Frozen cows in cabin spur warnings at hot springs

This April 6, 2012, photo, provided by the U. S. Forest Service shows the Conundrum Creek Cabin, in the White River National Forest, near Aspen, Colo., where as many as six cows remain that froze to death. U.S. Forest Service spokesman Steve Segin said Tuesday they need to decide quickly how to get rid of the carcasses. The options: use explosives to break up the cows, burn down the cabin, or using a helicopters or trucks to haul out the carcasses.

Brian Porter / AP

This April 6, 2012, photo, provided by the U. S. Forest Service shows the Conundrum Creek Cabin, in the White River National Forest, near Aspen, Colo., where as many as six cows remain that froze to death. U.S. Forest Service spokesman Steve Segin said Tuesday they need to decide quickly how to get rid of the carcasses. The options: use explosives to break up the cows, burn down the cabin, or using a helicopters or trucks to haul out the carcasses.

By The Associated Press

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

ASPEN, Colo. — Federal forest officials want visitors of a Colorado hot springs to be very careful about what's lurking inside a remote cabin nearby: Frozen cows.

Rangers believe the cows wandered into the cabin near the popular Conundrum Hot Springs during a snowstorm but couldn't find their way out. Air Force Academy cadets found their frozen carcasses while snowshoeing in late March.

U.S. Forest Service spokesman Bill Kight said Tuesday that water samples have been taken to determine if the hot springs was contaminated by the dead animals.

Rangers want the carcasses gone before they thaw. Removal options include explosives or burning down the cabin.

In the meantime, officials have posted warning signs about the cows around the hot springs near Aspen in the Colorado Rocky Mountains.