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Snoqualmie Valley persists through season’s second flood

Published 11:29 am Tuesday, March 24, 2026

By Grace Gorenflo

Felix Salvo, 15, rows his family’s boat through flood waters on NE 124th Street, March 20, 2026. His parents own Local Roots Farm in Duvall. (Grace Gorenflo/Valley Record)
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Felix Salvo, 15, rows his family’s boat through flood waters on NE 124th Street, March 20, 2026. His parents own Local Roots Farm in Duvall. (Grace Gorenflo/Valley Record)

Felix Salvo, 15, rows his family’s boat through flood waters on NE 124th Street, March 20, 2026. His parents own Local Roots Farm in Duvall. (Grace Gorenflo/Valley Record)
Flood waters approach State Route 203 at the northern intersection of Neal Road SE, March 20, 2026. (Grace Gorenflo/Valley Record)
Water spills far outside the banks of the Snoqualmie River, March 20, 2026. (Grace Gorenflo/Valley Record)

The Snoqualmie River basin had a lively week starting March 18 as water levels climbed up to King County’s flood phase 3.

In flood phase 3, river flow rate hits 20,000 cubic feet per second (cfs), which means flooding is possible across the entire Snoqualmie Valley. At one point, all of the Floodzilla river gauges showed flooding.

Several roads closed across the Valley for days at a time, some of which are bound to close during a flood event. But Floodzilla field scientist Regina Fletcher said there were some surprises as well.

“Water levels seemed to back up and close a lot of back roads, including Ames Lake-Carnation Road NE … and from what I’ve been told, that road doesn’t normally close,” she said, noting that this road is often a plan B for drivers when Duvall’s NE 124th Street closes.

She added: “I mainly keep thinking about our snowpack now, and how bare the mountains look.”

Water levels went down over the sunny weekend of March 21-22, but some low-lying farm roads were still closed as of March 24, including West Snoqualmie River Road SE.

Jubilee Farm is one of the properties that sits on that road, between Carnation and Fall City. Its owners are quite used to flooding, as were the generations before them.

“Life doesn’t stop just because of a flood,” they posted on Facebook March 19. “We are lucky enough to have a back way off the farm over the hill, you just have to be willing to row or paddle a bit first. There’s a band concert at school tonight, and you can bet these farm kids and their families will be there.”

In Duvall, NE 124th Street — one of the two main roads in and out of Duvall over the Snoqualmie River — was closed for four days.

Local Roots Farm is located right off of this road. In times like these, its owners row a boat to their house from the roundabout at NE 124th Street and State Route 203.

The family is close with the Pickerings, owners of Novelty Hill Farm, located on the other side of the roundabout. The Local Roots gang camps out at Novelty Hill when flooding gets bad.

While not blood related, “we’re family,” they said.

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