ESTES PARK — Under a dark orange sky, thousands of evacuees fleeing the East Troublesome fire slowly rolled out of Estes Park Thursday in bumper-to-bumper traffic that stretched down U.S. 36 to Lyons.

“Right now people are getting panicky. … The whole town is leaving,” said Tanvir Malik from his shop, Eastside Groceries.

The East Troublesome fire that blew up Wednesday night also created a deep haze of ash that mixed with storm clouds and hung low over Estes. The haze shrouded the community in an eerie, midday dark as burned pine needles and ash rained down, coating cars and sidewalks.

Drivers had to use their lights as they left town in the afternoon and the town was largely quiet aside from brakes squeaking.

The fire reached 170,000 acres on Thursday, but had largely stalled outside of town by evening, fire officials said.

A few residents watched the strange scene from their restaurants and shops Thursday afternoon, but almost every business was shuttered, leaving the bustling downtown deserted.

Estes Park restaurant owner Patrick Beard and Darla Nuss, his girlfriend, were among the few biding their time before leaving, likely for Nuss’ house in Fort Collins.

The two started their day at Beard’s cabin just outside Rocky Mountain National Park, which closed Thursday because of the fire. The ash was falling like snow, Nuss said.

“You could see the smoke billowing over the mountain,” Beard said.

The poor air quality left Nuss feeling like she had just smoked a pack of cigarettes when she woke in the morning, she said.

Beard lives close enough to the park to consider it his backyard, making him nervous about the chances his house would survive, he said.

“It’s hit or miss I would say, (chances are) 60-40 it won’t burn,” he said.

He felt more confident about the chances of his business, Cousin Pat’s along Colorado 7, because it’s in town, he said.

Beard’s faced wildfire evacuation before when he had to leave his home during the Waldo Canyon fire in Colorado Springs and first responders staged at his home, helping to save it, he said.

The evacuation was a serious change of plan for the two, who had planned to go golfing on what they expected to be a rather warm fall day with a high of about 60 degrees. The ash and incoming winter weather, turned the afternoon cold and dark and snowplows were intermixed among the wildfire evacuees.

By about 5 p.m., the town’s highways were largely deserted except for law enforcement and the air had largely cleared.

Estes Park resident Katherine McCall surveyed the scene calmly from her home, the Twin Owls Motorlodge.

Her truck was full to the brim, but she expected to spend the night before heading out, possibly to her father’s house in Arizona, she said.

“You can’t control it, so why panic?” she said.

ESTES PARK • Under a dark orange sky, thousands of evacuees fleeing the East Troublesome fire slowly rolled out of Estes Park on Thursday in bumper-to-bumper traffic that stretched down U.S. 36 to Lyons.

“Right now people are getting panicky. … The whole town is leaving,” Tanvir Malik said from his shop, Eastside Groceries.

The East Troublesome fire that blew up Wednesday night also created a deep haze of ash that mixed with storm clouds and hung low over Estes. The haze shrouded the community in an eerie, mid-day dark as burned pine needles and ash rained down, coating cars and sidewalks.

Drivers had to use their lights as they left town in the afternoon and the town was largely quiet aside from brakes squeaking.

The fire reached 170,000 acres on Thursday, but had largely stalled outside of town by evening, fire officials said.

A few residents watched the strange scene from their restaurants and shops Thursday afternoon, but almost every business was shuttered, leaving the bustling downtown deserted.

Estes Park restaurant owner Patrick Beard and Darla Nuss, his girlfriend, were among the few biding their time before leaving, likely for Nuss’ house in Fort Collins.

The two started their day at Beard’s cabin just outside Rocky Mountain National Park, which closed Thursday because of the fire. The ash was falling like snow, Nuss said.

“You could see the smoke billowing over the mountain,” Beard said.

The poor air quality left Nuss feeling like she had just smoked a pack of cigarettes when she woke in the morning, she said.

Beard lives close enough to the park to consider it his backyard, making him nervous about the chances his house would survive, he said.

“It’s hit or miss I would say, (chances are) 60-40 it won’t burn,” he said.

He felt more confident about the chances of his business, Cousin Pat’s along Colorado 7, because it’s in town, he said.

Beard’s faced wildfire evacuation before when he had to leave his home during the Waldo Canyon fire in Colorado Springs and first responders staged at his home, helping to save it, he said.

The evacuation was a serious change of plan for the two, who had planned to go golfing on what they expected to be a rather warm fall day with a high of about 60 degrees. The ash and an incoming winter weather, turned the afternoon cold and dark and snowplows were intermixed among the wildfire evacuees.

By about 5 p.m., the town’s highways were largely deserted except for law enforcement and the air had largely cleared.

Estes Park resident Katherine McCall surveyed the scene calmly from her home, the Twin Owls Motorlodge.

Her truck was full to the brim, but she expected to spend the night before heading out, possibly to her father’s house in Arizona, she said.

“You can’t control it, so why panic?” she said.

Contact the writer at [email protected] or (719) 429-9264.