Alpine highways in northern Utah still closed due to snow

OGDEN, Utah – Two northern Utah mountain highways popular with outdoor recreation enthusiasts will remain closed past Memorial Day because of heavy snowpack and a state Department of Transportation spokesman says it’s not clear when they’ll be opened.

The Standard-Examiner reports that State Routes 39 and 65 generally are open by mid-spring after being closed annually in November due to high costs of snow removal.

Department spokesman Vic Saunders said SR 39, also known as the Monte Cristo Highway, received heavy snowfall in recent months. A 19-mile (31-kilometre) stretch remains closed between just east of Huntsville and near Woodruff.

An 11-mile (17.7-kilometre) stretch of SR 65, also known as the Big Mountain Highway, is closed between near Emigration Canyon and just south of East Canyon Reservoir.