WHILE DEVIATING FOR WX; AN ACR FLC WAS GIVEN A HDG CHANGE TO INTERCEPT A RADIAL INBOUND TO COS; BUT THEN DISCOVERED THAT THE VECTOR WOULD NOT INTERCEPT THE RADIAL. IN THE PROCESS OF QUERYING THE CTLR AND OBTAINING A NEW VECTOR; THE FLC ENTERED R-2601 AIRSPACE.

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DURING DSCNT INTO COS FROM NEAR THE ALS VOR IT WAS APPARENT THAT A TSTM CELL WAS OVER PUB WHICH IS ON THE PREFERRED ARR ROUTING. AFTER A DISCUSSION WITH MY FO WHO WAS FLYING THE LEG; WE REQUESTED AND RECEIVED CLRNC TO DEVIATE L OF COURSE FOR WX. AT THIS TIME I LEFT CTR FREQ TO OBTAIN ATIS AND GATE INFO FROM OPS. WHILE I WAS OFF FREQ THE CTLR ISSUED A CLRNC TO TURN L 10 DEGS AND INTERCEPT THE 213 DEG RADIAL FROM COS. WHILE I WAS OFF; I OBSERVED THE FO TURN THE ACFT 10 DEGS L AND DIAL IN THE 213 DEG RADIAL IN THE COURSE SELECTOR. AFTER I RETURNED TO CTR FREQ; THE FO BRIEFED ME ON THE ISSUED CLRNC. AFTER LOOKING AT OUR HDG AND INTENDED INTERCEPT RADIAL; IT WAS CLR THAT THE ISSUED HDG WAS NOT GOING TO INTERCEPT THE ISSUED RADIAL. WE DECIDED TO QUERY ATC ON OUR CLRNC. HOWEVER; THE CTLR WAS VERY BUSY WITH OTHER VFR AND IFR TFC. WHEN THE FREQ CLRED WE REQUESTED VERIFICATION OF THE ASSIGNED HDG AND INTENDED RADIAL OFF OF THE COS VOR. AT THIS POINT THE CTLR REISSUED THE ORIGINAL CLRNC THEN; WITHOUT PAUSE; ISSUED A 30 DEG TURN TO THE L FOR INTERCEPT; IMMEDIATELY FOLLOWED BY A CLRNC TO TURN 50 DEGS L FOR THE INTERCEPT. AT THIS POINT WE WERE BEING VECTORED TOWARDS VERY HIGH TERRAIN TO THE W OF THE ARPT AND MADE A COMMENT TO THAT EFFECT TO THE CTLR. AS WE INTERCEPTED THE 213 DEG RADIAL WE WERE HANDED OFF TO COS APCH WITHOUT FURTHER COMMENT FROM THE CTLR. DURING OUR DEP FROM COS WE WERE INFORMED BY OUR OPS THAT WE WERE TO CALL ZDV UPON OUR ARR. SUBSEQUENT DISCUSSION WITH AN ATC SUPVR REVEALED THAT WE DID IN FACT PENETRATE R-2601 BY 1 1/2 MI. I FEEL THAT IF I HAD NOT BEEN OFF FREQ DURING THE ORIGINAL CLRNC WE WOULD HAVE QUESTIONED THE CLRNC RIGHT THEN. I FEEL THAT THE CTLR WAS A BIT OVERLOADED AND THAT WE SHOULD HAVE QUESTIONED THE CTLR SOONER TO AVOID THE PROB. CALLBACK CONVERSATION WITH RPTR REVEALED THE FOLLOWING INFO: THIS RPTR'S ACFT WAS NOT ON AN ASSIGNED HDG WHILE DEVIATING FOR THE WX. THE 10 DEG HDG CHANGE WAS ASSIGNED AND THE CTLR STATES THAT AN ADDITIONAL 10 DEG TURN HAD ALSO BEEN ISSUED; BUT THE FLC DISAGREES. AT THE TIME OF THE FLC'S QUERY TO ATC; THEY WERE STILL USING THE HIGH ALT CHART; AND WERE NOT YET CLR ON THE DIMENSIONS OF THE RESTR AIRSPACE. ACFT INVOLVED WAS A B737-200.