Bringing this trash left behind by homeless people to where the public can see it–with photography or literally carrying it out of the woods– is the best way to raise awareness to the hoards of it that exists on City-owned open space property in Horse Gulch. Most of the trash on City-owned open space land in Horse Gulch is at the base of Raiders Ridge, in the woods away from any trail frequented by mountain bikers, hikers or runners. Also in the Gulch at the…

Check out these shots of Trails 2000’s proposed freeride trail coming off of Raider Ridge. Much of it is on slick rock, with a trashed homeless camp at the bottom. It’s flagged in pink and black stripes and starts at the cement pad on Raider Ridge.    

Mariana’s Authentic Cuisine is a quick stop for some fresh authentic Asian cuisine with no msg. If you enjoy stir fried foods without the hype and seating of a traditional restaurant, I’d recommend you try this place. It’s right next to 6th Street Liquor in the big yellow trailer. Check out the menu for Mariana’s Authentic Cuisine here: Mariana’s Authentic Cuisine menu. Marianah Hidayat runs the place, and she takes call in orders at (970) 426-8912. It’s open every day except Tuesdays and Sundays  from 11:00…

If a police officer told you to leave an outdoor, public property for handing out political fliers and practicing your constitutional right to free speech, you might feel violated–even oppressed. That’s what happened to this blogger outside of the Michelle Obama rally at Fort Lewis College last November. Outside of Whalen Gymnasium where Obama was holding a rally for her husband, this blogger was canvassing a crowd that was waiting in line on the sidewalk to get in. Political leafleting for Amendment 64, The Initiative…

The City of Durango received a wide array of public comments on the Draft Horse Gulch Open Space Management Plan in January, which you can read all of if you wish by scrolling down through the blue text below. A copy of the comments that were submitted was provided by Cathy Metz, Durango’s Director of Parks and Recreation, with all of the names and contact information redacted. This blogger requested that the names of those who had submitted each comment be included without their contact…

  La Plata Open Space Conservancy, Conservation Easement Baseline Documentation, Crader Open Space, February 2010.   La Plata Open Space Conservancy, Conservation Easement, Baseline Documentation, Horse Gulch Open Space FLC Board 367, October 2010   La Plata Open Space Conservancy, Conservation Easement Baseline Documentation, Horse Gulch Open Space FLC Foundation 115, June 2010.    

Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO) introduced the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act last week in an attempt to respect and legitimize the will of voters in states that have passed medical marijuana laws or decriminalized it for recreational use. Polis’ bill would remove the Drug Enforcement Agency’s authority over marijuana and would allow each state to decide whether to allow marijuana production or consumption within its borders. It would also further solidify Colorado’s precedent of regulating marijuana like alcohol. Specifically, the Ending Federal Marijuana Prohibition Act: Removes…

How can you say GM crops are safe? I am writing this in response to Garth Buchanan’s op-ed piece in the Herald on 1/5/13, titled “Genetically modified crops are as safe as other produce”.  His first assertion is that genetic engineering is a type of cross breeding.  This is almost laughable.  Since when do frogs, spiders, and bacteria breed with corn, soy beans, and beets?  He also states that these engineers have more control over the resulting organism.  This is false.  The engineers have very…

A 2.86-acre parcel by Horse Gulch trail head was successfully subdivided by a new company, Horse Gulch Holdings LLC,  made up of a partnership of pediatricians from Pediatric Partners of the Southwest. Shortly after on January 16, 2013, the City bought the back 1.6-acre piece of it where they plan on putting in a paved parking lot, according to Kevin Hall, the City’s Director of Natural Lands, Trails and Sustainability. The contract shows that the City of Durango paid $312,500 for the 1.63-acre parcel. Also,…

Dear Natural Lands Preservation Advisory Board, My comments on the Draft Horse Gulch Open Space Management Plan are directed specifically towards number four under the specific management policies (V., page 3) in the document. Among the uses and activities that the Draft Plan prohibits on the property are fires of any kind, which, for a rural landscape, brings the question as to which kinds of fires are specifically prohibited. If the Draft Plan is talking about the prohibition of campfires in order to prevent fire…

A progressive gravity-trail project similar to one that was proposed to the City in 2010 by a group of Durango freeriders was given a warm reception when offered up again by Trails 2000 at a joint Natural Lands/Parks and Recreation Board meeting last Monday. Video by Jerry Hazard showing a freeride trail in the vicinity of the one that Trails 2000 wants freeriders to help them build. It remains unclear as to why or even if the project proposed by the Durango freeriders remained unauthorized…

If you have something to say about the way that you think Durango’s Horse Gulch open space should be managed, you should know that the City is accepting comments on the Horse Gulch Open Space Management Plan up until January 31, 2013. Please read the City’s press release below that was posted on their website today: The City of Durango is seeking comments from the public on the Horse Gulch Open Space Management Plan. The draft Management Plan provides a framework for the sound stewardship…

The Log Chutes Downhill Mountain Bike Trail Project Environmental Assessment process is on hold until the snow melts. Jed Botsford, the Recreation Staff Officer for the Columbine Ranger District on the San Juan National Forest recently answered the question as to when the Forest Service will be done with the Environmental Assessment for the Log Chutes Downhill Mountain Bike Trail Project. The Log Chutes Downhill Mountain Bike Project was first pitched to the Forest Service in 2010 as a proposal to legally sanction the first downhill/freeride…

Dear reader, We need your help. The Vice President of the United States is trying to undermine our new marijuana law in Colorado and he needs to know the American people want him to stop immediately. Click here to sign a petition on the White House website telling the Vice President to respect the voters of Colorado. We have less than a week to reach the 25,000 signatures needed to force them to respond! As I informed you a few weeks ago, the Obama administration is currently considering…

A new downhill/freeride-bike oriented “flow” trail at Purgatory would be the first permanent and legal one of its kind to be constructed at the mountain, with the Resort’s Executive Team eyeing Trails 2000 to do both the planning and construction of it. Durango Mountain Resort’s new enthusiasm comes while knowing that the U.S. Forest Service would need to environmentally assess and approve of all new proposals for trails or terrain parks on National Forest property where most of the Resort’s ski runs and lifts currently…