Colorado’s snowy October has led to the closure of Independence Pass near Aspen, CO for the winter. It’s the earliest closing in 9-years.

Each year, this two-lane, 12,095-foot pass closes for the winter for the safety of the traveling public and CDOT maintenance crews. It typically closes on or near Nov. 7 and almost always re-opens on the Thursday before Memorial Day each May. Please check the “Alerts and Restrictions” section of www.cotrip.org for status updates. – CDOT

Early season snowfall and an avalanche on the pass last week, led to the decision to close the Pass on the Aspen and Twin Lakes sides on Monday.

Closure dates from the past eight years reveal that the gates have typically been locked in early to mid-November:

2011 November 2
2012 November 9
2013 November 4
2014 November 12
2015 November 4
2016 November 17
2017 November 17
2018 November 5

 

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