Berthoud Pass in Colorado mountains to remain closed through Tuesday due to risks of slides
It was another disappointing day for folks waiting in Winter Park for Berthoud Pass to open back up, after the slide on Sunday that covered 10 cars and tons of heavy snowfall.
The Colorado Department of Transportation confirmed that the pass would again stay closed through Tuesday night to deal with the additional slides that continue to come down.
There is a workaround for folks to go through Kremling and past Silverthorne to get back to the front range, but that path adds hours not considering the massive amount of traffic as the only relief valve for Grand County (your reporter in the mountains Spencer Wilson is typing this while stuck in said traffic).
"We haven't gotten that desperate," Olivia Dixon said, while stuck in Winter Park, trying to get to Denver to fly back to Arkansas. "We are hoping it will clear up in the next couple of days and that I won't have to take the long way around, but we will see."
Eva Curtis had the same sentiment, as a CSU student trying to get back to northern Colorado.
"I'm considering it tomorrow morning if the pass isn't open," Curtis said. We now know it's likely going to be her best bet.
CDOT knows people are waiting for the pass to open up and knows how important the stretch is to be able to drive through, and has brought as many crew members they can safely utilize up there to make sure the pass is going to be safe when it is finally reopened. Crews are working through the night as well to throw snow on top of snow banks alongside the pass to try to relieve avalanche potential. Still, the simple task of snow removal is chief among their tasks, which alone is still a substantial effort.
No timeline has been issued for when the pass will re-open. CBS News Colorado will continue to check in with CDOT for the latest updates.