Environment

Bandelier Offers Cross-Country & Snowshoe Opportunities

With recent snowfall in the higher elevations of Bandelier National Monument, opportunities to cross-country ski or snowshoe may be found in the Upper Frijoles area of the monument located off N.M. 4, near Dome Road. There are four trails: the Cerro Grande, Alamo Boundary (hard to access in winter as Forest Service Road 289 is closed), and the two Upper Frijoles loop trails known as the Ski Trails (one is 2.4 miles round-trip while the other is 5 miles round-trip). Ski routes are open during daylight hours only. Pets are not permitted. Please pack out all trash. Snowshoe users and hearty hikers Read More

Posts From The Road: Booming To Abandoned

Ashcroft: A decaying wagon sits near the old mining town of Ashcroft near Aspen, Colo. Silver was discovered in 1880 in Castle Creek Valley and the town of Ashcroft was born. The boom lasted just five years. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

Animas Forks Housing: A row of three houses in Animas Forks, which was settled in the 1870s in the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado, but by the turn of the century most mining operations had ceased. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com

By GARY WARREN
Photographer
Formerly of Los Alamos

Our favorite travels involve exploring the western portion Read More

New Mexico Bureau Of Land Management Seeks Public Comment For Proposed May 2023 Oil & Gas Lease Sale

BLM News:

SANTA FE — Consistent with the direction in the Inflation Reduction Act, the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) New Mexico State Office released an environmental assessment analyzing 45 parcels (10,123.91 acres) for the proposed May 2023 Competitive Oil and Gas Lease Sale.

These include 26 parcels located within Cheyenne County, Kansas (6,844.42 acres) and 19 parcels located within Eddy, Lea, and Chaves Counties, New Mexico (3,279.49 acres). The release of this environmental assessment starts a 30-day public comment period, which will end Feb. 6, 2023.

The BLM completed scoping Read More

Purgatory Snowcat Adventures Begin This Weekend With More Than 5 Feet Of Fresh Snow

Purgatory Snowcat Adventures kicks off this weekend. Courtesy/Purgatory

Purgatory News:

This weekend, Purgatory Snowcat Adventures kicks off for the 2023 season with more than 5 feet of untracked snow from recent storms.

Purgatory Snowcat Adventures is Colorado’s largest snowcat skiing operation with access to 35,000 acres of guided terrain, outside of the resort boundaries. Guests can expect an average of 8-10 runs and 10,000′ of vertical depending on skier ability and terrain conditions. With exceptional views of the Northern and Southern San Juan Mountains, this will be a day of Read More

Daily Postcard: View Of ‘Wolf Moon’ Rising Friday Night

Daily Postcard: January’s Wolf Moon Friday night was the first full moon of 2023. The moon also was its furthest from the sun, making it a so-called ‘micromoon’ – the opposite of a supermoon. Source: Space.com. Photo by Nancy Ann Hibbs Read More

Volunteers Needed For Eagle Count At Abiquiu Lake Jan. 7

Bald Eagle

USACE News:

ABIQUIU — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) staff at Abiquiu Lake will host their annual midwinter eagle survey 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, Jan. 7.

The event is free and open to the public. Volunteers are asked to meet at the Abiquiu Lake Visitor Center for registration beginning at 9 a.m. Hot coffee and snacks will be provided during registration.

A presentation about eagles and other potential bird sightings will begin at 9:30 a.m. and the count will start at 10 a.m. and run until noon.

All volunteers are asked to dress warmly and consider current weather conditions. Spotting Read More

Op-Ed: Fund Strategic Water Reserve For New Mexico

By ANJALI BEAN
Coalition for the Strategic Water Reserve

“Agua es Vida” – Water is Life. We read it and hear it and say it all across New Mexico, all the time. But our life is draining away as New Mexico faces unprecedented challenges to our water resources. To address these challenges, we need a wide range of water management tools, including a fully funded Strategic Water Reserve.

Every year across the Land of Enchantment, farmers are having to make do with less water, cities and towns are working to find new ways of conserving and reducing demand, and imperiled species are being pushed closer to Read More

New Acting MAPR-Los Alamos Site Manager Announced

Mary Scales

MAPR-Los Alamos News:

Mary Scales has accepted a temporary detail as Manhattan Project National Historical Park (MAPR-Los Alamos) Site Manager. She will serve in this position for 120 days ending April 30, 2023.

Scales has a bachelor’s degree in anthropology/archaeology, and a master’s in historic preservation. To this position, she brings five years of federal service and professional knowledge in cultural resource management, project management, and Cold War Era site management.

She previously worked in the cultural landscape group in the Southeast Regional Office of Read More

Resubmittal Of Draft 2022 Sampling Implementation Plan Added To LANL Public Reading Room

LANL News:

Per regulatory requirements, Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL) announces new documents have been added to the Los Alamos Legacy Cleanup Contract Electronic Public Reading Room.

All legacy cleanup documents required to be posted after April 30, 2018, are available on the site linked above.

For legacy cleanup documents that were posted prior to April 30, 2018, please visit the LANL electronic public reading room:

  • Resubmittal of the Draft 2022 Sampling Implementation Plan as Required per the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
Read More

Amateur Naturalist: Snow, Red Wing Blackbirds And Ravens

A raven can sense the impending arrival of a winter weather front even while the day is sunny. Photo by Robert Dryja

By ROBERT DRYA
Los Alamos

Snow has fallen for the past two nights with an accumulation of about four inches. The sun has been shining during the day between the two nights. The actual depth therefore is about two inches except for areas that have been shaded all day. This snow fall has been predicted in different ways.

The length of day has shortened from nearly 15 hours at the peak of summer to less than 10 hours in December. Less daylight means less warming. This supports the development Read More

Purgatory Records 23 Inches Of Snow In 24 Hours

Resort officials are ringing in the new year with another deep powder day at Purgatory Resort in Durango, Colo. Monday, Purgatory received 23 inches of snow in 24 hours, bringing storm totals to 53 inches over the past 7 days. Purgatory’s mid-mountain base is now 52 inches with 102 open trails. Purgatory is the only resort in North America that offers free unlimited skiing and riding to all kids ages 12 and under – no blackout days or purchase required. Guests can stop by the outside ticket window to pick up a free ticket for their little rippers. Please note proof of age is required. Courtesy/Purgatory Read More

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