WYO 70 opens in time for Memorial Day Weekend

SARATOGA, Wyo. — WYO 70 through the Sierra Madres is open for the summer season. Motorists — including bicyclists and motorcyclists — should stay alert as they travel through the mountain pass. Snow melt can freeze on roadways overnight, and some slick spots may remain during the day.

Additionally, snow drifts are tall enough in some places to fully or partially cover signs that indicate upcoming steep grades or sharp turns. Be sure to stay alert and be ready to slow down.

Late-spring wintry weather is not uncommon in the area. Travelers and outdoor enthusiasts should keep an eye on weather and road conditions as they use the highway.

WYDOT crews from Baggs and Saratoga started clearing snow on their respective sides of WYO 70 in late April. They used multiple rotary plows, loader-mounted rotaries and a motor grader with a V- and wing-plow to help clear the accumulated snow.

The highway is one of several high-elevation mountain roads in Wyoming that closes annually in late autumn when relatively low traffic and deep snow accumulations render plowing operations impractical. This season the route, which tops out at 9,955 feet as it crosses the Continental Divide at Battle Pass, closed Dec. 2.

WYO 70 typically has a target opening date of the first week of June. Last year, WYO 70 opened June 3. Before that, it opened May 21 in 2018, June 1 in 2017 and June 9 in 2016.

For information about this news release, contact WYDOT District 1 public information specialist Jordan Achs at (307) 745-2142. For the latest road conditions, visit WYDOT's 511 website, call 5-1-1, or download the Wyoming 511 app. Follow District 1 on Facebook and on Twitter.