Mountain Loop Highway
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| State Route 92 Auxiliary route of  SR 9 |
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| Length: | 56 mi (90.12 km) | ||||||||||||
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| Formed: | ? | ||||||||||||
| West end: | SR
92 in Granite Falls |
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| East end: |  SR
530 in Darrington |
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The Mountain Loop Highway (also known as the SR 92 Extension) is a highway traversing a western section of the Cascade Range in the U.S. state of Washington. The highway connects the towns of Granite Falls and Darrington. It is paved for 34 miles from Granite Falls to Barlow Pass (2349'), unpaved for the next 13 miles, then paved again for the remaining 9 miles to Darrington. The unpaved section is U.S. Forest Service Road #20 and passes several USFS campgrounds. Portions of the unpaved section are often closed for periods of several years due to flood damage.
The portion from Granite Falls to Barlow Pass follows the Stillaguamish River. The portion from Barlow Pass to Darrington follows the Sauk River.
Between Granite Falls and Barlow Pass, the highway passes Big Four Mountain and the trailhead leading to the ice caves at its base. At Barlow Pass, a private road (closed to motor vehicles) branches from the highway and leads to the former silver mining town of Monte Cristo.
The "inside" of the highway's namesake loop is a large area containing significant Cascade peaks, including Three Fingers (6850 ft, 2088 m), Whitehorse Mountain (6850 ft, 2088 m), Mount Pugh (7201 ft, 2195 m), Mount Dickerman (5723 ft, 1744 m) and Mount Forgotten (6005 ft, 1830 m).
Route Description
The Loop starts at the east terminus of SR 92. SR 92 is called E Stanley Street and the Loop is called N Alder Street. The loop goes north and then northeast. After passing Silverton, the highway goes southeast. Then north to Monte Cristo, a ghost town. After passing Bedal the Loop turns northwest. This is where it turns unpaved for 13 miles. Then after the 13 miles, the road turns paved for 9 miles. Then after the 9 miles, the Loop ends at Seeman Street in Darrington. Seeman Street is also known as SR 530.
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