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

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

“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

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

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

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

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

March 1, 2020, San Juan Snowpack update

Average to middling. That describes the San Juan Mountain snowpack as of March 1 — at least at the higher … More

What the Bears Ears management plan does — and doesn’t do

Public lands lovers have been up in arms since the Trump administration issued the final management plans for what’s left … More