Some of Coloradans’ favorite, scenic drives won’t be available this Memorial Day weekend as heavy snow continues to coat the high country.

Rocky Mountain National Park typically aims to open its famed Trail Ridge Road by the holiday weekend. Not so this year, with a Wednesday announcement citing Mother Nature’s opposition to snowplows in recent weeks.

Drivers have been at work since mid-April, said the statement from spokesperson Kyle Patterson:

“May storms with significant winds at higher elevations have hampered snow plowing operations. Plow operators this week have encountered additional snow accumulation, significant wind resulting in deep snow drifts, freezing cold temperatures and ice.”

Trail Ridge Road was last closed through Memorial Day in 2020; drivers didn’t pass until June 4 that year. In 2022, the road opened May 27 before closing two days later due to snow. 

The holiday closure “is not all that uncommon,” Patterson said, noting Memorial Day falling earlier on the calendar this year. 

North America’s highest paved road won’t be ready for travelers this weekend either. Instead, May 31 is the tentative date listed for Mount Blue Sky Scenic Byway.

Independence Pass, the popular drive crossing the Continental Divide between Twin Lakes and Aspen, will miss its usual Memorial Day opening as well. The last time that happened was 2020. 

Colorado Department of Transportation spokesperson Elise Thatcher said 3 feet of snow dumped along Independence Pass between May 9-12, ahead of crews’ annual avalanche mitigation. Before opening, crews also like to repair guardrails and potholes — work Thatcher said could be done after the road opens June 1.

She emphasized that as a target date. “If we get a lot of snow between now and then — and there is weather in the forecast — that could affect the reopening timeline,” she said. “But that’s what we’re focused on and working hard towards.”

Asked about any target date for Trail Ridge Road, Patterson also pointed to pending weather.

“Mother Nature is calling the shots,” Patterson said. “This current storm at higher elevations is forecast through Monday. … We’ll see what this storm brings and what the extended forecast is for next week.”

The storm is poised to build on already generous snowpack across Colorado’s mountains.

On Wednesday, data showed snowpack statewide above average for this time of year — 113% of the median. While the southwest corner of the state lingers below average, the Arkansas River basin has thrived around 150% of average, with other basins in the central and northern parts of the state between 120%-130%.

The snow isn’t stopping another Continental Divide-topping pass from opening: Cottonwood Pass, spanning Chaffee and Gunnison counties. Officials have announced the road opening Friday.

Officials have also announced Guanella Pass opening at 4 p.m. Thursday. That’s the highly-trafficked portal to several hiking trails above Georgetown.