Arizona joins Nevada to fight federal Colorado River plan
Arizona is joining a fight against the Trump administration’s 10-year plan for managing the Colorado River that could slash the state’s share of water. The Arizona Department of Water Resources filed a motion Friday to intervene in Nevada’s earlier lawsuit, claiming the federal government’s plan for the shrinking river would “devastate Arizona’s economy,” the agency’s…
What my dog taught me about how to live
The luck we don’t know we have.
Will Coloradans choose the ‘right to hunt’?
A constitutional amendment on the November ballot asks who should choose how to manage the Centennial State’s wildlife.
Utah’s coal country pushes back against data centers
Carbon County is getting 456 small nuclear reactors and a giant gas plant for data center complexes.
Watersheds near Río Frijoles bear the brunt of wildfire
In the aftermath of drought, wildfire and floods in northern New Mexico, residents who rely on a centuries-old irrigation system are concerned about water quality.
Meet the flower whose evolution is outpacing climate change
This common perennial blossom, beloved by hummingbirds and biologists, offers key insight on which plants might save themselves from climate stress.
OnlyMarms, dino doings, sailor cats and “Thank you, Jimothy!”
Mishaps and mayhem from around the region.
The ‘grandmother’ cottonwood trees bulldozed for the border wall
After a 71-day protest, the last of the 100-plus-year-old trees was cut down southeast of Tucson.
Duck banding in the Centennial Valley helps save the lesser scaup
The longest-running study on breeding ducks has given Montana state biologists the highest-resolution dataset to aid in the bird’s survival.
Native nations sue over Endangered Species Act changes
Environmental work being done by tribes across the country will be made more difficult now that the Trump administration has more narrowly defined ‘harm.’
Toxic algal blooms are spreading across the West
Climate change is increasing the frequency of the blooms. Here’s what you need to know.
How old battles over land, power and identity continue to shape the West’s politics
Origin stories from an unsettled region.
The past is present
Reporting illuminates the moment we’re in and records where we’ve been.
New leadership for HCN
Plus a forthcoming listening tour.
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- If you've dreamed of owning a hobby farm, equestrian property, gardener's paradise, or private Colorado retreat, this rare 10-acre property with multiple outbuildings deserves your attention. Fully fenced and nestled at the base of the Poudre Canyon, it offers spectacular […]
In This Issue
October 2026: Origin Stories
In this unusual issue, “Origin Stories,” we resurrect three High Country News stories on topics that continue to influence the West, sometimes in unexpected ways. “Rebels Revel in New Power, Polish” — from December 1980, when the then-newspaper was based in Lander, Wyoming — takes…
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Water
What will happen to the Grand Canyon as water levels drop?
The massive infrastructure projects of the 1960s wouldn’t work today
On the road with a desert sage
Wildlife
How the Interior secretary has let down public lands and the nation
As bears ‘spin out’ in southern Montana, wildlife managers are at wit’s end
Wyoming chooses public lands at the ballot box
Public Lands
The Forest Service is poised to hand off one of the West’s most visited landscapes
Tohono O’odham fight border wall on sacred, sovereign lands
In Arctic Alaska, 1.4 million acres of federal land is shifting to state hands
Indigenous Affairs
Montanans are demanding better Indian education, setting an example for other Western states
Large solar project on Navajo Nation leaves residents skeptical
Protect Sandia Mountain, our church
Communities
American Samoans punished for voting in Alaska get relief after a yearslong nightmare
‘Everyone deserves to have a good quality of life’
How Bozeman is preventing human-wildlife conflicts before they start
Books
Why I talk to animals
On Mount Shasta, a photographic record outlasts living memory
Let’s go in on the American dream, together
In the News
Roads and wildlife don’t mix
Grizzly 399’s death sparks a broader conversation on how to live with wildlife.