It's unlikely there will be people partying or cows dying in the old cabin near Conundrum Hot Springs any longer. The U.S. Forest Service removed the tin roof from the structure over the course of the summer and recently finished the job, according to Andrew Larson, lead wilderness ranger in the Aspen-Sopris District. For now, the plan is to allow the wooden frame of the cabin to deteriorate in the harsh weather at 11,200 feet in elevation. The cabin gained notoriety last winter when it was discovered that six cows froze to death inside after apparently seeking shelter during a snowstorm. The cows were among 29 that wandered into the Conundrum Valley from the Crested Butte side of the Continental Divide. They wandered off a Gunnison-area rancher's grazing allotment for unknown reasons. The rancher's efforts to find them, by air and ground, were unsuccessful. Long before the cow catastrophe, Forest Service officials debated what to do with the cabin, which once served as a guard station at the popular hot springs. While the cabin was once the guard station in pre-wilderness days, it's now considered “an attractive nuisance” by the Forest Service, said Scott Snelson, Aspen-Sopris District ranger. It's been out of character since the Maroon Bells Wilderness Area was created in 1964 and detracts from the wilderness experience, he said. Designated wilderness areas are supposed to have a minimal amount of human-built structures. The cabin has plenty of fans. An informal group called Friends of Conundrum Hot Springs has lobbied the Forest Service over the years not to destroy the structure. Members argue, among other things, that the cabin has provided welcome shelter in high-altitude storms. It's also hosted a fair number of slumber parties...
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As long as it was humans seeking shelter the Forest Service was willing to let nature take it's course, but let a few cows in there and they rush to rip the roof off.
Hope to see the day we're rippin' the roofs off of Forest Service buildings.
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