Stewards of the Land - The Durango Herald

Stewardship crews strive to improve your public lands experience

San Juan Mountains Association’s seasonal stewards have reached the final third of their summer stint. While I hear anecdotal updates from them throughout the season, it’s the time of year ...

DATE: Aug 12, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Volunteers make a difference in Chicago Basin

Those of us who cherish the San Juan Mountains are familiar with the term “loved to death.” We’ve seen photos and stories of beautiful places around the world being carelessly degraded by th...

DATE: Jul 8, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Volunteers vital in effort to protect public lands

Last weekend, I hiked from spring back to winter. While the corn lilies and monument plants were pushing their leaves upward at the trailhead, I was soon in snow several feet deep. I follow...

DATE: Jun 10, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Join the effort to make a positive impact on public lands

Carl Sagan once mused, “who are we, if not measured by our impact on others,” and as members of a thriving community and a dynamic ecosystem, we all have impacts on our surroundings and soci...

DATE: May 12, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Nature Center reopens to public this month

The spring wind rushes across a plateau of rabbitbrush and Gambel oak as the gently flowing Florida River chatters over shallow rocks below. To the north, the monumental, snowy 14,090-foot p...

DATE: Apr 8, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Stewardship of San Juans a priority through the seasons

It is another radiant, bluebird day in the San Juan Mountains, and 30 people are strapping on snowshoes in preparation for San Juan Mountains Association’s third interpretive ski and snowsho...

DATE: Mar 11, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

SJMA’s programs educate young people in the outdoors

A simple joy of life in Durango is to watch the sun pop up above Raider Ridge and douse the valley in golden light each morning. Lately, its emergence has been trending distinctly northward ...

DATE: Feb 11, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

San Juan Mountains a laboratory for the study of avalanches

San Juan Mountains Association works in cooperation with federal public lands partners to ensure visitors to the mountains enjoy the region’s grand views, beautiful hiking trails, world-clas...

DATE: Jan 7, 2022 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Celebrate Christmas and support San Juan Mountains Association by buying a tree

Here at San Juan Mountains Association, we have experienced a bustling, exciting and fulfilling summer and fall. Whether it be our educators running science-based summer camps for youths, o...

DATE: Nov 15, 2021 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Supporting wilderness and the immense value it provides

In his wildly popular 1968 book, Desert Solitaire, Ed Abbey claimed that “we need wilderness whether or not we ever set foot in it. We need a refuge even though we may never need to go there...

DATE: Oct 7, 2021 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Students help with conservation work at Chicken Creek

In the foothills north of Mancos set against the backdrop of the prominent La Plata Mountains, you can find a web of trails meandering through ponderosa pines as far as the eye can see. Thi...

DATE: Sep 10, 2021 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

Wilderness Crew protects a majestic, powerful landscape

For the last two months, my office has been in the burn zones, alpine vistas, cow-filled meadows and log-strewn trails of the Weminuche Wilderness. As a member of the San Juan Mountains Asso...

DATE: Aug 11, 2021 | CATEGORY: Stewards of the Land

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Photos: Fashion at its bestSnowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts

Snowdown Fashion Do’s and Don’ts

Photos: Snowdown on SaturdaySnowdown’s Canine Fashion Show and Outlaw Josie Pete’s Golf

Snowdown’s Canine Fashion Show and Outlaw Josie Pete’s Golf

Photos: Snowdown Rock-em-Sock-em Snowbots pillow fights

Snowdown Light Parade can boast another successful yearLights flashed, fire trucks wailed and a foam cannon spewed suds

Bright lights, screaming fire trucks and children bundled up so thoroughly it seemed like an army of Michelin men had taken over downtown Durango. Yep. It’s the much anticipated Snowdown light parade, this year distinguished by a crowd of onlookers peppered with scrabble tiles, Clue characters and playing cards.

Locals flocked to Main Avenue on Friday to get a look (and maybe a Smartie or two) at the floats parading through town on various, creatively decorated vehicles. There were some obvious standouts at this year’s board game-themed parade. After a fire truck’s opening sirens came the Purgatory car, toting a brightly lit ski bum moonlighting as a DJ, likely giving the women of Durango some unpleasant déjà vu. Best dressed had to go to the Colorado Department of Transportation’s bulldozer, wearing the most believable Hungry Hungry Hippos costume seen yet. Biggest crowd pleaser? The dancers boogieing to Chappell Roan’s “HOT TO GO!” while the crowd sang and wiggled along. But what got the biggest rise out of the onlookers was the white plumes of motorcycle exhaust, courtesy of the Harley-Davidson club. The smell of burning octane was a convincing enough reason for people to briefly unclutch the rails and step away from their coveted positions at the front of the fence. Last but not least, another machine spewing its interior into the crowd: a foam cannon, the first one to make an appearance in the history of Snowdown. Much better received than exhaust, it extracted gleeful screams from kids and adults alike. jbowman@durangoherald.com