Thousands of people per year drive to Chimayo through the brown desert between the Nambe Creek Valley and the Santa Cruz River Valley. Tourists love this stretch for its strange …
Tag: Public lands
The Forest Advocate, or Forest Fantasy
Most Santa Fe residents recently got a mailing from a group called “The Forest Advocate” which discusses forest management around Santa Fe. While I appreciate the spirit of the publication, …
Lightning Fire, Wild and Free
In mid-June lightning struck a remote slope in the Pecos Wilderness east of Santa Fe. The bolt started a fire that ignited dry fuels in a spruce-fir forest and quickly …
The Future and the Past of the South San Juan Wilderness
The main mass of the San Juan Mountains dominates Southwest Colorado with its fourteen-thousand-foot peaks and steep gorges. These mountains feed their snowmelt into the Colorado River basin, a vast …
When Will Wolves Roam Northern New Mexico?
Wolves will soon be ranging into northern New Mexico because of pending wolf reintroduction in Colorado. Wolves may move on their own into the Pecos and other New Mexico wilderness areas.
Planning the Valles Caldera National Preserve
The Valles Caldera in northern New Mexico is a vast collapsed volcano now coated with forests and grasslands. People have been coming to the Caldera seasonally for centuries, making paths …
Ranching is Driving the West’s Water Crisis
At some point, Americans need to come to grips with the fact that the cattle ranching industry is using far too much water in the American West. Ranching damages almost …
New Gila Wild and Scenic Bill an Empty Gesture
What do you imagine when you think of a wild and scenic river? Do you think of a deep clear stream running among thick grasses with flowers bobbing, deer grazing …
Capitol Attack Threatens Our Public Lands
The events of January 6 in Washington pose a direct threat to our public lands and the survival of our forests, deserts, parks, wildlife, clean air and water. Those of …
Will Ponderosa Pine Forests Disappear?
Two forest fires ravaged the Jemez Mountains near Los Alamos, New Mexico in the last 20 years. These fires are famous among land managers, scientists, politicians, and conservationists because they …
