Tourist season must be over

The resident bighorn sheep herd on Pikes Peak has moved around to the east cirque to graze the area usually crowded with Barr Trail hikers. I was up on Pikes Peak Tuesday and ran into a Division of Wildlife biologist who was tracking the herd (which has a few radio collared animals.) He said the sheep follow a fairly predictable pattern. They have their lambs in Bottomless Pit and French Creek in spring, work their way over the the remote, grassy South Slope watershed in Summer, then hang out in the eastern cirque in the cold months.

This just in...

Thanks to a series of October snowstorms that have delivered more than 2 feet of snow mid-mountain as well as cold temperatures for snowmaking, Keystone Resort announced it’ll open Friday, Nov. 2, a week earlier than its initially scheduled opening date of Nov. 9. We just got the above photo from Keystone. Apparently, super girl got to ride the slopes early. Some people are sooooooo lucky.

Welcome to winter

Just got a call from a friend who was driving over Loveland Pass because I-70 was closed both ways due to accidents.

How do you spell, or even pronounce "Sawatch"?

There are different spellings for the Sawatch Mountain Range and Saguache, the town. What gives? And how do you pronounce it? I found this cool explanation by author Virginia Simmons:

The name of the Sawatch Range itself derives from a Ute word, saguguachipa, meaning "blue earth." In the Utes' cosmology the mountains and valleys where they lived in Colorado were part of the Blue Earth, or Middle Earth, in contrast to the Lower Earth of deep canyons and the Upper Earth of peak tops. Among their favorite places in Middle Earth was the Upper Arkansas region, where they frequently camped.

The first recorded use of the phrase "Sahwatch Range" came from the report of Capt. John Gunnison's expedition in the 1850s. It was written by Lieutenant E. G. Beckwith, who was actually referring to the mountains on the west side of the San Luis Valley. But the name was later applied instead to the northern chain with its glorious fourteeners.

So, from a Ute point of view, either way you spell it, you're spelling it wrong.

Floating back in time

I ran into Gazette photographer Todd Spoth at the coffin races in Manitou on Saturday. It reminded me that within weeks of joining the paper we nearly killed him. He'd never been whitewater rafting before and we sent him with Dave to raft the Gore.

I meant to ask him to send us a note about his brush with death. Then he told me he's blogging about his time in Colorado. Here's a link to his blog. Scroll back a few pages to see his tale from Gore (Aug. 24).

I can't wait to send him to Silverton this winter!

Biggest ski show on earth moving to Denver

SnowSports Industries America (SIA) today announced it is moving the annual SIA SnowSports Trade Show from Las Vegas, Nevada to Denver 2010.

The show has been in Vegas for 35 years, but needed a bigger space ( and,let's face it, a better match.) For Colorado, it means a serious cash influx and some great press.

“The SIA board considered many locations for relocating the show and Denver met the needs of our Association
and the snowsports industry perfectly – we’re looking forward to the move in 2010,” commented Mike Carey,
chairman of the SIA board. “We are looking forward to living our snow passion in Denver.”

Troublemaking Aspen bear shot

Division of Wildlife officers shot and killed a bear that struck an Aspen woman after it entered her condo 2 weeks ago.

The bear was located using a GPS tracking collar, placed on the bear earlier this year as part of a research project examining urban black bear behavior.

The bear opened a sliding glass door at the woman's house. It clawed her in the face after she surprised the bear in her home.

Java the Hut sold

Possibly the quirkiest shop in Woodland park has been sold to new owners and will eventually become a restaurant specializing in Southern food, according to a story in today's Gazette. Besides having a funny name, Java the Hut was the only place I've ever been that was equal parts coffee shop and outdoor gear store. It was a nice place to leaf through a guidebook over a latte, and you couldn't beat the view.
Gear and Coffee both seem like tough businesses -- lots of giant corporate competition. The same fate fell on Woodland Park's other funny-sounding gear store, Hoochie Mamma Mountaineering. It recently moved to Canon City.

Bamboo bike frames

Sustainable materials, sure, but is it a sustainable frame? I see splinters in the future.
Here's a cool story about up and coming bamboo bike designs.

A raccoon of higher learning

When I first saw the police officer outside Manitou schools' SILC (Shared Integrated Learning Center) building, I thought perhaps it had been hit by vandals again.

Apparently the draw was nothing more than a curious raccoon that had wandered up the steps and along a ledge to camp out in the sunshine. You wouldn't think concrete would be too comfortable, but you can't beat the view.

By the time a few hundred kids and teachers had tromped up and down the stairs underneath its sleeping perch, the raccoon was ticked.

MSHS freshman Chris Hollingsworth described the critter as "really cranky."

Animal control was hanging out, waiting and watching.

Bear of the week

A photo snapped by Gazette writer Andy Wineke

Taken on St. Elmo Ave., just off Cheyenne Blvd.
" It was a cute little thing," he said. "Even if it's destined to become a bear pancake."

Why aren't these guys hibernating yet.

There's no joy in snowville

Well... unless you're in the ski business. There's the often told story that bookings at resorts surge when it snows during a Broncos game. Is the same true as the nation watches the Rockies humiliated by the Boston Red Sox?
Resorts hope so. They have decent snow and have done everything to play up ski footage during the game.
Here's a story on it from the Vail Daily.

Yikes, Telluride opens sick hike-to terrain

On the heels of Telluride’s opening of Black Iron Bowl to pubic access, the resort has gained approval for skiing and riding Palmyra Peak this winter. Located east of Black Iron Bowl and Prospect Bowl, this unbelievable hike-to terrain includes well over 200 acres and almost 2,000 vertical feet on the north face of 13,320 foot Palmyra Peak.
Telluride employees say it's some of the most spectacular in-bounds terrain in the country.

This opening has been made possible due to the addition of a new avalauncher this fall.

Bear Creek park

Do you hike or walk your dog at Bear Creek Regional Park? Do you wish the new mountain bike trails would be doubled in length? Or maybe you want specific trails to ride your horse.

Whatever your needs and desires, take action. El Paso County parks folks are updating the park's Master Plan. Go to the park Web site, take the survey, and let those who will make decisions about park use know what you'd like to see.

Follow up by making your voice heard at park planning meetings.

Start your involvement here: http://www.peaksurveys.com/ncprojects/bearcreek_cont/bearcreek_1.htm

Need a hand? OK, bad joke.

Surfing through www.summitpost.org, I found a cool feature on Blue John Canyon, a little-visited slot in Utah that became big news when Aron Ralston was trapped there for five days before cutting off his hand. (The hand was later removed by the BLM to discourage souvenir hunters.) Anyway, some summitposters revisited the area and clicked some really cool pics of the canyon. Check it out. Makes me want to go.

Out There's trail guide keeps getting better

Out There unveiled its free online trail guide two weeks ago. Since then, I've added over 20 trails, including several trails no one else has! Want to ski Pikes Peak? It's in there. Want to tube in Pueblo? It's in there. Want to ride Jones Downhill. That's there too. We now have 89 local trails. You get maps, photos, and description if a printer-friendly format you can take on the trail. Check it out.

And tell your friends. It's free!

What says "bike commuter" more than Hummer?

There's a funny post on the bicycling blog, Pinch Flat News, about extending brand name to other products. Which can mean a lot of things. With bikes it usually means companies like Ducati and Jeep slap their name on fairly cheesy mountain bike frames. The guys at Pinch Flat found the one they hate the most. It's pictured above.

Brrrr - he's cold

Ha! Sharing the laugh I got from this photo from Steamboat Springs on Colorado Ski Country's site. Jst a reminder our leafy trees and green grass won't last forever. Opening day at Copper is a week from Friday - with skiing and music and giveaways. Let the Wild Rumpus Start!

OK, it's playing, so let's talk about it

Two people at the gym yesterday stopped to ask if I'd seen "Into the Wild." I read the book (10 years ago) and enjoyed it. But to be honest, I don't have any interest in seeing it, though I can't quite say why.
Either way, it's playing now at Kimball's Twin Peak. Everyone I've talked to who's seen it, liked it. That's the general consensus of other reviews, too. So, who else has seen it? Is it any good?

Mountain passes start to close

Trail Ridge Road, which crosses a 12,183-foot pass in Rocky Mountain National Park closed for the season Sunday. Mount Evans is closed too. That leaves just a few seasonal roads still open.

12,095-foot Independence Pass is still open after the weekend snow. It is scheduled to stay open until Nov. 7 — the established annual closure date for the pass — but oftentimes, they wind up locking the gates early. Last year it closed on
Last year, CDOT closed the pass after a storm Oct. 20. The pass usually reopens by late May.

That pretty much just leaves Cottonwood Pass between Buena Vista and Crested Butte (sorta). It usually closes right about now and opens in late May.