Henry Benthem spent much of yesterday watching the Snoqualmie River creep ever closer to his dairy farm near Duvall.

As a precaution, Benthem moved some belongings to higher ground, away from the swirling flood waters. But if the water reaches his barn when the river is expected to crest early this morning, he'll be forced to move his 300 head of cattle to a "critter pad," an elevated dirt mound.

"You can't milk them or feed them there, but it keeps them alive," he said. "It would keep them from drowning."

Benthem wasn't alone in his riverside vigil. Throughout Western Washington, those who live along more than a dozen rivers spent yesterday and last night watching the rising water as heavy rain and warm temperatures sent rivers over their banks. Many spent the day moving belongings away from floodwaters and driving over flooded roads.

As of last night, the National Weather Service had issued flood warnings for the Skagit, Skykomish, Snoqualmie, Snohomish, Stillaguamish, Tolt, Puyallup and Nooksack rivers in the Puget Sound area. Elsewhere, flood warnings were issued for the Skookumchuck, Skokomish, Satsop and Cowlitz rivers.

Many rivers, including the Snoqualmie near Carnation, the Stillaguamish near Arlington and the Snohomish near Monroe, were expected to crest this morning. In some cases, the rivers were expected to approach near-record levels, according to the weather service.

"This is a warm rain that's hit, and that means melted snow is adding to floodwaters," said Dave Cavanaugh of the Snohomish County Emergency Management Center.

The raging rivers resulted in numerous road closures, particularly in the flood-prone Snoqualmie Valley. In Snohomish County, the Skykomish River peaked last night near Gold Bar a few feet above flood stage. It was enough to prompt the evacuation of an encampment for the homeless on the river's southern bank, town officials said. Flooding was also reported along the Skykomish River in Sultan.

Flooding updates For updated information on flood conditions in King County, go to www.govlink.org or call 206-296-8200 or 800-945-9283. In Snohomish County, information is available from the Emergency Management Center line at 425-388-3653. In Pierce County, information is available on the county Flood Information Hotline at 253-798-4274, and on the Web at www.piercecountywa.org /flooding. In Skagit County, information is available on the flood hotline at 360-419-3425, or on the Web at www.skagitcounty.net. Yesterday's deluge and warm temperatures caused flooding across the region, closing roads and sending dozens to shelters. Conditions were expected to worsen in some areas. The snowmelt that swelled rivers also soaked hopes for a turnaround to the ski season. "If you're looking for snow, get on a plane and head somewhere else," a meteorologist says.

Yesterday's high temperatures — a record 60 degrees at Seattle-Tacoma International Airport — combined with as much as 6 inches of rain in the Cascade Mountains to produce a textbook case of a weather pattern dubbed the "Pineapple Express," weather-service meteorologist Carl Cerniglia said. The pattern sends warm, moist air from the Pacific Ocean around Hawaii up to the Northwest, he said.

Floods not new here

"You get snow, then rain and warm temperatures, it's a sign there's going to be flooding," said Benthem, who has seen more than his share of flooding along the Snoqualmie. "But I'm not in all-out panic mode — yet."

Upriver from Benthem, the Snoqualmie yesterday spilled more than a quarter of a mile from its banks in some places.

Jim Richter, who owns a small working ranch outside Fall City, used a boat to access some area of his back yard. The river, which is normally hundreds of yards away, had swelled over his property.

"On the scale of one to 10, this is probably an 8-½ for a flood. But it doesn't bother me," Richter said. He pointed out nails he had driven into a garage wall to mark the water levels from floods in 1977, 1987 and 1995.

In 2000, he had his house raised by 4 feet, which should keep the water out even if it does continue to rise this time, Richter said.

Trouble ahead

DEAN RUTZ / THE SEATTLE TIMES Randy Oesch has the unenviable job of helping to remove two portable toilets so they don't float away from Sportsman Park in Sultan. Oesch works at the city water-treatment plant next to the park, and dragged the toilets to a place where a co-worker could carry them.

The Skykomish River was expected to crest about 4 feet above flood stage last night, a level that could bring major flooding from near Index downstream to Sultan.

The Tolt crested yesterday at Carnation and receded, but it was possible that it would reach flood stage again today.

A 4 a.m. crest was expected at 4 feet above flood stage for the Snoqualmie River near Carnation. The Stillaguamish River near Arlington was expected to hit a maximum height of 5 feet above flood level at about the same time.

The worst was expected to arrive later for big rivers fed by a host of tributaries.

At 10 a.m. today, the Snohomish River was expected to crest near Monroe 5 feet above flood stage, with the high point arriving in Snohomish around 4 p.m. today. The river's not expected to fall below flood stage in Snohomish until tomorrow evening.

GREG GILBERT / THE SEATTLE TIMES Semi trucks line up for miles just east of North Bend yesterday morning as they wait for Interstate 90 to reopen. Traffic resumed after a temporary closure because of water over the roadway.

Along the Skagit River in Skagit County, an emergency shelter opened yesterday in the Baptist church in Hamilton, said Don McKeehen, a county emergency-operations spokesman. A Red Cross official estimated more than 75 people had checked in. Another shelter opened in the Catholic Church in Concrete.

Mount Vernon officials planned to meet today to decide whether sandbagging would be necessary to protect downtown businesses from the Skagit River, which flows through town. The river was expected to crest at nearly 6 feet above flood stage last night near Mount Vernon, and remain at flood levels until Friday.

"We've [got] time on our side," said Dan Berentson of the Skagit County Emergency Operations Center. "So we're waiting to see if we need sandbagging or any evacuating."

Dams monitored

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers was monitoring dams along the Skagit and Nooksack rivers yesterday and was to continue releasing water as needed today.

In an effort to minimize downstream flooding on the Skagit River, Seattle City Light shut down Ross Dam, City Light spokesman Dan Williams said. The dam has plenty of storage capacity in its reservoir to handle the excess water, he said.

Williams said the shutdown, which was ordered by the Army Corps of Engineers, would not affect power supply to City Light customers.

While many rivers were expected to recede today and tomorrow, the situation could become dicey again at the end of the week, forecasters said. A round of lighter rain is expected tomorrow, with a possible return to heavy rain Friday night, said the weather service's Cerniglia. Temperatures are expected to remain above average throughout the week, with highs in the lowlands dropping from the mid 50s today to the high 40s tomorrow and Friday.

In the west slopes of the Cascade Mountains, where flood problems originate in melting snow doused by rain, lows are expected to remain above freezing until at least tomorrow night, and hover there through Saturday night, according to the weather service.

Seattle Times staff reporter Jim Brunner and The Associated Press contributed to this report.