Behind Highway Accidents
Western States including Idaho, Wyoming, Alaska, Colorado, Montana, Utah, Washington, Arizona,  Oregon, Nevada, New Mexico, and California, had 6,800 traffic fatalities in the  first nine months of 2023.  That death rate was only second behind the deep South.

Causes for fatal accidents vary from highways designed to accommodate higher speeds for vehicles to more alcohol related causalities. One surprising cause is bigger cars and trucks. While larger vehicles are safer for the occupants of large vehicles, bigger cars and trucks are a danger for anything smaller. The average weight of this year's vehicle is 34% heavier than the average 1980 vehicles. That is practically explained by the growing demand for four passenger pickups but the height and weights are also to blame.     

What is a gust of winds favorite color? Blew.
Do you like renewable energy? Actually I'm a big fan.
Confucius says,"Man who piss in wind, wind piss back."

March Winds
The winds return to the Colorado Plains and it is a big blow to anyone who has to  get
work done.The wind mill works the pump but there is no ground-water to pump. Kits fly high.

Quotes
“It’s extremely important that, as a writer, we give a voice to those who don’t have voices, including the other animals that we share the planet with and the places that are endangered or being lost.” – Alison Hawthorn Deming

“What is a fish without a river? What is a bird without a tree to nest in? What is an endangered species act without any enforcement mechanism to ensure their habitat is protected? It is nothing.” – Jay Inslee,

“The fact is that no species has ever had such wholesale control over everything on Earth, living or dead, as we now have. That lays upon us, whether we like it or not, an awesome responsibility. In our hands now lies not only our own future, but that of all other living creatures with whom we share the Earth.” - David Attenborough

Captive Breeding and Continual Intervention
We knew exactly how many California Condors were out there somewhere. Only six. Lead poison was killing the giant vultures. Bullet fragments in carcasses of deer left by hunters. As it turned out Condors breed well in captivity.

The program to breed Condors captured over time led to 1,000 Condor chicks. The Endangered Species Act (ESA) is the reason several hundred Condors circle around the California skies. Captive breeding and continual intervention were necessary, extinction wasn't.

The same can be said for the Leather-back Sea Turtle and the American Alligator both saved by the restraints of the ESA. A closer example is the Black Footed Footed Ferret found on the Colorado plains. Losing habitat combined with fewer prairie-dogs has greatly reduced the number of Black Footed Ferrets. From  -Colorado Division of Wildlife
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Progress on Murder on Money Mountain
Revised the format and have an appointment to discuss the cover with illustrator. Still aiming for a June release date. 

Colorado Mountain Lions
Puma, Leopards, Couger, Snow Leopards, no matter what you call them, Mountain Lions are large, dangerous predators. There are  between 3,800 and 4,400 Mountain Lions living in Colorado, mostly in areas where there are large deer populations. Mountain lions drag the carcass to a sheltered spot, covering it with dirt, leaves, or snow. They may return to feed on it over the course of a few days. Generally, they move the carcass and re-cover it after each feeding.
When they are feeding, mountain lions can be dangerous to people. Mountain lions that have been fed by people or appear "tame" may unexpectedly become aggressive.

Once considered pests, mountain lions gained respect as a big game species in 1965, reflecting public appreciation for proper lion management.  Since then, lion numbers in the state have increased by all measures available to Colorado Parks and Wildlife because of management as a regulated big-game species.
from Colorado Parks and Wildlife

Joke About Politics

If con is the opposite of pro, then is Congress the opposite of progress?

Quotes 2011
Kerr, Andy.  No Room for Energy Projection on Public Land  OR
www.andykerr.net/energy-on-public-lands
by Andy Kerr  Reference

"To the desert go prophets and hermits; through deserts go pilgrims and exiles. Here the leaders of the great religions have sought the therapeutic and spiritual values of retreat, not to escape but to find reality."

"Most public lands are open to energy exploitation. Unfortunately, most Americans don’t appreciate most of our public lands, because most of our public lands are deserts."

"Sage grouse generally avoid sagebrush up to two miles from of a road (human disturbance) and a half-mile on either side of a power line (perches for predators). Sage grouse fly into fences and die. The Srushagebrush Sea has millions of miles of roads, utility corridors and fences."

Saving the Sagebrush Sea
The American West is defined by its open spaces and grassland and backdrop of blue-gray sagebrush. Nicknamed the Sea of Sagebrush, the terrestrial biome covers 13 Western states and 350 species along with 8 million people
According to federal agencies more than 1 million acres acres of healthy sagebrush habitat is degraded each year due invasive grasses, encroaching conifers, wild fires, and to a less extent improper grazing. The Nature Conservancy organization is teaming up with land-owners and the public to improve grazing practices, to implement policy that encourages native plantings that can out complete with invasive grasses."We needs scientific solutions to reverse the trend in Sagebrush,"  says Matt Cahill, Director of the Sagebrush Sea Program.

Quotes
Yellowstone wildlife is treasured. We understand that. We'll manage them in a way that addresses that sensitivity. - Steve Bullock

Well, I think breathing life into the Endangered Species Act, taking those wolves back into Yellowstone, restoring the salmon in the rivers of the Pacific Northwest. -Bruce Babbitt

The grizzly bears that live in and around Yellowstone make up almost half the population in the lower 48 states, and now those bears are at risk. -Lydia Millet

You know, buffalo are significantly bigger than elk. I grew up near Yellowstone so I've been near buffalo. Buffalo are huge. - Mike Leach

















Yellowstone History We Didn't Know
The traditional legend says Yellowstone was a pristine wilderness unvisited by humanity until a mountain man stumbled onto a geyser and hot water ponds. Not true says anthropologist Doug McDonald of the University of Montana. "Native Americans were here hunting and gathering at least 11,000 ago.

On the road from Noris Geyser Basin and to Mammoth Hot Springs there is a huge volcanic outcrop named Obsidian Cliff. This is an important source for obsidian, a type of volcanic glass that is made when lava cools. It produces the sharpest edge of any natural substance on earth. Native Americans used it to make knives, scraping tools, points for spears and after it's invention about 1,500 years ago, for arrowheads. Obsidian Cliff was a valuable discovery along with Old Faithful, and other wonders.

Professor McDonald made an exciting discovery in 2013, at Yellowstone Lake, a broken obsidian projection point which is of Clovis telltale design approximatetly 11,000 old. The Clovis point that McDonald's party found is one of two found in the park, meaning Native Americans entered Yellowstone 11,000 years before the mountain man "discovered it."

50 Years of Environmental Protection Agency
In 1970, Congress created the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to stem the number of declining species .In doing so, it provided the steps to identify species that were threatened or were endangered, and prescribed steps required to stop the eradication of species.

The act covered plants and animals. Animals included birds, mammals, fish, and reptiles. The Eagle went from 412 pairs of Eagles and when EPA went through several years of no DDT, the number or pairs climbed to 9,789.

Another successful, but lesser know EPA listing, is the American Alligator. Hunting has been limited and the population has increased exponentially. 

One may question what alligators have to do with Colorado. In southern Colorado there is an alligator farm.

The Colorado Gator Farm is one of Alamosa’s most unique attractions.  When visiting Alamosa and the Great Sand Dunes National Park, be sure to save some time for the Gator Farm.

The geothermal waters of the valley are warm, so the owners decided to start a fish farm in 1977. They found themselves with a problem: a surplus of dead fish. Instead of throwing away the dead fish, in 1987 they bought 100 baby alligators to take care of the fish remains naturally. These baby alligators grew fast in the warm, geothermal waters. Residents from Alamosa and the surrounding area started asking if they could see the alligators. The Gator Farm opened to the public in 1990.


























The Colorado Gator Farm is one of Alamosa’s most unique attractions. When visiting Alamosa and the Great Sand Dunes National Park, be sure to save some time for this oasis in the desert. 

As time progressed, the farm took on another role as an Exotic Animal Refuge. They have received dozens of unwanted, illegal, and abused reptiles from all over the world. Now the refuge holds not only alligators, but tortoises, iguanas, poisonous snakes, and giant snapping turtles. Through fundraising and educational awareness they have been able to add to their sanctuary by including various bird species and a tropical biodome.

Utilizing the geothermal waters of the valley, the owners decided to start a Tilapia farm in 1977. They found themselves with fishy problem: a surplus of dead fish. Instead of throwing away the dead fish, in 1987 they bought 100 baby alligators to take care of the fish remains naturally. These baby alligators grew fast in the warm, geothermal waters and locals started asking if they could see them. The Gator Farm opened to the public in 1990, showcasing their tilapia ponds and enormous alligators.

If you and your family are in the mood for an exciting adventure, head over to the Colorado Gator Farm where adventure awaits.

The Colorado Gator Farm is one of Alamosa’s most unique attractions, and highly underrated. When visiting Alamosa and the Great Sand Dunes National Park, be sure to save some time for this oasis in the desert. 

...Western skills and entertainment

Quote
There is chilly, cold, colder, and then there is Stock Show Weather -G.Eldon Smith


Weather
No, we don't have Stock Show Weather every year but every January when it gets cold, somebody will say,"Yup, Stock Show Weather." We are experiencing Stock Show Weather this year with six days in a row during the Stock Show and temperatures below zero. Last night the temperature was  -9.



National Western Stock Show and Rodeo
The Stock Show, Rodeo, and Horse Show are all in several buildings. The snow and cold do not affect the activities inside.

Rodeo, Goat judging, and Sheepdog contest, all done indoors. Thank goodness because outdoors was minus 1 to minus 2 degrees below zero this afternoon.

National Western Stock Show opens with a parade downtown with a herd of long horns

The stock begin in 1906 to show farmers and ranchers' products. Since then the show has grown .Each January, nearly 700,000 people visit the National Western Stock Show, an extravaganza of about 30 rodeos, 11 horse shows, and countless other attractions just a couple of miles from the heart of Denver. It has been a place where generations of farmers and ranchers – people whose hard work feeds the rest of us – spend time reuniting with old friends, learning about new approaches and techniques in agriculture and ranching, and doing some business, year after year.

Endangered Species Act is 75 Years Old
In October the U.S. Fish Wildlife Service removed 21 species previous listed as endangered species on the list and put the species on the extinct list. The Engendered Species Act was created 75 years ago and has added about 659 species to the list. That includes 10 birds, two fish, 9 mussels, and  various others.

The star of the show is the American Eagle which was on the Endangered Species in the fifties because of the use of DDT as poison to kill mosquitoes. Eagle eggs had soft shells and eagle babies died.before the egg hatched.  DDT was banded in1972. Eagles came off the endangered list. Eagles are now found in every state and are flourishing.


Home on the Range
What do cowboys put on their salad? Ranch dressing.
My neighbor was rodeo cowboy. After he retired, now he is deranged.