Items by Allen Best

When crossing the border is your daily commute
When crossing the border is your daily commute
A day in the life of agricultural laborers whose work and lives straddle the Arizona-Mexican border.
Ski areas add warm-weather options
Ski areas add warm-weather options
Forest Service has made it easier for resorts to include summer activities.
How this year’s general election repeats history
How this year’s general election repeats history
The messy 2016 presidential election echoes deeply flawed candidates of the past.
Let’s be clear: TSA’s new tactics are bribery
Let’s be clear: TSA’s new tactics are bribery
A new program lets you cut in line at security, for a fee.
It’s time to put a price on carbon
It’s time to put a price on carbon
The United States should set a persuasive example for the rest of the world.
The tiny Nebraska town where Keystone opposition began
Lessons from the Animas River: dig first, clean up later
Cloud seeding is still a work in progress
Considering historical correctness in New Mexico
He’s the linchpin of a remote western Colorado town
The lessons of Ludlow, 100 years later
77 years later, here comes pot
77 years later, here comes pot
The history of marijuana is clouded by racism and muddled thinking.
Go Lambkins! But no go Redskins?
Go Lambkins! But no go Redskins?
The controversial territory of mascot names.
A Colorado carpenter takes a chance on hemp
A Colorado carpenter takes a chance on hemp
Can an agrarian insurrection revitalize this High Plains town?
Telluride voters will find sugar on the ballot
Telluride voters will find sugar on the ballot
The pros and cons of banning sugary sodas in a mountain resort town of Colorado.
In describing weather, remember the caveats
In describing weather, remember the caveats
The numbers get squirrely when it comes to explaining massive flooding.
We need a locagua movement
We need a locagua movement
Hard choices for an uncertain future
Hard choices for an uncertain future
After seeing a talk by climate activist Tim DeChristopher, the author wonders: which energy source is the lesser of many evils?
Aspen, Colo. environmental community split over small hydro
Aspen, Colo. environmental community split over small hydro
Reviving a small hydroelectric plant on Castle Creek was supposed to help the city's utility get closer to providing 100 percent carbon free electricity as part of an effort to fight climate change. Instead, it's kicked up a furor.
Smug alert
Smug alert
None of us are without sin when it comes to using energy.
Keystone XL is still a questionable pipeline
Keystone XL is still a questionable pipeline
As the pipeline route is decided, ranchers worry about impacts to water quality in the case of spills
Global climate change: We need to talk about it
Global climate change: We need to talk about it
It's hard for journalists to talk about climate change, but they need to keep telling the story, especially when writing about natural disasters.
Sometimes environmentalists miss the boat
Sometimes environmentalists miss the boat
Colorado environmentalists goofed when they opposed a bill that would have harnessed the methane produced by coal mines as a form of renewable energy.
Unfinished zombie housing developments haunt the rural West
Unfinished zombie housing developments haunt the rural West
Lack of planning rules and the housing bubble led to dead subdivisions plaguing the West, especially in Teton County, Idaho, where locals are trying to deal with the impacts of the real estate bust, yet still arguing if planning even works.
A ski town contributes mightily to paleontology
A ski town contributes mightily to paleontology
The fossils found near Colorado's Snowmass Village have a lot to teach us: not just about mastodons and mammoths, but also about the climate and ecosystem that existed tens of thousands of years ago.
The gift of runoff in a wet season
The gift of runoff in a wet season
After too many recent dry years, residents of the Rocky Mountains are relishing the music of running water.
Three Cups of Tea, the sequel
Three Cups of Tea, the sequel
The fallout from the fracas over Greg Mortenson's book, "Three Cups of Tea," ranges from Afghanistan to Montana and the Mountainfilm Festival in Telluride, Colo.
Don't blame it all on global climate change
Don't blame it all on global climate change
Climate change is a problem, but that doesn’t mean it’s responsible for every bad thing that happens in the West.
Compassionate listening, fierce conversation
Compassionate listening, fierce conversation
Photographer Meredith Ogilby and writer Corinne Platt interview 49 Western "heavy-lifters" in their new book, Voices of the American West.
Here's to a water czar with the unlikely name of Chips
Here's to a water czar with the unlikely name of Chips
The late "Chips" Barry, executive director of Denver Water Board, changed that formidable institution for the best.
High Country News Classifieds
  • COMING TO TUCSON?
    Popular vacation house, everything furnished. Two bedroom, one bath, large enclosed yards. Dog-friendly. Contact Lee at [email protected] or 520-791-9246.
  • ENVIRONMENTAL AND CONSTRUCTION GEOPHYSICS
    We characterize contaminated sites, identify buried drums, tanks, debris and also locate groundwater.
  • NATURAL RESOURCE CONSERVATION MANAGER
    Central Colorado Conservancy is an accredited land trust and community-based conservation organization based in Salida, CO. Our mission is to protect the land, waters and...
  • ESCAPE THE CROWDS AND EMBRACE NATURE: AFFORDABLE RETREAT, JUST AN HOUR FROM GLACIER NATIONAL PARK AND BOB MARSHALL WILDERNESS!
    Welcome to your new tranquil oasis in Montana. This beautiful 2-bedroom home FSBO is just an hour's drive to the east entrance of Glacier National...
  • DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR
    Areas of Responsibility: The Development Director collaborates with the Executive Director, other HEAL Utah staff, board, and supporters to continue building one of Utah's most...
  • DIGITAL ENGAGEMENT SPECIALIST
    Position Summary Western Resource Advocates (WRA) is hiring an organized and creative Digital Engagement Specialist to join our Marketing and Communications Team. The Digital Engagement...
  • 92 ACRE EASTERN WASHINGTON GEM
    Welcome to Lost Creek Sanctuary... a true hidden gem in the heart of the Palouse. 1900 square feet, the main house is warm and charming,...
  • WEEKLY NEWSPAPER FOR SALE
    Vibrant, financially successful 1,100 print run, community-focused subscription newspaper in beautiful Pacific Northwest Washington seeks owner/s. It is time to retire. Now, your Norman Rockwell-like...
  • STAFF ATTORNEY - WILDLANDS AND WILDLIFE PROGRAM
    Job Opening Announcement: Wildlands and Wildlife Program Staff Attorney Reports to: Wildlands and Wildlife Program Director Location: Pacific Northwest, ideally in Eugene, Oregon, Portland, Oregon,...
  • HEAD OF PROJECT MANAGEMENT
    The Head of Project Management will oversee our project execution to ensure that we are providing our partners around the world with the field data...
  • LEGAL DIRECTOR
    Trustees for Alaska is the only nonprofit environmental law firm founded and based in Alaska. We are seeking a Legal Director, full-time based in Anchorage....
  • EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
    The Fund for People in Parks seeks leader to identify, develop, fund, and facilitate high-impact projects in western National Parks. Remote position with some travel....
  • GRASSROOTS REGIONAL COORDINATOR
    Great Old Broads for Wilderness is a women-led national grassroots organization that engages and inspires activism to preserve and protect wilderness and wild lands. The...
  • GRASSROOTS ADVOCACY MANAGER
    Great Old Broads for Wilderness is a women-led national grassroots organization that engages and inspires activism to preserve and protect wilderness and wild lands. Position...
  • GRASSROOTS LEADERSHIP DIRECTOR
    The Grassroots Leadership (Director) oversees the training, guidance, and support of volunteer Broadband Leaders. (Broadbands are women-led grassroots chapters, with 40+ across the country.) They...
  • FOCUS GROUP PARTICIPANT NEEDED
    We would like to invite you to participate in a 60-minute focus group to help us enhance the New Mexico Courts website (https://www.inside.nmcourts.gov/). Our aim...
  • GILA GRASSROOTS ORGANIZER
    New Mexico Wild is seeking a Gila Grassroots Organizer who is passionate about public lands and community engagement. The Gila Grassroots Organizer will take a...
  • 20/40 ACRES IN ARIZONA WINE COUNTRY
    Chiricahua riparian ecosystem: 5100 ft elevation:18+ inches of rain/year: 1/4 mile creek through property: The Chiricahuas' have been called: "The most biologically diverse place in...
  • SMALL CABIN WITH 260 ACRES
    Adorable quaint cabin on the Arizona Strip, on the foothills of the Kaibab Plateau with 260 acres bordering BLM lands on two sides of the...
  • LUNATEC HYDRATION SPRAY BOTTLE
    A must for campers and outdoor enthusiasts. Cools, cleans and hydrates with mist, stream and shower patterns. Hundreds of uses.