The pass provides the east entrance to Mount Rainier National Park, and carries State Route 410 between the towns of Enumclaw and Naches.

Because of the high elevation, Chinook Pass is usually closed in November due to very heavy snow and significant avalanche danger.

The alternative was Naches Pass, which with the addition of a short tunnel would be much lower (and easier to keep open in winter).

The Yakima side of a road over Chinook Pass was partially completed in 1914, but then work was abandoned for several years.

From 1940 to 59, Chinook Pass was one of the top ski areas in the state, with a season that ran from December to June.

The requirement that they were temporary tows was made by the Mount Rainier National Park so the lifts could be removed when the snow melted in the summer months.