As this latest storm pounds the mountains, ski areas were forced to delay openings or close altogether Friday morning.
As of 5 a.m. Friday, Breckenridge Resort had recorded 19 inches, Copper Mountain recorded 17 inches, Loveland Ski Area recorded 15 inches, Arapahoe Basin recorded 14 inches and Keystone recorded 11 inches.
But the storm continued to rage on. By Friday afternoon, 14 more inches dropped on Breck, 11 more inches dropped on A-Basin, 3 more inches dropped on Keystone and at least 7 more had dropped on Loveland. And snow is still dropping.
After initially announcing delays, Loveland Ski Area tossed in the towel around 10:40 a.m., closing down the entire mountain for the day due to high winds. Arapahoe Basin placed several areas on wind delay, including Lenawee, The Beavers and Zuma Bowl. It also closed uphill access through Saturday morning.
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A small snow slide temporarily shut down westbound I-70 between Frisco and Copper Mountain at about 1:20 p.m. The Dew Tour, which is , canceled its slopestyle and modified halfpipe practice due to snow.
Breckenridge tweeted a little after 11 a.m. that its patrollers were still working to open the ski area’s high alpine terrain. Roughly 20 minutes later, the ski area announced that TBar Lift, 6, Zendo and Kensho chairs would not open today “due to adverse weather conditions.”
Steamboat Resort and Vail Mountain have also been forced to close down lifts.
Meanwhile, Eldora repeatedly turned away skiers throughout the day as parking lots seemingly filled up as soon as they emptied.
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“We apologize to those of you who were turned around today because our lots filled completely,” Eldora tweeted shortly before noon. “We know it’s frustrating, and we do our best to let guests in as soon as we’re able. On these powder-frenzy days, the best bet is to arrive by 7 or after 1. Thank you for understanding.”
Colorado Avalanche Information Center said along the Front Range, Steamboat Springs, Summit County, Vail and Aspen.
The storm caused long delays and closures on Interstate 70. The Colorado Department of Transportation closed I-70 westbound from Golden to the Continental Divide shortly before 11 a.m.
I-70 mountain conditions remain extreme—see this video just taken at the Eisenhower Tunnel. Expect long delays and closures as crews work to restore roads to safe condition.
— Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT) (@ColoradoDOT)
This is a breaking story. Check back for more updates.
Updated Feb. 7 at 4:16 p.m.: The story has been updated with more snow totals.
Updated Feb. 7 at 2:16 p.m.: The story has been updated with more snow totals and to include information about the snow slide.
Updated Feb. 7 at 12:15 p.m.: The story has been updated with more lift closures.
Updated Feb. 7 at 11:55 a.m.: The story has been updated with updates about parking at Eldora.
Updated Feb. 7 at 11:37 a.m.: The story has been updated to include information from Breckenridge about lift closures.
Updated Feb. 7 at 11:20 a.m.:This story has been updated to include information about Breckenridge’s high alpine terrain.
Updated Feb. 7 at 10:50 a.m.: This story has been updated after Loveland Ski Area announced that it would close entirely.
