Peter Winn Modern whitewater kayaking began in the 1950s and has changed significantly since then. There were very few women kayakers at the time and now they're on the Board of Governors of the International Whitewater Hall of Fame. Kayak racing grew from local competitions into an Olympic sport in 1972 and now there is … Continue reading Whitewater Kayaking: Pushing the Limit
Category: Columns
Paw Prints: June 2022
https://youtu.be/fqdWNvcz8cs Video taken by Dudley Beck. Four fosters have helped BARC get through another month. Steve and Janna Simpson have fostered a nursing mom dog and 6 puppies for the entire month and 4 four week old puppies that were dropped off in Monument Valley June 23rd. Heather Jemmott, from Red Mesa, has fostered 3 … Continue reading Paw Prints: June 2022
Desert Notes: Desert Dry
Somewhere north of Bluff, a small side canyon cuts into the cliffs, seeps and springs feeding a small stream that flows down from the canyon’s head. When I first arrived in this region, that shady narrow ravine...
Paw Prints: May 2022
BARC supports foster care. That is all we do, now that "kennel" locations have been eliminated in the Town of Bluff. But foster support is huge and sorely needed. This month, we supported 9 different fosters, providing dry dog food &/or canned dog food for nursing moms. Through these efforts, we have helped rescue 18 … Continue reading Paw Prints: May 2022
Rock Tales
Stewart Aitchison Photo: Stewart Aitchison “The monuments are barrels or Navajo water baskets, and the springs found at their bases is proof. Rain God Mesa and Thunderbird Mesa are the homes of thunder and lightning. The entire Monument Valley is a symbolic hogan. Its fireplace is the butte near Goulding’s Trading Post and its door … Continue reading Rock Tales
Desert Notes: Lizard Intelligence
Photo by Robin Patten. Robin Patten I never thought much about lizard intelligence until the year I camped for several nights in a secluded spot in the Grand Canyon. A small lizard lived near my cooking area. She would appear at both breakfast and dinner, splaying across her rock the way lizards do, as if … Continue reading Desert Notes: Lizard Intelligence
Desert Notes: Birds of Spring
Morning comes, and the vultures are rising, lifting off their cottonwood roost, slowly spiraling upward until they reach their desired height and head north in linear flight.
Desert Notes: Hanging Gardens
Cave primrose (Primula specuicola) in Southeast Utah. Photo by Robin Patten. Robin Patten, April 2022 Sheltered in their alcove habitat, maidenhair ferns began unfurling new fronds around the same time the Say’s phoebes started calling and sandhill cranes sang their way across Cottonwood Wash. At least that was the first green that I saw. On … Continue reading Desert Notes: Hanging Gardens
Deeply Incised Goosenecks of the San Juan River: the reason for their location and when and how they formed
A disclaimer: I'm a retired whitewater river guide and retired geologist. How do you tell if a river guide is telling a tall tale?
Stewart Aitchison: Living in the Desert
"There is a treeless place amid the rocks."