THE WEST We’ve always relished the anecdote about the brand-new Wyoming congressman who made the mistake of bringing his border collie to Washington, D.C. Border collies originally hail from the English-Scottish borderlands, and they are super-smart and quintessentially alert: They live to round up animals, including ducks and people — virtually anything that moves if […]
Llamas and coyotes and bears, oh my
Posted inRange
HCN reader photo – chariot racing!
This week’s stunning image comes from photographer Daryl Hunter. It’s from a horse-drawn chariot race (the horses pull a cutter) in Jackson, Wyo.
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
Small poultry farmers grapple with lack of slaughterhouses
Producers in Oregon and beyond can’t find places to butcher chickens
Posted inGoat
Sexual assault on the rez
Will the Obama administration’s efforts in Indian Country help end a decades-long epidemic of sexual violence and abuse against women on reservations? One can only hope that the momentum spurred by the Tribal Law and Order Act of 2010 and the work of a new Department of Justice task force to streamline prosecution of violent […]
Posted inGoat
When deer mice attack
Graying, skeletal aspens and fluid-filled lungs. No connection, right? Wrong. This little guy is a deer mouse. Cute, sure. But deer mice are the primary vectors for the “sin nombre” form of hantavirus — a nasty bug transmitted primarily through the rodent’s feces and urine which causes flu-like symptoms and, in later stages of infection, […]
Posted inBlog
The State of the Union and the environment
When President Obama delivers his State of the Union address tomorrow night he’ll likely focus much of his attention on the economy and jobs — and the lack of them in this country. It’s also expected that the President will further signal a centrist drift. It’s unlikely the President will spend much time discussing the […]
Posted inRange
Is Recreation in the Rockies Becoming a Bigger Forest Service Priority?
By Steve Bunk, 1-25-11 The West’s outdoor recreational industry—including ski resorts, outfitters, and others—is on track to have a stronger say in how national forests are managed in coming years. A vigorous lobbying effort, in which recreational groups and politicians of Rocky Mountain states played key roles, has had a big impact on new regulations […]
Posted inRange
Health cuts and Indian Country
Journalists like me have played the role of Chicken Little for many years. We have written dozens of stories about the consequences of an election, predicting what will happen after Republicans win and fulfill their promises to drastically cut government. Only very little happened. Sure, there were significant budget cuts and restructuring of programs under […]
Posted inRange
The return of nullification
The “Doctrine of Nullification” may be known only to American history buffs, but that could soon change, for Idaho is about to resurrect it and several other states — mostly in the West — appear poised to follow. Put briefly, the Doctrine holds that states have the authority to declare a federal law unconstitutional and […]
Posted inGoat
Mud Woman Rolls On
Coming January 30, the Denver Art Museum will open the doors to its freshly renovated American Indian galleries, featuring the well-known Santa Clara Pueblo sculptor Roxanne Swentzell among other fine artists. “People think there are no artists on our floor,” curator of native arts Nancy Blomberg says, referring to the stereotype of American Indian artists […]
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
Ronald Reagan: The accidental environmentalist
Expect to be hearing plenty about Ronald Reagan: The centennial of his birth is coming up soon. Our 40th president was born on Feb. 6, 1911, in Tampico, Ill. A commemorative postage stamp is in the works, along with traveling exhibits, academic symposiums and sculpture unveilings. Few Western environmentalists will be celebrating — but maybe […]
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
Utah’s Sagebrush Rebellion capital mellows as animal-lovers and enviros move in
Kanab, UtahOn a crisp June morning in the heart of Sagebrush Rebel country, a steady stream of rental cars, minivans and SUVs flows north from Kanab on Highway 89, heading toward the serene, red-rock walls of Angel Canyon. As the highway curves, the landscape flickers through sun and shadows, the sandstone glowing like embers in […]
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
The latest: Wyoming Range
Update on HCN’s coverage of natural gas development
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
The latest: Northern spotted owl
Update on HCN’s coverage of owl management in the Northwest
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
Rethinking national parks and wilderness
Review of Uncertain Path: A Search for the Future of National Parks
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
Decades of drilling
Western states’ energy extraction compared to others
Posted inJanuary 24, 2011: Serendipity in the Desert
A dark moment, a glimmer of light
The connection might seem tenuous, but I think that the West’s most shocking recent event — the Jan. 8 bloodbath in Tucson, Ariz. — has a correlation with our Utah cover story. The “Tucson massacre,” as it’s being called — in which an apparently mentally ill young man shot Democratic Rep. Gabrielle Giffords and 18 […]
Posted inWotr
A poet whom readers won’t let go
Remembering William Stafford, a popular Northwestern poet