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Jonathan P. Thompson

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Western lands and communities — in context.

Author: Jonathan P. Thompson

Journalist, editor and writer focusing on the Western United States and its landscapes, communities, and cultures. Creator of Land Desk. Author of "River of Lost Souls: The Science, Politics, and Greed Behind the Gold King Mine Disaster" (Torrey House Press 2018), "Behind the Slickrock Curtain" (Lost Souls Press 2020), and the forthcoming "Sagebrush Empire: A journey into the heart of the public land wars" (Torrey House 2021).

The Land Desk: A public lands newsletter

With the dawning of a new year comes a new source of news, insight, and commentary: the Land Desk. It … More

Chaco, Climate change, environment, journalism, Land Desk, public lands

Riding out the pandemic with the strays of Sofia

I’m not even a dog person, I thought, as I stared into the murk on a cold, late-autumn night. But … More

Auslander, Bulgaria, EconomicExile, RescuePet, Sofia, StrayDogs

The Silverton Depot bombing, the 416 Fire, and the symbolism of the Train

On a pleasant, late summer’s day in Silverton, Colorado, San Juan County Sheriff Virgil Mason and local business owner Otto … More

416Fire, Bombing, durango, Railroad, Silverton, symbolism, tourism, wildfire

Behind the Slickrock Curtain is here!

In the not so distant future, as the planet burns, the nation reels from the effects of a pandemic, Truth … More

bookbirthday, Disinformation, Fiction, journalism, novel, PublicLands, Trump, Utah

“Power Madness” in America, the Big Buildup of coal, and a Senate hearing from five decades ago

Five decades ago, the US Senate Committee on Interior and Insular Affairs held a remarkable hearing. It was notable because … More

coal, farmington, fossilfuels, Pollution

Charting COVID’s effect on the energy sector

Nine months ago, as the coronavirus-related lockdowns and slowdowns were reaching their peak, we made some predictions (for High Country … More

COVID-19, economy, Energy

May 2020 SW Colorado Snowpack update

Snowpack levels in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado typically peak in April or early May, before starting a … More

The Blackest Week: When the Spanish Influenza brought death to Silverton

James Edward Cole was thirty-six years old when he died. You might say he was in the prime of his … More

ColoradoHistory, COVID-19, Gunnison, influenza, pandemic, Silverton, SpanishFlu

Images from the Extreme Social Distance

I went back to the Home-country — i.e. the Four Corners — in February and March, and headed out to … More

art, colorado, FourCornersCountry, Photography, spring, Utah

Meditation on trans-Atlantic travel in the time of COVID-19

I flew internationally yesterday. I got into a tube with a bunch of other people against all of my self-preservation … More

Bulgaria, coronavirus, COVID-19, Expat, Globalization, pandemic, travel

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Top Posts & Pages

  • Land Desk A thrice-weekly digital newsletter cover…
    Land Desk A thrice-weekly digital newsletter cover…
  • About
    About
  • March 1, 2020, San Juan Snowpack update
    March 1, 2020, San Juan Snowpack update
  • May 2020 SW Colorado Snowpack update
    May 2020 SW Colorado Snowpack update
  • The Blackest Week: When the Spanish Influenza brought death to Silverton
    The Blackest Week: When the Spanish Influenza brought death to Silverton
  • Farmington flatline: The lower Animas River is dry
    Farmington flatline: The lower Animas River is dry
  • The War for the Roads
    The War for the Roads
  • Behind the Slickrock Curtain
    Behind the Slickrock Curtain
  • Lost Souls Press Lives!
    Lost Souls Press Lives!
  • Behind the Slickrock Curtain
    Behind the Slickrock Curtain

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