For those planning a weekend getaway or locals geared up for the Iron Horse Bicycle Classic, pay attention, US Highway 550 will be closed on Saturday, May 24, between Purgatory Ski Resort and Silverton. The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) has announced this six-hour traffic halt, taking place from 7:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., to make room for the annual cycling spectacle. Folks are advised to chart a course on alternate routes or depart early enough to steer clear of closure points before the 7:30 a.m. deadline.
Heading out of Durango towards Silverton? Then make it your quest to leave by no later than 6:45 a.m. to glide past Purgatory unscathed by the closure. With the entrance to Purgatory Ski Resort nestled 25 miles north of Durango, motorists should account for the journey, likely to stretch from 35 to 45 minutes. Expecting a smooth ride, recent reports indicate that an up to 20-minute holdup looms near Deer Creek's rockfall mitigation site, at Mile Point 59.3, where traffic is subject to full stops and alternates one lane at a time.
Southward voyages from Hermosa to Durango are rerouted off US 550 onto County Road 203 at Hermosa Creek, then merging with Animas View Drive. In the opposite direction, northbound traffic to Purgatory will follow US 550, with traffic control personnel leading the convoy through signage and cones. "Motorists must obey all traffic control signage and personnel," as per CDOT. Also expected are brief delays affecting Durango's North Main Avenue on race morning, due to the departure of waves of cyclists starting off bright and early.
Drivers are urged to be vigilant for cyclists and to navigate safely during the bustling holiday weekend, a sentiment echoed by CDOT's meticulous maintenance of the highway in the preceding weeks. The detour via CO 145, a more westerly trajectory through Telluride, adds about an hour's drive, summing to around three hours from Durango to Ridgway, a total of 150 miles as opposed to a 40-mile stretch south on US 550 to Silverton, which will tack on an extra hour of travel time," according to CDOT. Though no construction activity is scheduled over the holiday, delays persist at Deer Creek, thus, a need for preparation is imperative.
