{"id":45996,"date":"2021-06-30T18:05:00","date_gmt":"2021-07-01T00:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/driving-through-glenwood-canyon-these-routes-avoid-mudslides-on-i-70\/"},"modified":"2021-07-01T00:05:00","modified_gmt":"2021-07-01T00:05:00","slug":"driving-through-glenwood-canyon-these-routes-avoid-mudslides-on-i-70","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/driving-through-glenwood-canyon-these-routes-avoid-mudslides-on-i-70\/","title":{"rendered":"Driving through Glenwood Canyon? These routes avoid mudslides on I-70"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"The
The Grizzly Creek fire burnt vegetation throughout the canyon. Without roots to hold the soil in place, even moderate rain events are likely to bring rockslides and closures for many years to come. (Dan Boyce\/CPR News)<\/span>Dan Boyce\/CPR News<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n

Mudslides have closed Interstate 70 through Glenwood Canyon multiple times in the last week, and more rain in the forecast could make trouble for your holiday weekend travel plans.<\/p>\n

The slides are more likely in the canyon after the Grizzly Creek Fire tore through it last summer.<\/p>\n

So before you go, Colorado Department of Transportation spokeswoman Elise Thatcher has these suggestions for you:<\/p>\n

Check the forecast<\/div>\n

As of Wednesday morning, the National Weather Service is predicting at least a chance of showers and thunderstorms in Glenwood Springs every day through Monday. That doesn\u2019t necessarily mean the highway will close, Thatcher said.<\/p>\n

Rather, motorists should keep an eye on whether CDOT has closed the rest areas and bike path (It does that so evacuating the canyon is quicker and easier). If it has, flash floods and road closures are more likely.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe need the moisture,\u201d said CDOT\u2019s Michael Goolsby earlier this week. \u201cBut we just don\u2019t need it concentrated in Glenwood Canyon.\u201d<\/p>\n

Any disruptions to the highway will be noted at cotrip.org.<\/p>\n

\"Courtesy
Courtesy Colorado Department of Transportation<\/span>cca<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Plan your detour, but don\u2019t get too fancy<\/p>\n

CDOT\u2019s recommended detour will take you north of I-70 through Kremmling, Steamboat Springs and Craig, adding about two and a half hours to your journey.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe understand that if we send folks in that direction, it\u2019s a commitment,\u201d Thatcher said. \u201cBut we know that decades of managing these more rural highways, that that\u2019s really the best route.\u201d<\/p>\n

Google or Apple Maps might suggest an alternative like Cottonwood Pass (the Gypsum-to-Carbondale one, not the Almont-to-Buena Vista one). Still, Thatcher said taking any of those back roads (as many people did last summer) is almost certainly a bad idea.<\/p>\n

\u201cNinety-nine percent of the time, they are over roadways that are not designed for much traffic at all,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd often, they require four-wheel drive capability. They really don\u2019t have cell service. All it takes is one vehicle breaking an axle, breaking down in the roadway, and then everyone on either side of them is in for a really bad day.\u201d<\/p>\n

Colorado Highway 82 over Independence Pass between Leadville and Aspen is a more heavily traveled alternative (and I made it up and over it twice last summer in a Toyota Corolla). However, it can be beset by delays of its own, Thatcher said. Oversized vehicles and trailers aren\u2019t allowed on that road because the turns are quite tight.<\/p>\n

Construction and routine closures on U.S. 50 between Montrose and Gunnison makes that southern alternative a dicey proposition for much of this summer. But construction is being suspended from noon on Friday to 8:30 a.m. on Tuesday, making it a decent choice, Thatcher said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat route can handle traffic,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

If you\u2019re out of state, use I-80 through Wyoming<\/p>\n

CDOT is working with the departments of transportation in Kansas, Utah and Wyoming to encourage out-of-state motorists to use Interstate 80 through Wyoming as an alternative to I-70.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a more reliable route right now, Thatcher said.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

more likely in wake of Grizzly Creek fire <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":45997,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[28,259,258],"naviga_topic":[],"class_list":["post-45996","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-headlines","tag-transportation","tag-western-slope"],"acf":[],"author_name":"dh_admin","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45996","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45996"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45996\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45997"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45996"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45996"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45996"},{"taxonomy":"naviga_topic","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/naviga_topic?post=45996"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}