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Dillon and Keystone recpath work slowed due to spring storms

Intermittent rain and snow have slowed recpath work in both Dillon and Keystone. While the trails will be open to determined cyclists for Memorial weekend, Dillon town engineer Dan Burroughs said they now hope to finish work in June, and Open Space and Trails director Brian Lorch hopes to finish work to the Snake River recpath by the Fourth of July.

“Progress has been really slow unfortunately because of the rain,” Burroughs said. “But we will have it open on the weekends.”

While Dillon has managed to fill most of the larger cracks, they still have minor repairs and a final slurry seal layer to add before their work is done. The town hired A-Peak Asphalt Inc. on a $120,000 contract to try a new method of sealing the cracks on the multi-mile stretch between East Dillon and Summerwood.



“We hope it will at least minimize the really bad cracks that have opened up,” Dillon town planner Ned West said. “Those big bumps that were there are a lot better now.”

Summit County is also working with A-Peak for their work in Keystone, in an effort to synchronize construction schedules with Dillon in order to save time and money. A-Peak is working on both projects simultaneously, as major crack work has already been finished in each segment.



“They’re out there doing patching first, and when they actually come in with the equipment that does the slurry seal, they’ll do everything they can at the same time,” Lorch said. He added that crews were continuing to work on sealing the smaller cracks in the pass, a smaller 1,300-foot segment compared with last year’s trail work.

Assistant county manager Thad Noll said that they would try using three or four different crack sealing techniques this time around, and pick the most effective method for future projects.

“We’re trying a variety of ways to fix cracks knowing that cracks come back. That’s just a natural part of asphalt,” Noll said. “But if you try to pave over cracked asphalt, the crack will come right up through it.”

As far as the extent of the cooperation between the county and the town, Noll still was not sure if the county would provide Dillon financial support to help pay for their segment of the recpath. The county has already paid for their portion, with a $14,550 contract, but may contribute a small amount if requested.


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