Summer road trip season is just around the corner in the Colorado High Country – but deep, lingering snow might put a damper on scenic drives.
Rocky Mountain National Park says U.S. Highway 34 at Trail Ridge Road (12,183 feet) will not be open to cars this Memorial Day weekend. Plows have been working there since mid-April, but recent wind and fresh snow is working against them. Some snow drifts are still taller than cars. No estimated time for opening the highest highway in the continental U.S.
Further south, between Twin Lakes and Aspen, Highway 82 at Independence Pass (12,095 feet) is scheduled to open June 1. It’s a similar story there, where deep snow from an above-average ski season is clinging tight to one of the most scenic roads in the state.
In Summit County, the popular Tenderfoot Mountain moto trails are closed through June 20 for elk migration. Other popular routes in Summit, like Boreas Pass Road, are TBD for the holiday weekend. Check with the Dillon Ranger Station in Silverthorne before making plans, and if a gate is locked, don’t go around it.
But don’t completely ditch your high-alpine drive plans. Cottonwood Pass (12,126 feet) between Buena Vista and Gunnison County opens for summer May 24.
The OTHER Cottonwood Pass between Gypsum and Pitkin County opened for summer May 6.