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Colorado - Mon. 11/02/26 |
A Free Business Publication from Alpine Bank
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HEAVY RAINFALL PROMPTS EVACUATIONS, ROAD CLOSURES ACROSS SOUTHWEST COLORADO
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For the second time in just over a week, heavy rains caused extensive flooding, washed out roads and prompted evacuations Sunday in Archuleta and La Plata counties. The La Plata County sheriff temporarily closed all county roads as of 2 p.m. because of dangerous flooding conditions. Durango School District and Fort Lewis College canceled all classes for Monday. And several residents were reportedly trapped or seeking to self-evacuate throughout low-lying areas, including Junction Creek Mobile Home Park northwest of Durango. Flooding had impacted wide swaths of the county, including Hesperus, Durango, Hermosa, Vallecito and Ignacio. Evacuation orders were issued for Meadowbrook Mobile Home Park in Ignacio; Pine Winds Mobile Home Park in Hesperus; Durango Regency Mobile Home Park and North Valley Mobile Home Park in the Animas Valley; and Junction Creek Mobile Home Park a few miles northwest of Durango.
Evacuation shelters were being set up at:
- La Plata County Fairgrounds at 2500 Main Ave. in Durango
- Ignacio High School at 315 Ignacio St.
- Bayfield High School at 800 County Road 501
- Vallecito Baptist Church at 17576 County Road 501
The Colorado Dept. of Transportation was reporting multiple road closures across Southwest Colorado, including:
- U.S. Hwy. 160 from Durango to Lightner Creek (as of 6 p.m. Sunday)
- U.S. Hwy. 160 between Durango and Bayfield (as of 6 p.m. Sunday)
- Colorado Hwy. 172 south of Ignacio (as of 6 p.m. Sunday)
- U.S. Hwy. 160 between Bayfield and Pagosa Springs (as of 6 p.m. Sunday)
- U.S. Hwy. 160 through Pagosa Springs (as of 6 p.m. Sunday)
- Colorado Hwy. 151 south of Chimney Rock (as of 6 p.m. Sunday)
- Wolf Creek Pass on U.S. Hwy. 160 all the way to South Fork (as of 6 p.m. Sunday)
As of about 4 p.m., La Plata Electric Association was reporting about 245 customers without power in the Junction Creek area north of Durango and 642 customers without power in the Helen’s Corner and Lemon Reservoir area northeast of Durango. A flood warning was in effect until 4:15 p.m. Monday for much of Southwest Colorado. The warning extended to 7 p.m. Monday for Pagosa Springs. National Weather Service Meteorologist Briana Bealo said areas above 11,000 in elevation in Southwest Colorado received 8 to 12 inches of rain Friday through Sunday afternoon. Durango had received 1.5 inches of rain from Friday through Sunday afternoon, with another inch expected overnight. La Plata County Sheriff Sean Smith said deputies were responding to 23 separate flooding incidents across the county. Lower elevations of Archuleta County could receive another inch of rain by Monday afternoon, while higher foothill areas could see up to 2 inches.
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VERY TOUGH MARKET FOR HOME BUYERS & REAL ESTATE AGENTS
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The real estate market nationwide and in Colorado was very slow in the summer, and then the rate on 30-year mortgages jumped up to 7.5 percent and buyers gave up or vanished. One Colorado Springs real estate agent said, “October feels like a total disaster.” Another Realtor, Cooper Thayer with the Thayer Group in Castle Rock, sees no improvement on the horizon, “It is going to be a cold winter in the real estate market. We will have a dormant market.’ In metro Denver, there were 9,842 buyers active for every 16,529 sellers active in September, according to Redfin. Thayer said in the late 2010s, the number of active buyers averaged between 15,000 to 20,000 in Denver. Sellers outnumber buyers by a 68 percent margin in Denver, which is slightly higher than the 63 percent gap nationally.
The U.S. market hasn’t seen so few buyers active since 2013, when the country was recovering from the last housing downturn, according to Redfin. Assuming a buyer tried to get a midpoint or median-priced home in Denver costing $569,900, they would need an income of $159,133 a year, estimates Varun Attri, editor of Coinscribed, a personal finance website. In February, when the 30-year rate dipped briefly below 6 percent, the required income was $142,340. That represents an 11.8 percent difference. Pay raises won’t come to the rescue. Employers are budgeting for a 3.5 percent pay raise on average this year.
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NEXT YEAR: DENVER ART MUSEUM WILL BE THE ONLY U.S. SITE FOR PICASSO EXHIBIT
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Next year, Oct. 31, 2027, through Feb. 27, 2028, the Denver Art Museum, in collaboration with the Musée National Picasso – Paris and Manifesto Expo, will host "Picasso: Magician," the most comprehensive collection of Pable Picasso's work ever assembled in Colorado. It is a programming coup for the Denver Art Museum, as it will be the only U.S. venue to host the major exhibition. It will feature 150 works in total, with 130 by Picasso and 20 by other artists. It covers his wide-ranging styles and artistic evolution, from Cubism to surrealism, with an emphasis on his fascination with the human body. Tickets for the exhibition will go on sale later. Check for updates at denverartmuseum.org.
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DOUGLAS COUNTY LAUNCHES CONSTRUCTION OF HELITRACK HANGAR
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Douglas County is the only county in Colorado to operate its own helicopter and Helitack program, and last week, the county held a groundbreaking ceremony on a new $4.2 million, 10,000-square-foot hangar for the county’s Helitack firefighting helicopter, marking the first phase of a planned expansion of the Regional Public Safety Training Center. Construction is expected to be completed in 2027. The facility will feature a 120-by-88-foot landing pad and a hangar door measuring 70 feet wide and 20 feet tall. In addition to protecting the aircraft from severe weather, the hangar will provide space for maintenance, storage, offices, security operations and Helitack personnel.
Since 2018, Douglas County Helitack has completed 394 flight missions, including 142 wildfire responses. The program provides aerial firefighting support and works alongside the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, local fire districts and regional partners to protect lives and property. The helicopter has also responded to six fires outside Douglas County this year, assisting neighboring jurisdictions including Jefferson, Boulder, Larimer, Grand, El Paso and Fremont counties. The helicopter has supported responses to several major Douglas County wildfires, including the Chatridge 1 and 2 fires, the Louviers/Airport fire and the Penley fire.
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WOLF CREEK JOINS A-BASIN & KEYSTONE IN OPENING FOR SKIING, ONLY FOR WEEKENDS
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Wolf Creek Ski Area has a history of opening for Halloween, and with snow in the forecast, the ski area opened Oct. 31 and was to be open through Nov. 3. However, Wolf Creek Ski Area officials announced a temporary closure after flood warnings and evacuation notices were issued for Archuleta County. The ski area still plans to be open Fridays to Sundays from now on until there is enough snow to open every day. Treasure Stoke, Bonanza and Nova ski lifts will operate from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. for the early opening. About 30 percent of the mountain will be open to skiers, with a mixture of groomed runs and off-piste terrain, according to the Wolf Creek Ski Area marketing release. On Oct. 23 and 24, the ski area received 20 inches of snow. A foot of snow settled in midway on the mountain with a high water content and the ski area has received 22 inches of snow so far this season, according to the marketing release.
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CU BOULDER STUDENT FROM NEW CASTLE: 1ST FEMALE TO LEAD RALPHIE
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Ralphie VII, the nearly 800-pound buffalo that leads the University of Colorado football team onto Folsom Field at home games, continues the Ralphie tradition that is nearly 60 years old. This year, Emma Morgan, a senior at CU Boulder, who hails from New Castle, Colorado, has become the first female to ever lead Ralphie onto the field from a front position. Morgan led in the front right spot during Ralphie’s run in the second half of the CU Buffs football game against Utah on Oct. 17. It’s a spot on the buffalo that requires a higher level of speed, strength, knowledge and technical training. Ralphie VII weighs almost 800 pounds and runs up to 25 mph on game days. Four handlers run with the buffalo, and the remaining 13 teammates line up around the field and the trailer to support the run. The handlers on the field line up in the arc of the turn to help guide Ralphie on where she’s supposed to go, and everyone runs behind her to follow her back in.
- Morgan started in the easiest back right position on the buffalo, as all runners do, because the runner can run on the inside track and has no steering responsibilities.
- Once she excelled at that, her coaches moved her to the back left position, which is a step more difficult because it’s easier to get swung off when Ralphie turns.
- The handlers usually find out about an hour before the game who will run with the buffalo. When Morgan found out she’d be running in the front, she was “super excited.” The handler in the front right position signals everyone to start the run, and makes sure the whole team is ready and no one else is on the field. The position also controls how far Ralphie runs down the field and is in charge of turning Ralphie.
- Their coaches tell the runners which yard line to aim for when turning Ralphie, but it’s ultimately up to the buffalo, who can turn at any point she wants to earlier.
Morgan, who watched her brother and sister run with Ralphie as handlers, was a track athlete at Coal Ridge High School. She trained for handler tryouts the summer before her freshman year of college and made the team. Tryouts include three 100-yard sprints, pull-ups and mobility testing. The team practices and works out five days a week. They’re also required to go to the ranch where Ralphie lives to care for the buffalo and do chores.
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WRNF GIVES FORMAL APPROVAL FOR PITKIN COUNTY PERMIT TO MANAGE MAROON BELLS
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Officials of the White River National Forest and Pitkin County Friday announced that the WRNF has officially approved Pitkin County’s management of the Maroon Bells Scenic Area under a five-year special use permit. Pitkin County had given approval of the permit in September and created an enterprise fund for managing the scenic area. The White River National Forest will retain management oversight through approval of the annual operating plan required as part of the permit, with the Scenic Area remaining national forest land. Pitkin County will manage day-to-day operations of the Scenic Area under the permit. That includes management of day-use areas, campgrounds, trails, roads and associated infrastructure. The permit does not include the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness.
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CPW FINDS MORE ZEBRA MUSSELS AT HIGHLINE STATE PARK THAN IN ANY FALL
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Adult zebra mussels were first discovered by Colorado Parks and Wildlife staff in Highline Lake in 2022, making it the first body of water in the state to have an infestation of invasive zebra or quagga mussels. In January 2023, Highline Lake was taken down 27 feet and chemicals were added to try to eradicate the zebra mussels. After mussels were found following that effort, CPW decided to fully drain the lake in 2024. The mussels again returned. This fall, CPW staff found more adult zebra mussels on their docks and buoys at Highline Lake State Park than in any previous year. CPW does not plan to drain Highline Lake, which is fed by the Government Highline Canal, again in the near future. CPW will continue to monitor the mussel presence and evaluate additional infrastructure maintenance needs at Highline Lake State Park as they arise, according to CPW officials.
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YAMPA RIVER REOPENS FOR RECREATION, BUT FISHING BAN IN PLACE UNTIL NOV. 15
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The city of Steamboat Springs announced that the Yampa River reopened on Friday, Oct. 30 for recreational use after being closed 120 days for low stream flows. However, a seasonal fishing closure remains in effect until Nov. 15 at the confluence of Fish Creek and the Yampa River to protect spawning mountain whitefish. Locations that remain closed include the pool where Fish Creek meets the Yampa River, Fish Creek upstream to Rollingstone Drive Bridge and the Yampa River 100 feet upstream and 200 feet downstream from the confluence. The river has been closed to recreation since July 1. That closure was triggered by river conditions after flows dropped below 85 cubic feet. The closure marked the earliest river closure since 2012, according to the news release. River users are asked to obey posted signs and respect the fishing closure. All other river recreation is permitted unless additional restrictions are announced.
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SKI FOR FREE, AFTERNOONS IN STEAMBOAT
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The Steamboat Ski & Resort Corporation announced Friday that there will be free skiing in the afternoons during the 2026-27 season, with no lift ticket to access the Buckaroo Carpet for all guests from noon to 4 p.m. daily. The carpet is located on-snow in the base area near the Steamboat Gondola and adjacent to the Creekside Locker Room. Waivers must be read and signed by all participants prior to use and a QR code will be provided on signage in the carpet area. Parents of children three and under can enjoy the added benefit of free ski or snowboard rentals for use on the carpet. Rentals are available at Steamboat Sports in Steamboat Square beginning at 11 a.m. and must be returned by 4 p.m. Reservations are walk-up only and subject to daily inventory noted the release. Morning access to the carpet is reserved for the SnowSports School, from 9 a.m. to noon and know that the carpet may be shared with SnowSports some afternoons.
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STEAMBOAT & BEAVER CREEK: HOT PLACES FOR HOLIDAY TRAVEL?
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HomeToGo has analyzed search trends across the 2026 holiday season, from Indigenous Peoples' Day/Columbus Day and Veterans Day through to Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s Eve, to see which destinations are gaining ground and how travel habits change.
Top Trending for Christmas: Classic Winter Escapes (Locations ranked by year-over-year changes in searches)
- Steamboat Springs, Colorado: 500 percent
- Arlberg, Austria: 279 percent
- Grindelwald, Switzerland: 263 percent
- Megève, France: 257 percent
- Beaver Creek, Colorado: 203 percent
- Big Sky, Montana: 173 percent
- Copenhagen, Denmark: 83 percent
- Strasbourg, France: 69 percent
- Lapland, Finland: 58 percent
- Tromsø, Norway: 36 percent
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MARKET UPDATE - 10/30/2026 Close
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(Courtesy of Alpine Bank Wealth Management*)
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Canadian dollar (per U.S. dollar)
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Mexican peso (per U.S. dollar)
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30-year fixed mortgage rate (Freddie Mac 10/29/2026)
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*Not FDIC insured. May lose value. Not guaranteed by the bank.
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Alpine Bank is an independent, employee-owned organization with headquarters in Glenwood Springs and banking offices across Colorado's Western Slope, mountains and Front Range. Alpine Bank serves customers with retail, business, wealth management*, mortgage and electronic banking services. Learn more at alpinebank.com.
*Alpine Bank Wealth Management services are not FDIC insured, may lose value and are not guaranteed by the bank.
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