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DURANGO - Are the gentle folks in Silverton playing tricks on tourists again? That was the suspicion of one passenger on the Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge train in October when she saw a loping, ape-like creature with an unmistakable profile: Sasquatch, i.e. Bigfoot.
The name comes from the aboriginals of the Pacific Northwest, who for centuries have talked about a primordial man-beast standing eight feet tall. Yet the firm evidence so far is no better than a grainy 35-year-old, one-minute clip of black-and-white film.
The Durango Telegraph reports many passengers saw the thing, including a railroad official, Kristi Nelson-Cohen, who confirmed previous glimpses of Sasquatch. Yet the broader evidence collected by the newspaper gently suggests not a Bigfoot along the railroad tracks, but a big tongue somewhere in the cheeks of locals.
Hat passed for avie bulletins in Canada
CANMORE, Alberta - In the wake of 29 avalanche deaths in Canada last year, 24 of them alone in British Columbia, efforts are under way to expand avalanche bulletins and other public education about conditions. However, the various government entities were passing the hat in dealing with the cost.
It's money well spent, says the Rocky Mountain Outlook. The newspaper noted an estimated $1 million in cancellations in the heli-skiing industry alone, plus $10 million lost to transportation, accommodation and service sectors.
What the newspaper didn't spell out was to what degree ignorance of shaky snow stability contributed to the deaths. At least some victims realized the general precariousness of the snowpack, but proceeded ahead. After all, it's too often the avalanche experts who get caught in avalanches, as they choose to take risks.
People may be willing to travel again
BANFF, Alberta - Kiwis and Aussies, British and Japanese all showed up in large numbers with working visas at the ski resorts in the Banff area. In addition to helping ensure plenty of people to keep the resorts going, it also suggests customers ahead.
Nikki MacLennan, director of the ski and snowboard school at Ski Banff at Norquay, told the Rocky Mountain Outlook that the large numbers of international employees means people are traveling again, which in turn points to a stronger economy for resorts with an international clientele.
Green Party promises to declare candidates
MAMMOTH LAKES, Calif. - After meeting more or less monthly for the last three years, the Green Party of Mono County is gearing up to be more of a player in local politics. A party spokesman said voters should soon expect the Greens to run local candidates.
Steamboat only buying certified rainforest wood
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS - The city council has agreed to buy only rainforest wood that has been certified as being harvested in a sustainable manner. Such wood from tropical areas is 14 percent more expensive than noncertified wood.
The idea came from a former Steamboat resident now attending college in Vermont, Gates Gooding. The law was passed unanimously by the council after hearing a report that there will be little to no impact to the city's budget. The city typically uses domestic wood. Rainforest woods would be most likely to be used outdoors, but the parks department is now using plastic lumber. Although more expensive, the plastic lumber lasts longer and has fewer maintenance costs, noted The Steamboat Pilot.
Dispute rages on licensing illegals to drive
TAHOE, Calif. - A new law that allows undocumented immigrants to apply for drivers' licenses has become among the most divisive policy issues in recent memory in California, reports the Tahoe World.
Opponents of the law, who are gathering the signatures necessary to prevent its implementation, say the measure rewards immigrants living in California illegally and poses a threat to national security.
"Those of us who are American citizens are in favor of repealing it for the same reasons we can't go to Europe and try to be citizens illegally there," said Nancy Lungren, president of the Truckee Tahoe Republican Women Federated. "There's too much opportunity there for people with bad intentions to get away with crimes."
But supporters say the measure makes roads safer by ensuring drives carry insurance and are taught the rules of the road, as well as providing immigrant workers with identification. After all, the economy of Lake Tahoe in particular and California in general is "running on the backs of the laborers that come from or through Mexico," says Chris Ballin, executive director of an advocacy group, La Comunidad Unida.
The name comes from the aboriginals of the Pacific Northwest, who for centuries have talked about a primordial man-beast standing eight feet tall. Yet the firm evidence so far is no better than a grainy 35-year-old, one-minute clip of black-and-white film.
The Durango Telegraph reports many passengers saw the thing, including a railroad official, Kristi Nelson-Cohen, who confirmed previous glimpses of Sasquatch. Yet the broader evidence collected by the newspaper gently suggests not a Bigfoot along the railroad tracks, but a big tongue somewhere in the cheeks of locals.
Hat passed for avie bulletins in Canada
CANMORE, Alberta - In the wake of 29 avalanche deaths in Canada last year, 24 of them alone in British Columbia, efforts are under way to expand avalanche bulletins and other public education about conditions. However, the various government entities were passing the hat in dealing with the cost.
It's money well spent, says the Rocky Mountain Outlook. The newspaper noted an estimated $1 million in cancellations in the heli-skiing industry alone, plus $10 million lost to transportation, accommodation and service sectors.
What the newspaper didn't spell out was to what degree ignorance of shaky snow stability contributed to the deaths. At least some victims realized the general precariousness of the snowpack, but proceeded ahead. After all, it's too often the avalanche experts who get caught in avalanches, as they choose to take risks.
People may be willing to travel again
BANFF, Alberta - Kiwis and Aussies, British and Japanese all showed up in large numbers with working visas at the ski resorts in the Banff area. In addition to helping ensure plenty of people to keep the resorts going, it also suggests customers ahead.
Nikki MacLennan, director of the ski and snowboard school at Ski Banff at Norquay, told the Rocky Mountain Outlook that the large numbers of international employees means people are traveling again, which in turn points to a stronger economy for resorts with an international clientele.
Green Party promises to declare candidates
MAMMOTH LAKES, Calif. - After meeting more or less monthly for the last three years, the Green Party of Mono County is gearing up to be more of a player in local politics. A party spokesman said voters should soon expect the Greens to run local candidates.
Steamboat only buying certified rainforest wood
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS - The city council has agreed to buy only rainforest wood that has been certified as being harvested in a sustainable manner. Such wood from tropical areas is 14 percent more expensive than noncertified wood.
The idea came from a former Steamboat resident now attending college in Vermont, Gates Gooding. The law was passed unanimously by the council after hearing a report that there will be little to no impact to the city's budget. The city typically uses domestic wood. Rainforest woods would be most likely to be used outdoors, but the parks department is now using plastic lumber. Although more expensive, the plastic lumber lasts longer and has fewer maintenance costs, noted The Steamboat Pilot.
Dispute rages on licensing illegals to drive
TAHOE, Calif. - A new law that allows undocumented immigrants to apply for drivers' licenses has become among the most divisive policy issues in recent memory in California, reports the Tahoe World.
Opponents of the law, who are gathering the signatures necessary to prevent its implementation, say the measure rewards immigrants living in California illegally and poses a threat to national security.
"Those of us who are American citizens are in favor of repealing it for the same reasons we can't go to Europe and try to be citizens illegally there," said Nancy Lungren, president of the Truckee Tahoe Republican Women Federated. "There's too much opportunity there for people with bad intentions to get away with crimes."
But supporters say the measure makes roads safer by ensuring drives carry insurance and are taught the rules of the road, as well as providing immigrant workers with identification. After all, the economy of Lake Tahoe in particular and California in general is "running on the backs of the laborers that come from or through Mexico," says Chris Ballin, executive director of an advocacy group, La Comunidad Unida.
