USFS reopens Forest Road 170 "The Grade" following bridge completion
Oct 24, 2025 10:55AM ● By Content Editor
By Laura Durenberger-Grunow - Boreal Community Media - October 24, 2025
Forest Road 170 (FR170), locally known as "The Grade," over the Cascade River in the Superior National Forest (SNF), is officially open to traffic as of today, October 24, 2025. This section had been closed since the summer of 2024 due to construction. The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) issued an update earlier this morning on Facebook, confirming the completion and opening of the bridge. According to the USFS, the new bridge replaces a previous culvert.
"The bridge over Cascade River on FR170 'The Grade' is complete and is now open for traffic today, October 24th," the USFS stated in an update. "Forest Supervisor, Tom Hall, terminated the temporary closure order '09-09-24-06' related to this project construction."
The agency did note that some remaining activity is occurring in the area: "The contractor is still moving some remaining equipment and materials today, and we ask all to proceed carefully, but the bridge is open."
The opening concludes a construction period that saw multiple extensions of the road closure. The initial project to replace the old culvert was scheduled for the summer of 2024. However, the closure was extended multiple times, with the most recent extension announced on September 29, 2025, which extended the closure through October 30, "to ensure public safety while construction is completed."
Conditions encountered during construction requiring "additional design, resources, and time" while meeting safety and environmental standards were cited by the USFS as the reason for some of the extensions.
