Local hikers will have to wait until the dust settles, quite literally, to get full access to Waterton Canyon this month.
Denver Water owns the Jefferson County open space, and closes it each year for a “dust mitigation project.” Its trails are closed to visitors on weekdays now through May 9 to make way for that work.
Spokesperson Jimmy Luthye said crews are fully regrading and resurfacing roads in the area, which are beaten up each year by weather and heavy use. Renovated roads ought to kick up fewer particles for the rest of the summer.
“Resurfacing stabilizes the path, making it more resistant to erosion throughout the year. As the dirt [road] erodes, it creates more dust over time, leading to less safe conditions (like potholes, loose rocks and ruts),” he wrote us. “This would be impossible to complete safely and in a thorough manner with the canyon open.”
And yes, he said, there is an air quality aspect to this: “Minimizing dust is important for the health of visitors and wildlife in the canyon”
Gary Smith wished he got that memo sooner. He flew in Wednesday from Houston to spend a few days hiking the Colorado Trail, which starts at the canyon. We met him as he pulled his backpack out of a car at the locked gates.
“I just got out of an Uber and I don’t know where I am, so I’m madly looking at the map,” he said as took in his new reality.
When he saw the lock, he added, he thought: “Oh s***! What’s my Plan B?”
If you’d like to head into the hills in the next few weeks, you might opt for nearby Chatfield State Park or the Denver Audubon Society’s Kingery Nature Center. Or Roxborough State Park, where we brought Smith after we took pity on his unexpected marooning on the side of State Highway 121. We hope he finds his way.
