UPDATE: Berthoud Pass reopened Wednesday evening four days after a snow slide that buried 10 cars and closed the roadway.
Berthoud Pass remained closed on Wednesday afternoon following a snow slide that buried 10 cars over the weekend.
Officials with the Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) said the closure will stay in place due to an avalanche warning.
CDOT said the pass is partially open between the Mary Jane Ski Area and Henderson Mine Road in Winter Park.
Visitors in areas like Winter Park and Fraser are facing major detours to Interstate 70. The Granby route is currently the favored route, but still adds several hours to drive times.
Greenwood Village resident Andrew Hudson was on a ski trip Sunday morning when the slide happened. He said his family stayed the night at Winter Park but faced a nine-hour drive the next day due to the pass closure.
"It was just a snail's pace crawl," said Hudson. "We have experienced the pass being closed in the past, but [it's] only been for a couple of hours. We've never seen it closed over two or three days."
Multiple agencies and crews continued to work Wednesday to clear away the snow and remove stranded vehicles. Mountain Recovery towing company worked alongside CDOT to remove trucks and cars from Berthoud Pass and across the mountain range.
"I've done 42 calls in four days, so there's not a lot of sleep right now," said Mountain Recovery's John Miskew.
Mountain Recovery said the calls aren't slowing down and they don't anticipate Berthoud Pass to open anytime soon.
“They’re still dealing with avalanches. They’re having avalanches just left and right," said Miskew.
CDOT officials said they know how important the roadway is and are working to open it as quickly as possible. They said they've brought as many crew members as they can safely utilize on the pass to clear snow and make sure it's safe when it is finally reopened.
