Winter weather delays travel plans to Bonners Ferry

As of Monday, Amy Reeves remained optimistic, yet worried about her husband’s pending return to Bonners Ferry for Christmas.

“I just want him to take his time and be careful,” Reeves said about her husband, Adam, who was among thousands of holiday travelers stranded due to winter storms bringing heavy snow and frigid temperatures across the country’s northern tier.

Adam Reeves drives truck and does tool maintenance on the North Slope’s Prudhoe Bay in Alaska. The 25-year-old works three consecutive weeks and then comes home for one week. The trip home takes four flights, and in good weather, takes two days.

Reeves flies from Purdhoe Bay to Anchorage, Seattle and Spokane, Wash., where his wife picks him up. He was due home Monday, but got only as far as Anchorage.

“Spokane is closed due to the storm,” said Amy Reeves, who is the daughter of Margie and Robert McDugle of Bonners Ferry. “You can’t fly from Anchorage either.”

Adam Reeves, however, met three guys in Anchorage who belong to the National Guard. They were driving to Los Angeles, and agreed to drop him off in Seattle. The drive from Anchorage to Seattle is 24 hours.

Adam Reeves, the son of Dan and Connie Reeves, reserved a rental car in Seattle and plans to drive to Spokane, where his wife will meet him.

Reeves will likely have to take Interstate 90 from Seattle to Spokane, which means driving through the Snoqualmie Pass. The pass was closed on Saturday night due to high winds, snow drifts and no visibility and reopened on Monday.

Amy Reeves, 22, expected her husband home on Tuesday night.

The local forecast calls for 80 percent chance of snow tonight and 40 percent chance of snow showers on Christmas Day. Friday will be cloudy with a 50 percent chance of snow, and there’s a 60 percent chance of snow Saturday.