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Old School

A classic powder day from the archives: It’s what happened when three ski bums suspended an awesome quest (100 days for a $135 season pass) briefly picked up the 8-mm to capture the action during just two runs on Jan. 5, 1974.

Lowell (Rock) Nelson, Mark (Stein Erikson) Johnson and Wes (The Bird) Lindahl carve major moves while sporting stylish ski pants and a look today’s bums can only copy. “Shambala” from Three Dog Night is a servant to the feel of that great day.

Among Obama’s bright spots were a declaration under the Clean Air Act that greenhouse gases endanger public health and welfare, the designation of 120 million acres of protected “critical habitat” for polar bears and the reinstatement of protection for millions of acres of roadless lands. Negatives include a continuation of damaging Bush-era policies on polar bears and offshore oil drilling, stripping of federal protection for and killing of endangered wolves, and his failure to lead either Congress or other nations toward strong global warming policies.

“Obama’s record on endangered species is particularly bad, and entirely predictable, given his appointment of Ken Salazar as Secretary of the Interior,” said Suckling. Obama has protected just eight species under the Endangered Species Act in the conterminous United States, while relegating 254 — including the wolverine — to the unprotected “candidate” list. His protection rate is slightly better than that of George W. Bush and much worse than those of Bill Clinton and George Bush Sr.

Skiing and Snowboarding

A while back, we posted about European resorts getting on board to install giant magnets on lifts, which would only work if users wore vests hiding chunks of metal so that people would stick to the lifts and not fall off. Here’s an example of what happens when resorts do nothing and snowboarders/skiers get a little too frisky.

Dangerous or funny?

Wildlife Management

Law enforcement officials from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced this week the Yellowstone-area gray wolf found dead in Colorado in 2009 was illegally poisoned.

The radio-collared female gray wolf was found near Rio Blanco County Road 60 on April 6, 2009, after researchers received the mortality signal from her GPS tracking collar. Toxicology tests performed at the National Fish and Wildlife Forensic Laboratory showed the 2-year-old gray wolf, which had been captured and collared as part of a Montana research project, died from ingesting a banned poison known as Compound 1080. It is suspected the wolf ingested the poison near the site where she was found.

With the investigation more than a year and a half old, investigators are now asking the public for information about the case. “When used improperly, Compound 1080 is an indiscriminate killer of wildlife, and we are asking the public to help us identify who used this banned poison in Colorado,” said Steve Oberholtzer, Special Agent in Charge for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Mountain-Prairie Region.

Wildlife Management

Predation by wolves and grizzly bears is cited as the major reason for the decline in elk numbers. Wolves in northern Yellowstone prey primarily on elk. Also, predation on newborn elk calves by grizzly bears may limit the elk population’s ability to recover from these losses.

Drought conditions experienced during the early 2000s appear to have impacted the nutrition and abundance of forage, and may have lowered reproduction rates in some elk.

The number of permits issued for the antlerless Gardiner Late Elk Hunt declined from 1,102 in 2005 to just 100 permits during the 2006-2010 seasons. The late season hunt was eliminated altogether for 2011.

Hunting

A hunter near Craig, Colo., who hunted a 703-pound black bear to his den and killed it there prompted a revision in wildlife rules in the state.

The Colorado Wildlife Commission has directed the Division of Wildlife to draft a regulation that would prohibit the hunting of bears in their dens.

Commissioners, appointed by the governor to help set wildlife policy for Colorado, were asked to consider adopting a regulation following an incident in the fall in which a hunter near Craig said he tracked a large black bear to a cave, entered the cave and killed the bear. Colorado hunting regulations currently do not prohibit hunting a bear in a den.

Regulations manager Brett Ackerman told the Commission Wednesday that den-hunting is not common among bear hunters. The recent kill, which happened in November and was subject of a lengthy feature article in the Craig Daily Press, provoked significant negative public feedback.

Ackerman said numerous other states have banned den-hunting on the grounds that it does not meet public expectations of fair chase.

Canyoneering

If you didn’t cross the line at FreezeFest IX, you weren’t there…

Maybe it was because of the crazy weather and lack of canyons in condition, but things just plain got ugly for this year’s version of the fest. For two days, there was rain, as temps stayed just above freezing. The last 4, it cleared up, but was as cold as anyone can seem to remember.

But, a tradition is only a tradition when it’s kept, so a crew of 13 fools set off to descend the black hole on New Year’s day. Temperatures at the parking lot were 16, only climbing to 23 by the afternoon. Definitely the coldest in the 9 year history of the New Year’s Black Hole.

Good times! 

Skiing and Snowboarding Gear

In the Rocky Mountain States, board demos are happening at Bogus Basin and Brundage in Idaho; at Winter Park in Colorado; at Park City and Snowbasin in Utah; and at Jackson Hole in Wyoming.

For a full schedule, pick your state from a list on this page. Each demo day in the Rocky states features 2011 boards from either Burton or Bataleon. 

ESA News

Extinction and danger to animals that rely on the existence of Glaciers in Glacier National Park could start with a tiny and rare insect, the western glacier stonefly, which is known to live only in five small streams west of the Continental Divide in the park.

Today, the Center for Biological Diversity and the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation filed a petition with the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service to give Endangered Species Act protection to the aquatic insect facing extinction.

National Parks

Ever wonder how plants and animals survive thechallenges of Glacier National Park’s winter season? Beginning Saturday, Jan. 8, the public is invited to join free, two-hour, ranger-led snowshoe excursions that focus on the wild residents’ habits during the park’s coldest and harshest months. These guided winter outings are suitable for all ages and abilities.

Supported by a grant from the Glacier National Park Fund, these popular weekend programs are offered twice daily each Saturday and Sunday through March 20 (weather and snow conditions permitting). Excursions begin at 10:30 a.m. and at 1:30 p.m. each weekend day. In the event of severe weather or insufficient snow, individuals should call Apgar Visitor Center
at 406-888-7939 between 9 a.m. and 4:30 to confirm that day’s outings.

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