Interstate 5 North - Skagit County

Milltown Road stems east from Pioneer Highway (old SR 530) to become Starbird Road at old U.S. 99 (Pacific Highway) adjacent to Exit 218. Starbird Road continues east and south to Snohomish County along a forested route.

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Interstate 5 lowers onto a coastal plain east of Skagit Bay from Exit 218.

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SR 534 and Pioneer Highway (former SR 530) come together at Exit 221 near Conway.

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SR 534 travels 5.08 miles east to SR 9 at Lake McMurray. Fir Island Road stems west from Pioneer Highway and Conway to Best Road north for interests to La Conner.

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Little Mountain appears to the east on the five mile approach to Mount Vernon along Interstate 5 north. Bellingham follows in 32 miles.

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Exit 224 is the first of four interchanges to serve the city of Mount Vernon along Interstate 5 north. Old Highway 99 South travels alongside the freeway to the west from the half diamond interchange.

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Interstate 5 reduces to four overall lanes at the Old Highway 99 South off-ramp of Exit 224. Frontage roads tie into Old Highway 99 from the south (Cedardale Road north / Conway Frontage Road south).

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Anderson Road spurs east from Old Highway 99 South to meet Interstate 5 at the Exit 225 diamond interchange. The freeway enters the city limits of Mount Vernon just north of Exit 224 and speed limits lower to 60 mph.

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Cloverdale Road continues alongside Interstate 5 north to the Anderson Road off-ramp (Exit 225) and beyond to Blodgett Road. Use Exit 225 for the Skagit County Fairgrounds.

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Northbound on the one mile approach to SR 536 (Kincaid Street) west and Broad Street east (Exit 226). SR 536 begins at the forthcoming diamond interchange.

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Skagit Station provides multimodel transportation options at the corner of Exit 226 and Kincaid Street. Blackburn Road passes over Interstate 5 in this scene from the Little Mountain area to the east.

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SR 536 follows Kincaid Street to South 3rd Street north to the Mt. Vernon city center. The state route journeys 5.38 miles west via Division Street and Memorial Highway from the city to SR 20 near Fredonia.

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Constructed in the mid-1950s, Interstate 5 maintains just four lanes with a jersey barrier median through the Mt. Vernon city center.

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Exit 227 descends from Interstate 5 north to College Way and the eastbound beginning of SR 538. The east-west state route totals 3.61 miles between Exit 227, Skagit Valley College and SR 9 at Baker Heights.

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A 1955 steel through truss bridge carries Interstate 5 across the Skagit River. The four lane freeway leaves Mount Vernon and enters Burlington.
A portion of the I-5 Skagit River collapsed when a semi-truck collided with critical steel support members on May 23, 2013. The bridge was closed to mid-June, when a temporary span was placed to restore the crossing to service.²

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Descending from the Skagit River bridge, Interstate 5 reaches the Exit 229 diamond interchange with George Hopper Road. George Hopper Road mainly serves an assortment of retail including car dealerships, big box retail, and the Cascade Mall.

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The second Burlington interchange joins Interstate 5 with SR 20 (Avon Cutoff / North Cascades Highway) at Exit 230. The state highway provides the second route to Island County, leading west to the Swinomish Indian Reservation and south across Deception Pass onto Whidbey Island.
SR 20 is a lengthy route, traveling 436.13 miles across the state from U.S. 101 at Discovery Bay to U.S. 2 at Newport near the Idaho state line.

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SR 20 leads west 12 miles to Anacortes and SR 20 Spur, the 7.78 mile spur connects the state route with the ferry Anacortes Ferry Terminal. A system of ferry routes joins Anacortes with the San Juan Islands and Sidney, British Columbia.

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A folded diamond interchange facilitates the movements between Interstate 5 and SR 20 in Burlington. SR 20 dog legs through the city via Rio Vista Avenue east, Burlington Boulevard north, and Avon Avenue east to reach the North Cascades Highway. The state route exits the city for Sedro-Woolley, Lyman, Hamilton, Concrete and North Cascades National Park.

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SR 11 begins at the Exit 231 folded-cloverleaf interchange and leads northwest along Chuckanut Drive to Allen, Edison, and Bow. The state route loops west of Interstate 5 and ends 21.28 miles at Exit 250 in Bellingham.

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Chukanut, Lookout and Anderson Mountains eerily loom along the northern horizon. Interstate 5 eventually crosses these mountains as SR 11 curves northwest along Samish Bay to Larrabee State Park north of Dogfish Point.

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Cook Road travels east-west between SR 11 (Chuckanut Drive) near Allen and SR 9 & 20 (North Cascade Highway) at Ferry Street in Sedro-Woolley.

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Northbound at the Exit 232 diamond interchange with Cook Road.

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Interstate 5 passes over a BNSF Railroad line and the Samish River as it begins its ascent from Butler Flat.

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The roadways of Interstate 5 separate in elevation. Southbound travelers see a rest area facility.

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Bow Hill Road ventures west from Old SR 99 North at Jarman Prairie to meet Interstate 5 at the Exit 236 diamond interchange.

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Continuing west from Interstate 5, Bow Hill Road lowers into the communities of Bow and Edison Station. West from SR 11, Bow Hill Road was once a part of SR 237 to Edison. All 9.07 miles of that state route, between Edison Station and SR 20, were decommissioned in 1991.¹

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Northbound motorists are provided with a rest area 1.50 miles north of Bow Hill Road. This is the last main line facility, the rest area referenced in 30 miles lies near the north end of Interstate 5 at Custer.

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Distance sign posted for Interstate 5 north 16 miles south of Bellingham and 71 miles out from Vancouver.

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Interstate 5 north reaches the rest area facility and continues the ascent toward Lookout Mountain.

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The last Skagit County exit of Interstate 5 serves the community of Alger via Lake Samish Road (Exit 240). Alger lies along old U.S. 99 to the east.

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Drivers bound for Lake Samish Road part ways with Interstate 5 north at the Exit 240 diamond interchange. Lake Samish Road parallels the freeway north to the Whatcom County line and becomes Alger Cain Lake Road east of Alger to Glenhaven and Lake Whatcom.

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Occasionally WSDOT posts non-cutout Interstate shields in place of the traditional cutout signs. These shields generally feature Highway Gothic Series E font and do not include the state name.

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Northbound scenery along Interstate 5 between Exit 240 and the crossing of Friday Creek. The freeway curves along Lake Samish at the base of Lookout Mountain beyond Exit 242.

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Nulle Road arcs west from Pacific Highway (old U.S. 99), across Exit 242, to West Lake Samish Drive on the county line.

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A diamond interchange lies adjacent to the Nulle Road intersection with East Lake Samish drive. East and West Lake Samish Drives encircle the lake west of Interstate 5.

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Interstate 5 concludes the 24.98 mile drive through Skagit County and enters Whatcom County, the last of its 1,381.29 mile journey.

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