Access to the Hanging Lake Trail in Glenwood Canyon has remained closed all this week due to a large mudslide that occurred May 1, and ongoing debris flow activity in the area since.

“We were hoping to have it open this morning, but we still have debris coming down in that area, so we have had to keep it closed,” Ken Murphy of Glenwood Springs-based H20 Ventures, which operates the hiking permit reservation system for Hanging Lake, said on Thursday.

Last week, the Interstate 70 exit ramp to the Hanging Lake rest area and trailhead was blocked by a large mudslide above the road caused by the melting high-country snowpack, according to the U.S. Forest Service, which oversees the Hanging Lake area.

---

---

The slide only affected the access to the trailhead, and not the trail or lake area itself. I-70 also was not impacted by the slide.

Murphy said his staff has been working with the Forest Service and the Colorado Department of Transportation to determine when it’s safe to reopen the area. So far, there has still been too much water and debris coming through the culvert to allow for safe entry, he said.

---

---

That could change by the weekend, he said, but for now they’ve had to cancel hiking permits on a daily basis and are not issuing any new permits. Permit holders are being given first priority for rescheduling, Murphy said.The latest information will be posted at http://www.visitglenwood.com.

Post Independent interim Managing Editor and senior reporter John Stroud can be reached at jstroud@postindependent.com or at 970-384-9160.