The 105th Steamboat Springs Winter Carnival rides into the Yampa Valley next week and the City of Steamboat Springs is preparing for the festivities including the street events, Diamond Hitch parade and Night Extravaganza, and will be closing several roads and implementing additional services to accommodate the event.
Closures will start to go into effect as early as Wednesday, Feb. 7. Steamboat Springs Transit (SST) will operate additional service over winter carnival weekend.
Lincoln Avenue – February 7, 10 & 11, 2018
Beginning at 1pm on Wed, Feb. 7, a one lane closure will occur on Lincoln Ave. as city crews haul and setup snow sculpture frames over a six to eight hour period. City snowmaking crews have braved the frigid temperatures over the past few weeks to make snow specifically for winter carnival street events. Delays should be expected if traveling this route.
Early Saturday morning, Feb.10 at 2am, city crews will close Lincoln from 5th to 11th Streets and move roughly 2,500 yards of snow into place for the street events. During the closure, traffic will detour along Oak Street. At the conclusion of the street events, crews will plow the snow to the parking lanes and reopen Lincoln.
The Sunday morning Lincoln closure takes effect at 4am with detours again onto Oak Street. In addition, Yampa Street will be closed Sunday morning for parade staging. With the Diamond Hitch Parade taking place after the street events, these closures will remain in effect until around 2pm. At the conclusion of the parade, city crews will push snow to the side of Lincoln for removal early Monday morning when the last closure goes into place at 2am.
Emerald Mountain – February 10, 2018
All trails that access Emerald Mountain including Blackmere Trail will be closed for public safety from 4pm until 9pm on Saturday, Feb. 10 as crews set up and launch fireworks for the Night Extravaganza. Additional trail closures may be required prior to Feb 10 and signage will be posted at all trailheads. Please respect the closures and enjoy the show from designated viewing areas at the base of Howelsen Hill.
SST Service – February 10 & 11, 2018
SST will operate additional service during the Winter Carnival street events and Night Extravaganza on Saturday, February 10 and during the day on Sunday, February 11. Extra unscheduled buses will run during the day on Saturday as well as that night to transport people to and from the evening festivities.
While Lincoln Avenue is closed, buses will use the Oak Street detour. Temporary bus stops will be located at 5th and Oak, 7th and Oak and 9th and Oak. Buses will also stop at the Yellow Line’s 10th and Oak stop, next to City Hall. Once Lincoln reopens, buses will return to their normal routes.
On both Saturday and Sunday nights, the last buses will operate:
From the Stockbridge toward the Mountain: 2:30 am
From the Gondola Transit Center toward the Condominiums: 2:50 am
From the Gondola Transit Center toward Downtown: 3:15 am
From Downtown toward the west: 3:26 am (3rd Street)
From your smartphone, find out when the next bus is expected to arrive with the SST app available on iPhones and Androids from www.RouteShout.com. View buses in real-time via www.steamboatsprings.net/sst. Schedule information, bus stop locations and times can be obtained at www.steamboatsprings.net/transit or 970.879.3717.
Howelsen Hill Traffic & Parking – Night Extravaganza, February 10
Howelsen Hill base area parking typically fills to capacity early for the Night Extravaganza and overflow parking will be available at the rodeo grounds as space permits. Due to pedestrian volumes, access to Howelsen Lodge may be heavily restricted and/or closed. Once the Howelsen parking lots are full, Howelsen Parkway will be closed to incoming traffic with the exception of ADA access and emergency vehicles. At that time, traffic may be diverted at 5th & Yampa Streets or directed toward the Ice Arena. ADA parking is limited at the Lodge and some ADA spaces will be set up at the tennis courts. Parking is not permitted along Howelsen Parkway or River Road.
After the fireworks, Community Service Officers (CSO) will direct departing Howelsen traffic down River Road to where it intersects with Mt. Werner Road in an effort to efficiently move vehicles out of this area. The 5th Street Bridge will have intermittent closures and Howelsen Parkway will be closed westbound between the Ice Arena and the 5th Street Bridge. There will be no left turns permitted out of the Howelsen Ice Arena parking lot. Motorists are asked to follow traffic directions and signals, yield to city buses and refrain from blocking intersections.
Due to the high volume of spectators, please be patient, alert and follow CSO directions. Designated routes, which may not be your preferred way home, will be used to aid in maintaining traffic flow and egress from the venue during this popular event. It is our goal to get everyone on their way quickly and safely.
Additional parking is available throughout the downtown area, at the Steamboat Springs High School and the Stockbridge Transit Center. Please respect residential access and do not block driveways. It is highly recommended that people walk, take the free SST bus or utilize drop off/pick up locations at the west end of Yampa and Oak Streets to access the venue.
Illegal Fireworks
The 105th Winter Carnival Night Extravaganza takes place Saturday, Feb. 10, at historic Howelsen Hill and is a show unlike any other featuring the legendary Lighted Man and a professional fireworks display unmatched within the state. With a tradition like this, there’s no need to have your own personal fireworks show.
Remember, fireworks that leave the ground, explode or fragment, and similar more powerful fireworks are illegal in Colorado. Please leave the fireworks to the professionals - your neighbor will thank you and so does the City of Steamboat Springs.
Ski FREE at Howelsen Hill – February 7-11
The ski area will be open normal operating hours during Winter Carnival. Your 105th Steamboat Springs Winter Carnival button provides a free lift ticket to ski at Howelsen Hill during Winter Carnival from February 7-11. Lift ticket must be obtained inside Howelsen Lodge prior to accessing the slopes. One ticket per button per day. www.steamboatsprings.net/ski.
The City of Steamboat Springs would like to thank residents and guests in advance for their cooperation during these closures and wishes everyone a safe and wonderful winter carnival celebration.
# # #
Contact:
David Van Winkle, Streets Superintendent, 970.879.1807,
dvanwinkle@steamboatsprings.net
Jonathan Flint, Transit Manager, 970.879.3717,
jflint@steamboatsprings.net
Scott Schaffer, CSO Supervisor, 970.879.4344,
sschaffer@steamboatsprings.net
Emily Hines, Marketing & Special Events Coordinator, 970.871.7031,
ehines@steamboatsprings.net