Road Trip to Colorado and wildfires
 

We are/were planning on a road trip to Colorado at the end of this week...we are concerned about the wildfires near many of the destinations we had planned on seeing?? Should we still try to go or cancel our trip?

I would google the various places you planned to go and see just what the status is locally. If you have made reservations in hotels or campgrounds, give them a call.

Colorado is huge, and since you don't tell us specifically where you are going, no one can tell you what is happening there.

We are going to Denver, Colorado Springs, Canan City, Nathrop, Georgetown and through the rocky mountain national park ending in Ft Collins

Ackislander gives you good advice--check with the places you are going for the latest information.

If you were here right now, the only place on your itinerary that you would need to avoid today would be the Colorado Springs area--but who knows what it will be like there by the end of the week.

Here are websites for TV stations etc so you can monitor the fires

Colorado Springs TV station http://www.krdo.com/
Denver TV station http://www.9news.com/
Denver newspaper http://www.denverpost.com/

As of right now, the fire in Estes Park (which was within the city limits) is in the mop up stage.

The fire west of Ft. Collins is 45% contained but is not threatening Ft. Collins--it is well to the west.

The fire west of Colorado Springs has caused the evacuation of Manitou Springs and highway 24 west of Colorado Springs into the mountains and is quite active right now.

There are many other places in the mountains west of Denver (Breckenridge, Keystone, Vail, Glenwood Springs, Aspen) that have no issues with the fires right now if you would like/need to change your itinerary.

Also Ft. Collins could be smoky if the wind is blowing from the west or southwest.

It is smoky in Fort Collins this morning, statewide air quality forecasts are here:
http://www.colorado.gov/airquality/addendum.aspx

Sometimes the smoky areas are very localized, hard to predict. I was up in Rocky Mountain National Park on Thursday and the air was perfectly clear. Of course there was a small fire in Estes yesterday so this is an unusual year.

I'd still go on your trip but keep an up-to-date eye on things. My wife and I have a Colorado road trip planned for mid-July and that's what we are planning to do. Good luck!

Thanks for the suggestions... We've decided to go and just be flexible with locations!

Glad you're coming. Have a wonderful time!

We are taking an extended family camping trip to Fountain Springs KOA. There are 14 of us traveling from Chicago and should arrive July 22nd. We have keeping up on the news; but should we cancel? We have made many reservations for Pikes Peak and Cave of the Winds etc...any advice would be helpful.

The fire near Colorado Springs has taken a devastating turn tonight and many homes have been lost.I believe where you are staying is south of the fire. Personally, I would have a backup plan but I'd wait a couple of weeks before making a decision to cancel. Monsoon season hopefully will arrive in the next few weeks and improve conditions.

Jennifer, wtm003 is sadly right. It is sickening to watch on TV. Huge house going up in flames like they were exploded by bombs. For you, the bad news is that all of Pikes Peak is closed as is the Cave of the Winds right now. At this moment, Highway 24 is closed from the Cave of the Winds exit to Woodland Park. I would add http://www.cotrip.org/home.htm to the list of good websites to check for Colorado road closures. It is official info and run by the Colorado DOT.

Thanks to all for the good advice our vacation is 3 weeks away and we are still on the fence. Is there any where to stay in the state, or maybe we try for neek year.

The entire state is not on fire, so of course there are other places to stay. Wait a week before making a decision about Colorado Springs as the attractions you are interested in may have reopened.

We were going to a state park on the west side Colorado Springs Sunday and they advised us to not come and gave us ALL our money back. Normally, this close to your arrival, if you cancel they keep a percentage plus the first night's fee. I didn't even have to argue. That's how serious they were about us not coming next week.

Right now, many of the tourist attractions are closed because they are close to the fire. 32,000 people have had to evacuate their homes. The Air Force Academy had to evacuate yesterday. A friend who lives there says it's bad and winds have kept the fire going in different directions--not contained.

travel, have you changed your plans to visit CO Springs? Probably a good idea, given how the fire has moved lately.

We have decided to cancel with three weeks out. I am calling all places tomorrow to hopefully get my money returned. We will come next year. I would love to see Colorado.

Okay the KOA in fountain springs is open pikes peak is open should we still go? I almost cancelled our reservations today.

Go, go, go, go. The entire state is not on fire and there is a LOT of Colorado to see even if you have to change plans at the last minute.

We were in Yellowstone many years ago during the huge fires of '88. Yes we did have to change a few routes and and didn't get to see a few things we had planned on but we still saw plenty. Additionally we learned a whole heck of a lot about how the fires are not only destructive and dangerous, they are also a vital part of the ecology.

The people of Colorado need our support right now and that does include tourist dollars. I'm sure you'll have a fabulous time!

Just worried about two asthmatics with already fighting the elevation but we had iur hearts set on it.