A local rally against Monsanto will be held in solidarity with many others worldwide on Saturday May 25 by Buckley Park in Durango. The protest will also be a platform for: Promoting the labeling of genetically modified organisms Supporting local farmers Protecting our food supply Spreading awareness about the harmful effects of genetically modified foods Promoting organic food production/consumption solutions Exposing the cronyism of former Monsanto officials now working for the FDA Bringing accountability to those responsible for the corruption People will be protesting Monsanto…

Next time you are looking for a quick and easy shuttle for getting in some technical downhill close to Durango, consider riding Haflin Creek. Even better, bring a chainsaw with you and help cut the four logs that are obstructing the flow of traffic on the trail. To get there, drive up Florida Road. Take a left onto County Road 249 soon after passing the fire station. Drive up a few miles, and turn up Forest Service Road 071 until you reach the parking lot…

The momentum of the conceptual Chapman Hill Bike Park project was curtailed this week when a grant request to fund its creation was rejected by Great Outdoors Colorado. At the City’s Natural Lands Board meeting on Monday, the topic did not progress beyond discussing the possibility of resubmitting an application for a grant. “We were very close,” said Hall “What they encouraged us to do when they saw feedback is try again next time. And essentially what happened is that the funding was less in…

DENVER – The Colorado state legislature passed the first bills in history Wednesday to establish a regulated marijuana market for adults. Representatives of the Amendment 64 campaign will discuss the landmark achievement and next steps at a news conference Thursday at 10 a.m. in the Creswell Mansion Office Building (1244 Grant St., Denver). “The adoption of these bills is a truly historic milestone and brings Colorado one step closer to establishing the world’s first legal, regulated, and taxed marijuana market for adults,” said Mason Tvert, director of communications for the Marijuana Policy…

Durango Legalization Activists, On May 7, the City Council will be meeting to discuss an extension of the moratorium on new marijuana businesses until December 31, 2013. It’s important that our voices are heard, this moratorium is ended, and that the City implements Amendment 64! Here’s what you can do: 1) Contact your city council members by sharing this link on your  website, Facebook, email lists, or other social media. 2) Try and get a one on one  meet with your local city council members. You can call…

A slue of proposals to adopt pre-existing trails on Durango-owned open-space lands for doing maintenance and building freeride features on them was presented to the City and Trails 2000 last week by this blogger and friend Ben Bain. We asked for permission to adopt Star Wars in Overend Mountain Park, Medicine Trail off of Raiders Ridge or Down and Out off of Raiders Ridge. This blogger requested permission to build jumps on Raiders Ridge. All of our requests for permission to work on these projects,…

      We are joining the Amendment 64 campaign, which was financially supported by MPP, in sending this serious message.We need you to take action immediately. As you all know, we achieved an amazing victory last November, when 55 percent of Coloradans voted in favor of Amendment 64, making marijuana legal for adults in the state. Now, this entire victory could be taken away from us. There are members of the state legislature poised to make Amendment 64′s fate dependent upon a vote on…

You can drive up the road going by the Colorado trail starting next Wednesday.

If you’re craving to work on a freeride trail project under some alternative leadership, while working through Trails 2000, this could be your chance to speak up. This blogger and friend Ben Bain are going to meet with Durango’s Director of Parks and Recreation Cathy Metz, Trails 2000′s Executive Director Mary Monroe and anyone else who’s interested to talk about doing maintenance and building features out of preexisting materials (rocks and dirt) on Star Wars in Test Tracks (Overend Mountain Park). We will also talk…

A trash pickup work party in Horse Gulch on Sunday produced several hundred pounds of trash, which was left in a big heap next to the trail head sign. The City kindly provided us trash bags. Around six people helped pick up the trash from the drainage gully of Horse Gulch, as well as from several homeless camps. A promise made by Durango’s Director of Parks and Recreation, Cathy Metz and Durango’s Parks and Cemetery Manager Ron Moore to provide a dumpster for the event,…

This blogger and sidekick girlfriend are inviting people to join us for a trash clean up work party in Horse Gulch on Sunday at 2:00 p.m. Over the past couple of weeks, we’ve stumbled across a lot of trash left behind by vagrants in Horse Gulch, mainly off of Raiders Ridge. Those lingering pockets of trash were an inspiration for action. On April 7 (this coming Sunday), we’ll meet up at Horse Gulch trail head to brief other volunteers with maps, photographs, water and some…

Here’s a press release that was written by Shannon Borders, of the BLM in Montrose, who for whatever reason, writes press releases for our BLM land over 105 miles away from her office. This press release was obtained second hand from Ann Bond of the USDA Forest Service in Durango. Shannon Borders did not return this blogger’s email or phone call, nor my request for a copy of this press release. FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Sent: Thursday, March 28, 2013 2:16 PM Contact:  Shannon Borders, 970-240-5399 Grandview Ridge,…

Bringing this trash left behind by homeless people to where the public can see it–with photography or literally carrying it out of the woods– is the best way to raise awareness to the hoards of it that exists on City-owned open space property in Horse Gulch. Most of the trash on City-owned open space land in Horse Gulch is at the base of Raiders Ridge, in the woods away from any trail frequented by mountain bikers, hikers or runners. Also in the Gulch at the…

The large garage door and brew tanks first caught my attention at one of Durango’s newest restaurants, Brew Pub & Kitchen. This conveniently located gastropub on College, half a block from Main, first hit the scene about 2 weeks ago on March 7th, 2013. It’s unique menu and in-house craft beer selection are already gaining attention from locals and tourists alike. Owner and head brewer, Erik Maxson has been a huge part of the Durango brewing scene, working for Carver Brewing for 16 years, he…

Check out these shots of Trails 2000′s proposed freeride trail coming off of Raider Ridge. Much of it is on slick rock, with a trashed homeless camp at the bottom. It’s flagged in pink and black stripes and starts at the cement pad on Raider Ridge.    

If you’re wondering why Durango Mountain Resort has NOT developed a seasonal mountain bike park and culture as many other ski resorts around the nation have done, you’re not alone. This blogger has explored the trails and infrastructure at DMR, and what obstacles they face in developing a bike park. Given the momentum and exponentially growing popularity of progressive freeride trails nationwide, this blogger has also raised skepticism towards DMR’s plan to have only one ‘flow’ trail built at Purg. This despite a growing regional…

Mariana’s Authentic Cuisine is a quick stop for some fresh authentic Asian cuisine with no msg. If you enjoy stir fried foods without the hype and seating of a traditional restaurant, I’d recommend you try this place. It’s right next to 6th Street Liquor in the big yellow trailer. Check out the menu for Mariana’s Authentic Cuisine here: Mariana’s Authentic Cuisine menu. Marianah Hidayat runs the place, and she takes call in orders at (970) 426-8912. It’s open every day except Tuesdays and Sundays  from 11:00…