Noticias

• Discussions Over Dolores River Conservation Continue
• San Miguel County Prepares for Wildfire
• Ten Years of Good Curling

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Discussions Over Dolores River Conservation Continue

For nearly two decades, elected officials, ranchers, and conservationists have discussed the best ways to protect the Dolores River. For Western Slope elected officials, that conversation continued in the past two weeks.

Conservation proposals for the Dolores River exist in two forms: the Southern and Northern portions of the river.

In the South, San Miguel, Montezuma, and Dolores counties have worked closely with Senator Michael Bennett to craft a 68,000-acre National Conservation Area proposal. First introduced in 2023, the legislation brings together years of local stakeholder involvement.

On Feb. 26, District 3 Rep. Jeff Hurd joined the San Miguel County Commissioners virtually and expressed his support for the Dolores NCA legislation.

“That is a bipartisan piece of legislation that did not make it through the last Congress. That is definitely something I’m looking at picking up with my colleagues in the Senate. As far as I know, all of the counties are in favor and the local governments have bought in,” Hurd said.

On March 5, the San Miguel County commissioners approved an updated support letter for the legislation, addressed to both Colorado senators and Rep. Hurd. The letter states: “We feel that the legislation and the map reflect substantial stakeholder collaboration representing a wide variety of interests around the Dolores River.”

For the Northern portion of the Dolores River, the situation remains in flux. Newly appointed Montrose County Commissioner Sean Pond proposed a resolution on his second day in office, during a Feb. 19 meeting, to oppose a Dolores National Conservation Area (NCA).

“The proposed NCA would further contribute to the erosion of control over local public lands, diminish the ability for Montrose County residents to utilize these lands for productive purposes. And whereas the economic impact of such a designation could be detrimental to local businesses, including those in agriculture, mining, energy, and outdoor recreation sectors, by restricting access,” Pond said.

Montrose County Commissioner Sue Hansen organized a stakeholder group to discuss the northern portion of a Dolores National Conservation Area, an idea introduced by Mesa and Montrose counties last year amid the Dolores National Monument campaign by conservationists.

“There’s no formal proposal, there’s no written language. There’s been a group of the commissioners in Mesa County, myself, our GIS teams from both counties, mining interests, recreational interests, people that have been working to have this conversation. I would respectfully ask that we can push this resolution off to another date,” Hansen said.

Pond and Hansen disagreed during the discussion. Hansen said they didn’t have a chance to discuss the purpose of the Northern NCA stakeholder group.

“To say that this conservation, this national conservation area proposal would protect that land from future monument threats is simply not true,” Pond said.

“No one has said that, and no one has said there is a proposal. Again, no proposal on the table at all whatsoever, just a conversation, and I think that’s important to recognize here,” Hansen replied.

Local resident Dennis Murphy spoke during public comment.

“I actually worked for the BLM for 31 years and worked on NCAs over here. They can be crafted and molded in many different ways, and they don’t have to be that restrictive. They typically will bring you more money for management, you can have more facilities, and all sorts of things. So without a proposal, you don’t know what you’re saying no to,” Murphy said.

Pond remained steadfast in his commitment to oppose conservation designations in Montrose County.

“We were successful in dodging or averting the Dolores National Monument proposal, which the Montrose County Board of Commissioners did pass a resolution against. That unneeded designation or restriction, shortly after that, the NCA proposal came into light. With this new administration in our nation’s capital taking hold, it now poses a new threat for everything that I asked to be put in this resolution,” Pond said.

While Hansen reiterated the working group’s diversity and commitment to discussion on how conservation could look in the Northern portion of the Dolores River, County Commissioner Chair Scott Mujeres and Commissioner Pond voted to approve the resolution, confirming Montrose County’s position against a Dolores National Conservation Area designation.

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San Miguel County Prepares for Wildfire

Emergency responders are preparing for wildfire season.

“We have very poor snowpack this year, things have been very dry, especially in the West End of our county, and down into the West End of Montrose County. Our emergency responders, our local fire chiefs, our local coalitions are starting to gear up for a really tough summer of wildfire. That’s just the reality we’re facing,” said Annika Kristiansen, director of the San Miguel Basin CSU Extension Office.

This weekend, the extension office is hosting a Wildfire Resilience Workshop to help residents in the region prepare.

“To share with our community what is it that we need to do as we band together and prepare for a really tough summer ahead. What is it we need to do in advance, what we can do during an emergency, and what we can do after,” Kristiansen said.

The event will feature representatives from the West Region Wildfire Council.

“They’ll be sharing some of the funding they have to do site visits and help people prepare their property and homes,” Kristiansen said.

Representatives from the Norwood and Telluride Fire Protection Districts will also participate.

“They’ll be sharing information on how our community can be helpful during an emergency, during a wildfire. What they hope to see people doing before, during, and after. How they can be helpful and not harmful,” Kristiansen said.

San Miguel County Emergency Management will present, as will CSU Extension natural resources specialists.

Kristiansen said the aim of the event is to provide real-life support for what residents can do.

“How do we think about revegetating our property, clearing away our debris? How are we preparing our property, preparing ourselves? Thinking about insurance, thinking about dead wood sitting around our land. It’s going to be a wide range of topics, but really important,” she said.

She emphasized that the workshop will provide space for people to ask questions.

“We really want people to share what they’re concerned about, and to be with our local experts so they can speak about what’s on their mind and what questions they have,” Kristiansen said.

As wildfire risks increase, Kristiansen said these conversations are becoming even more important.

“With the climate changing, we’re only looking at the increase of wildfire in the years to come, so it’s getting our whole community on the same page. Fire doesn’t change where it goes, so everyone is at risk for facing this disaster,” Kristiansen said.

The Wildfire Resilience Workshop will take place on Saturday, March 8, from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Sheriff’s Annex in Norwood. The event is free and will also be available on Zoom. Participants can get the Zoom link at sanmiguel.extension.colostate.edu.

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Ten Years of Good Curling

Megan and JD Wise were living in Scottsdale, Arizona, during the 2010 Winter Olympics when they saw a sport on TV that caught their eye.

“We started curling during the 2010 Olympic cycle. Like most folks, we were watching on TV and got really interested,” said JD Wise.

“We learned to curl there. Then when we moved to town in 2013, we felt like curling would be a really good fit in Telluride,” he added.

Curling is a game dating back to the 16th century in Scotland. Two teams compete to score points by sliding large stones down the ice toward a target.

“We found our first two sets of stones on a lease-to-own from the Denver Curling Club, and lo and behold, we were able to get the club started in 2015. We had two sheets and ran our first mini leagues and had a lot of interest and excitement in curling,” JD Wise said.

Ten years later, the Telluride Curling Club has grown to 80 league members. The club offers two adult leagues and a youth program. It has also sent teams to curling competitions, known as bonspiels.

This weekend, Telluride Curling is hosting a party in Mountain Village to celebrate its 10-year anniversary.

The rules of curling are relatively simple. Two teams compete on a lane of ice – called a sheet.

“Each team throws eight stones,” said Patty Jen Arndt, skip for the Sweeping Beauties (curling team name, Jersey Curl). She has been curling with the club since the beginning.

“You have a skip who is your head strategist, coach, coming up with how they want the team to play. They’re reading the ice, and they try to coach the team on where to place the stones. Everyone throws two stones, and the other two who aren’t throwing are sweeping,” Arndt explained.

The aim is to get your team’s stones into the house – essentially a bull’s-eye. The team with the closest stone to the center – or button – wins points. The winning team gets one point for each stone that is closer to the button than the other team’s closest stone.

While the rules are straightforward, JD and Megan Wise, the other co-founder of Telluride Curling, note there’s always the urge to keep going.

“There’s a tremendous amount of strategy that’s also part of the game. Curling is sometimes called chess on ice. There’s always another level you can take it,” JD Wise said.

“Throwing the stone is kind of this finesse. It’s kind of like golf, where if you get a good shot, you want to do it again. You’re hooked. It’s trying to get the speed of not throwing it too fast or too slow, too far or too light, getting it just right. When you get it, you want to keep coming back,” Megan Wise added.

But it’s not just the game itself that creates the curling culture. There’s an affinity for fun team names:

“The Sweeping Beauties, I Swept with Your Wife, The Telluride Stoners, The Jud Sweepies, Sweep Caroline, and many, many more. I could go on forever,” Megan Wise said.

There’s also camaraderie. Curling welcomes everyone. Logan Cormier is on the Gorronhoe’s. He’s new to curling this year and signed up with some of his friends.

“I’m from Louisiana, so we don’t have any of this stuff. Being from Louisiana, doing this, I never thought about doing it. We wanted to find a new activity besides skiing and snowboarding. So, we came along, started playing,” Cormier said.

“You always want to encourage your team and the other team. There’s very little heckling in curling. You cheer a good shot to your opponent, as well as your team. One of the most important rules is that the winning team buys drinks for the losing team. We also start and end the game with a wish of ‘good curling’ to the other team,” Cormier said.

The Telluride Curling Club 10th Anniversary Celebration will take place on Saturday, March 8, from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the ice rink in Mountain Village. The celebration is free and open to all ages.

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Mountain Village Council Election Set for June 24

The Town of Mountain Village will hold its town council elections on June 24. Three seats are open, and applications are available for interested candidates.

To qualify, candidates must be registered voters and have lived in Mountain Village for at least 120 days prior to the election.

Those interested in running can attend information sessions at Town Hall on Thursday, March 20, from noon to 1 p.m., or Monday, March 24, from 6 to 7 p.m.

Candidates must submit a letter of intent and biographical information to the clerk’s office by May 9 to appear on the ballot.

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Rockfall Closes Camp Bird Road Near Ouray

A significant rockfall has closed Camp Bird Road outside Ouray. Officials with the U.S. Forest Service and the City of Ouray believe the incident occurred on February 26 due to fluctuating temperatures. The rockfall completely blocked a section of Camp Bird Road, about 3.5 miles from the Highway 550 exit, and also damaged a retaining wall.

Regional engineers, along with representatives from the Revenue Mine, decided to temporarily close the road for the health and safety of travelers and to maintain the road’s structural integrity.

Officials are warning that the area remains unsafe due to ongoing temperature fluctuations and the likelihood of additional rockfalls.

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Colorado Parks and Wildlife Takes Action Against Invasive Mussel Threat

Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) is enacting measures to stop the spread of a new invasive mussel species that could threaten the state’s native fish and wildlife. CPW’s Robert Walters said Golden Mussels were first detected in the California Delta last fall.

“Each and every year, we are seeing boats coming in from that particular part of the state. So putting these preventative measures in place before they get closer to us is really the best approach that we can take to make sure this does not become an issue,” Walters said.

CPW will increase boat inspections in an effort to prevent the mussels from entering Colorado’s waters. The state experienced a scare last summer with invasive zebra mussels found in the Colorado River near Grand Junction.

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Colorado Officials Challenge DOJ Decision to Review Tina Peters Conviction

Colorado officials are pushing back against the U.S. Department of Justice’s decision to review the conviction of Tina Peters.

For the Colorado Capitol News Alliance, Bente Birkeland reports.

Story begins at 5:24.

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New Basalt Shelter Aims to Support Domestic Abuse Survivors

Many survivors of domestic abuse struggle to leave their abusers due to fear of retribution or the unknown. Many offenders also cut their partners off financially, making it difficult to find a new place to live—especially with kids or pets.

In Basalt, a new shelter has opened to alleviate that burden. The shelter was launched by Response, a nonprofit serving victims of domestic and sexual abuse.

Aspen Public Radio’s Halle Zander reports there are mixed feelings about launching transitional housing that is so public.

Story begins at 16:36.