west. This section is mostly an urban freeway with a speed limit of 100km/h (62mph) it passes through 5 interchanges connecting to the core area of Kamloops before the concurrency splits and Highway 5 exits off the road to the north in a complex 5 way interchange. Hope that this information is helpful. Chance of snow 60%. Hes the constant that can be relied upon when self-reliance runs out. Mountain pass in British Columbia, Canada, Southern approach to Coquihalla Summit as viewed from, List of mountain passes of the Cascade Range, "Editorials: Farewell to a prime politician", "Coquihalla Highway reopens after massive avalanche control operation", BC Ministry of Transportation and Highways Infopage, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Coquihalla_Summit&oldid=1138202497, Wikipedia articles needing clarification from November 2022, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 8 February 2023, at 14:53. Number of closures for the last 10 years would be sufficient. Snowfall of 2-3cm. There were 32 fatal crashes between 2004 and 2013 (according to ICBC). Its totally paved. We have sent this question forward to the area operations manager for review. Mostly cloudy. This information obtained from bchighway.com should not be used as a basis for making financial or other commitments. Now they just drop bombs from the helicopters in the exact location of the avalanche hazard. It's 7 kms from Hope (the Shakespearean name is reminiscent of the Kettle Valley Railway which used such names). It requires skill to drive. At high elevations it can sometimes get to be -30 deg. Chance of snow 40%. It was a little nerve wracking in my little Toyota Matrix but I am glad I did it. 26 | Day -5 90% SW 30. The location of the former toll booth is 13km (8mi) north of the snow shed, passing through another interchange and the Highway 5 begins south at the junction with Crowsnest Highway (Highway 3) at uninhabited Othello, 7km (4mi) east of Hope (named after a nearby siding on the Kettle Valley Railway, which used many Shakespearean names). Chance of snow 60%. BC Transportation (@TranBC) November 17, 2021 The Coquihalla is one major route connecting the Interior to the Coast, and it remains closed between Hope and Merritt. Without your consent employers will not be able to contact with job offers, would you like to opt-in now? Zopkios Southbound N Hwy 5, northbound at Zopkios Rest Area, near the Coquihalla Summit looking to the south. You can only add up to 5 vehicles to your picks. The heartache in Daviss voice was palpable as he described the accident scene. Variable clouds with snow showers. Winds NE at 10 to 15 km/h. Low -9C. The main factor is youre driving over a mountain. kamloops to merrit is absolutely treacherous right now, blowing blizzards and low vis, i can imagine the smasher will be 10x worse Its a fine highway. ), Collisions (when a vehicle crashes into something) and the subsequent investigation and clean up, BC day long weekend (29,114 on August 1, 2014), Annual Average Daily Traffic (AADT): 10,569, 3.3 million Annual VKT/km (VKT/km represents the annual vehicle kilometres travelled, divided by the length of the roadway), Busiest traffic month: August (based on 2012 stats), The Coquihalla has twice or more the volume of traffic compared to any other highway that crosses a mountain path in BC (based on 2012 stats). 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[1] It is the highest point on the highway between the cities of Hope and Merritt. Between Hope and Kamloops, Highway 5 is known as the Coquihalla Highway (colloquially "the Coq"; pronounced "coke"). There was an error, please provide a valid email address. It encompasses 5,750 hectares (14,200 acres) of forested mountain slopes stretching from Portia Peak in the southwest to Coquihalla Lakes in the northeast. On the one hand, you have the Othello Tunnels, which is what the park is most known for; on the other hand, you have the park's epic geology, rushing water and beautiful flora. Snow showers. The speed limit is 100km/h (62mph) for the most part except in towns, where it can drop to as low as 50km/h (31mph). I would like to know, too. The next issue of Driving.ca's Blind-Spot Monitor will soon be in your inbox. At this time, we are not considering making the Coquihalla a tolled route. Low -4C. (Submitted by Jeremiah Steberl) B.C.'s Coquihalla Highway could be . Too much horsepower with too little brains. minor road condition | last updated Sat Mar 4 at 6:45 AM PST. Sometime in March? The road was constructed in 1941. The ascent to the Coquihalla Summit is very steep, especially from the south, and is particularly steep north of the Great Bear snow shed. Winter tires or chains are required on most routes in British Columbia from October 1 to April 30. For highway rescuer Jamie Davis, those words of wisdom come from 10 years of pulling wrecks from gullies along the snowbound Highway Thru Hell, otherwise known as B.C.s infamous Highway 5, also named the Coquihalla. Pennask Summit Hwy 97C (Okanagan Connector), about 74 km west of Kelowna, looking east. Winds SSW at 10 to 15 km/h. People often leave after work not realizing that as the sun goes down the temperature drops, and the storm starts. The Coq starts near sea level at Hope and then gains over a kilometre in elevation in less than 50km distance. We hope that this information is helpful. I note that you give average daily traffic at 10,569 which works out to 3.9 million trips per year. High -1C. From south to north, the following intersections are observed along Highway 5:[29][30], Highway 5 passing through Thompson Plateau. Crews continue to clear snow in anticipation of an opening early afternoon Saturday. A highway camera in the area shows the dark-coloured. 19962023 bchighway.com - All Rights Reserved. From 6:00 PM to 3:00 AM PST on Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Could you provide on how many times the Coquihalla has been closed during the winter months and whether that closure was due to an incident (i.e. Safe travels. [6], In the 1960s, the Merritt Board of Trade began lobbying the B.C. Cloudy with snow showers developing for the afternoon. Many lives have been lost or irreversibly altered on the Coq, and thats a difficult reality faced by Davis and his crew. The Canadian docuseries, which premiered in 2012, follows the daily operations of tow truckers working in British Columbia. Terms | Dont travel at night. The Coquihalla highway in BC, Canada is frequently traveled by Canadians and Americans. https://www.tranbc.ca/2012/11/01/5-things-to-learn-from-watching-highway-thru-hell/, https://www.tranbc.ca/2013/01/09/highway-thru-hell-the-complete-tranbc-interview-series/, https://www.icbc.com/about-icbc/newsroom/Pages/Statistics.aspx, https://catalogue.data.gov.bc.ca/dataset/historical-drivebc-events, http://tranbc.ca/2016/03/24/what-its-like-to-watch-an-avalanche-from-a-helicopter/, http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/transportation/driving-and-cycling/cycling/cycling-regulations-restrictions-rules, http://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/transportation/driving-and-cycling/driving/traveller-information/seasonal/winter-driving/winter-tires-and-chains, B.C. The Coquihalla Highway starts south of the junction with Crowsnest Highway (Highway 3) situated at the uninhabited region of Othello. Why Are Workers Doing the Safety Dance on the Sea-to-Sky? [7] Surveying commenced in 1973 and in 1979 the first construction contract was issued for 4.5km (2.8mi) section of highway between Nicolum Creek and Peers Creek near Hope; however, work progressed slowly until 1984 when Premier Bill Bennett announced that the project would be fast-tracked so it could be completed to coincide with Expo 86. Forecast issued: 3:45 PM PST Monday 6 February 2023. Coquihalla Summit (el. Winter surprises are a real fear, sudden snow storms, blowing snow and fog, often make winter driving hazardous and slow. There isnt a Timmies on every corner., When it comes to winter tires, four is always the safest way to go. It proceeds northeast for another 107 km (67 mi), passing Vavenby en route, to the community of Blue River, and then 109 km (68 mi) further north through the Columbia Mountains, passing by the community of Valemount to its northern terminus at Tte Jaune Cache, where it meets Highway 16. Coquihalla Highway is an extreme freeway located in British Columbia, Canada's westernmost province. Plus the elevation means that it's frequently covered with snow and ice. Work will commence in a series of phased activities along the pipeline right-of-way. If you have specific routes which you are interested in, you may want to identify those as well. Copyright 2023, Province of British Columbia. Winds light and variable. Every month 400 people find a job with the help of TruckersReport. Stay tuned. We are looking into this for you. Hwy 5 - Coquihalla Pass 0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 0 1020 30405060 708090 100 Kilometers Elevation (meters) 1.5% 5.4% 8.5% 1.2% 4.7% Hope Merritt. Highway 5 re-enters the city at the Rayleigh community, where it passes two busy at-grade, but not signallized intersections; traffic volumes steadily decrease as it gets farther from the core area of Kamloops. [3] Now free to drive, at the Coquihalla Lakes junction, the highway crosses from the Fraser Valley Regional District into the Thompson-Nicola Regional District. Snow showers. So dangerous and dramatic is the highway, Discovery Channel chose it as the basis of their gripping and exceptionally popular reality series Highway Thru Hell, which features the rescue work and heavy towing services of Jamie Davis and his 40 or so dedicated employees. [20] While road maintenance strives to keep the roads as clear as possible, it is not unheard of for the highway to shut down, sometimes with travellers forced to stay overnight in their cars. Brenda Mine East Hwy 97C (Okanagan Connector), about 22 km west of 97/97C Junction, looking east.