Dear Action Line: With the new Animas River Trail extension to Oxbow Park, can I access the river south or east of the 36th and Silverton streets intersection? There are “No River Access” signs posted for the termination of 36th and North Silverton streets, but nothing for the south side of the intersection. – Confused in Durango
Dear Confused: There is no public access to the Animas River near the intersection of 36th Street and Silverton Street; not from the north, south, east or west sides.
It’s an unusual situation because city maps show 36th Street technically extends all the way east to the river, which means there is a public right of way to the river. However, there is no public access to the river at 36th Street, said Cathy Metz, director of the city’s Parks and Recreation Department.
Basically, you could walk east on 36th Street to the river, gawk, and then head back; not much fun, particularly when there is this awesome new trail at 36th Street that takes you straight to Oxbow. Then you can plop down on the beach with your things and play with the little frogs at the water’s edge. At least the one that was there last weekend.
It’s all very confusing, but to help you remember which direction to go, just think of it as a game of make-believe: The land between the new trail and the river is filled with monsters that gobble up wayward river-goers. Take the new path to Oxbow instead.
Dear Action Line: Folks seem to have their underwear in a bunch about the chief sign, offensive names, etc. How about our neighbor to the west, Cortez? Named after a guy who subjugated the Native Americans, brought diseases, complete lack of compassion. Contrast to the county name, Montezuma, now that was a famous leader. We could take a lesson from our neighbor to the south, Aztec or Ignacio, and change to something more appropriate. – Ken, a do-gooder from north of Bayfield
Dear Ken: You and I should start a line of underwear that’s guaranteed to not bunch no matter how much cheek-clenching is exerted. We could make a killing.
When talking about names, however, we can’t ignore Bayfield. The name derives from the flip of a coin between the Bay and Schiller families, so your town obviously promotes wanton gambling. And “Durango” originates from the Basque word “Urango,” which means “well-watered place,” so this obviously just promotes drunken lawlessness.
Bayfield and Durango should just start over, pick new names, and take a cue from towns like Ding Dong, Texas; Hot Coffee, Mississippi; Booger Hole, West Virginia; or Monkey’s Eyebrow, Kentucky.
A starting point for Bayfield’s new name could be the license plate I saw on a truck heading east the other day on the highway near Home Depot: “Greatfld” (or something close to that).
Send your suggestions to actionline@durangoherald.com on renaming our respective hamlets. Winner gets naming rights to Cortez.
Dear Action Line: What the (****)? – (***** ********)
Dear (***** ********). Indeed. What the (****).
Dear Action Line: Why doesn’t the city offer a composting service? My moldy lemons and smelly banana peels can save the planet. – Cureall composter
Dear Cureall: The city of Durango decided to not launch a composting service because it’s expensive and takes up a lot of space, said Imogen Ainsworth, sustainability coordinator with the city.
“Since 2016, however, community demand for a convenient and responsible way to get rid of stinky leftovers has been met by local company Table to Farm Compost,” she said. Table to Farm operates under a special permit from the city to collect food scraps from residents and businesses.
Monique DiGiorgio, managing member of Table to Farm Compost, said her company is seeing a slight increase in demand.
“More people are cooking at home and seeing the value of recycling their food scraps, not throwing them in the trash and creating methane instead of soil,” she said.
Email questions and suggestions to actionline@durangoherald.com or mail them to Action Line, The Durango Herald, 1275 Main Ave., Durango, CO 81301. (Insert stock joke here about composting this column, add rim shot, canned laughter.)
