By Bill Sullivan
Green Right Now
Anyone who has ever traveled to a big-time ski resort knows that conquering the mountain is a daunting task – and an expensive one, too.
For the 2009-10season, a one-day lift ticket at Vail (Colorado) is $97 for an adult. Over at Aspen/Snowmass, a two-day advance purchase pass will set you back $191.
Of course, that’s just the beginning. If you’re a flatlander or a relative novice, you’ll probably have to rent equipment. (Plan on $40 a day and up.) If you’ve never skied at all, you’ll want to get a few pointers before climbing onto that lift: At Vail, a one day beginner lesson at Golden Peak Ski and Snowboard School is $165.
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A Colorado vacation shows why environmentalism matters
By John DeFore
Green Right Now
The old-fashioned American road trip — packing the kids up and driving from one motor lodge to the next — may seem less than 100% wholesome these days, what with eco-conscious drivers becoming as sensitive to the amount of CO2 they’re generating as they are to cries of “are we there yet?” from the back seat.
But getting out into the natural world remains one of the best ways to introduce children — and city-dwelling adults, for that matter — to the environment we all want to preserve. And a well planned road trip can provide vacationers with an array of views and experiences that’s stunning enough to make a phrase like “ecosystem diversity” suddenly sound like a tangible good worth fighting for instead of a dry academic concern.
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Tags: · Black Canyon of Gunnison, Climate Change, Climate Change in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, Colorado State Parks, eco-travel, Estes Park, Garden of the Gods, Glenwood Canyon, Glenwood Springs, Gunnison, Mesa Verde, mild winters, pine beetle, Rocky Mountain National Park, Rocky Mountains, Trail Ridge Road
Rocky Mountain Wolves Debate Back In The Crosshairs
By Barbara Kessler
The story of the Rocky Mountain gray wolves is an inspiring fairy tale, in reverse, that showcases nature’s ability to sustain its own given a little time, the right habitat and a helping hand from conservation groups.
The tale begins like this. Once there was a wild and foreboding territory called the American West. The land stretched far and the big bad (some would say awesome and beautiful) wolves were plentiful, numbering in the tens of thousands. But the pioneering spirit was turning the wild landscape into ranches and towns, railroads and highways. The buffalo and the elk were in retreat. And then, it was the wolves’ turn. Deprived of their natural prey, they turned to sheep and cattle and confronted a fierce foe, an enemy with guns.
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Tags: · Canada, Rocky Mountains, Wildlife, Wolves
