Mountain flying forum at osh

[Hal Bryan]

Hal's idea of following a major intererstate highway through a big valley at as low as 5500 feet may be fine for Washington or other places...

For clarity's sake, in the specific route I was talking about - Snoqualmie Pass - the max roadway elevation is just over 3000 feet, and the Cascade range is very narrow at that point (which is why they put a pass there) so your time actually "in the mountains" is maybe 15 minutes at a "normal" GA cruise.