north of Olympia

More old signs (given away by the period), more old bridges across the Nisqually River, northbound in the original US 99 direction (1937 bridge).


The counterpart to the lone shield atop the page precedes the same bridge in the other direction. The SB span dates to 1967, leading to me looking longingly back north at the end.


A quartet of original I-5 overpasses, all coincidentally at interchanges. The first two are NB at Exits 119 and 122, and the last are SB at Exits 128 and 129.


Small guide signs with endless font variations are perched over 100th St. EB at Lakewood Ave. in Lakewood, in preparation for a forced right turn onto Tacoma Way SB and a quick left-turn opportunity to get to WA 512 EB at I-5 Exit 127. The second left to head north on Tacoma Way is due to turn prohibitions at the end of 100th St., requiring traffic to head north to 96th St. instead.


This perspective starts from the S. 38th St. entrance in Tacoma and heads north onto the Exit 133 ramp without ever joining the I-5 mainline, because this is where all the bubble shields are. (The second photo looks left to a mainline sign, for clarity.) As WA 16 begins from the C-D road, taking traffic away, I-5 sprouts a ramp to add traffic back to it. WA 16 EB then adds its own traffic as it comes to an end, and everyone together can choose between I-5 or the 7 routes.


Bonus photo of I-5 traffic toward the Tacoma Dome as I sneak away onto I-705.


There's one random ramp at the Exit 133 interchange and that's this one, from Pacific Ave. SB onto I-5 SB. All the other local traffic ramps use 26th St. to the north. The signs look like WSDOT forgot about this since I-705 opened in 1988.


Here are SB signs in the same place, in the direction not bound to a C-D road. I could believe the first sign dates to around 1988, but I don't know what to do with the second one. It's too new to have a WA 509 shield instead of I-705. Was it a mistaken I-5 or WA 7 shield under the patch? Tom from Olympia informs me that, of all things, it was a mistaken WA 705 shield. That'll do it!


Portland Ave. SB at 25th St. in Tacoma, and then continuing to the referenced entrance via 28th St. with a different kind of cutout shield. The R St. entrance has changed considerably, now splitting to flow straight into WA 167 instead of requiring traffic to turn right onto a separate ramp, so all these shields (including the boring one on the left side of the ramp not shown here) have been replaced.


NB and SB older signs at the interchange, then the SB progression over the Puyallup River and on down the Exit 135 ramp, which uses R St. to make the "reverse" movement to head back "north" (really east). The closer of the riverine bridges and the off-river truss belong to a railroad, while the far bridge is the 1927 US 99 Eells St. Bridge.


NB at the shared beginning of these routes. There are a lot of lines crossing on this sign. Two separate signs would make it easier to understand, along with a proper I-405 shield.


Seattle shields I can locate: MLK, Jr. Way SB at Othello St., Mercer St. EB (a cut-over from WA 99), and 11th Ave. NB at 45th St. NE.

My favorite of the bunch, 45th St. WB at Roosevelt Way.


The only I-5 related button copy I saw, on James Street EB underneath I-5 in Seattle, at the top of the very large hill that was filled in to create a city out of a marsh and a cliff.


NB once more, north of Seattle. US 2 used to continue a short way west from I-5 into Everett before dying, but this interchange became the western terminus, hence the patched direction on the left and the addition of WA 529 on the right.


NB over the Stillaguamish River, then a southward look at the twin Nooksack River bridges. Get your mind out of the gutter. The original bridge is the NB (left) one, built for US 99 in 1955. The twin SB span, wider to accommodate a shoulder, opened in 1971.


Heading north across the 1955 span.

Can't go much farther than this.

Back south on I-5
Back to I-5 main page
See I-5's Ship Canal Bridge from Eastlake Ave., Seattle

Into Canada on BC 99
Onto WA 16
Onto Tacoma Way, former US 99
To WA 512
Exit 133 to I-705
Exit 133 to WA 7
Exit 135 to WA 167
Over to the Eells St. Bridge
Exit 154A to WA 518
Exit 154A to Sea-Tac Airport
Exit 154B to I-405
Exit 193 to WA 529
Exit 194 to US 2
See more of old US 99 north of Everett
Back to Washington Roads
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