On the I-70 plains, it is the weather, not the curves, that can close the road

People picture mountain passes when they think of hard Colorado driving. Out here it is different. Interstate 70 across Kit Carson County, through Burlington toward the Kansas line, is flat and straight. The bigger worry is usually not the road. It is the sky.

In summer, the plains build big storms. They can drop large hail that dents cars and cracks windshields, push strong straight-line winds, and at times spin up a tornado. The National Weather Service office in Goodland, Kansas, covers this corner of Colorado and issues the watches and warnings for it. In winter, the open ground has little to slow the wind, so snow can blow sideways. A clear morning can turn into near-whiteout conditions, and CDOT can close stretches of I-70 until the storm passes.

What this means for a traveler or a new resident: on the plains, you watch the forecast and the road status, not just the map. There are few places to shelter between towns, so timing your drive around a storm matters more than how fast you can go.

Before crossing the county in rough weather, check current road conditions on COtrip and the forecast from the National Weather Service.