Today's News

When you gaze up at the familiar view west of Denver, it’s humbling to think that those mountains have looked almost exactly the same for hundreds of generations. Long before the first French Canadian and American trappers crossed the plains and chronicled the stunning and surprising “Shining Mountains,” this scenery was familiar to the Cheyennes, Utes, Arapahos and Kiowas, who occupied what is now the Denver metro area.

A friend volunteering at the Evergreen Nature Center last week asked me about an odd water mammal called a nutria. It seems that a volunteer on the boardwalk has pointed out a muskrat to a group of visitors, and this person came into the center and informed the volunteer on duty that “those animals out there are not muskrats; I grew up in Louisiana, and they are nutria. I have seen enough nutria that I know what they look like.”

When drawing up ideal weather conditions for a bike ride, Saturday, July 12, would be a day to put in a time capsule.

Riders that took part in the 20th annual Triple Bypass were treated to sunny skies and temperatures in the 70s as they made their way from Bergen Park over Juniper, Loveland and Vail passes before settling in Avon 120 miles later.

The 10,000-foot gain in elevation certainly isn't easy, but the riders had plenty of resources at their disposal before even hopping on their bikes.

County Commissioner Kevin McCasky (Canyon Courier June 18) does an outstanding job summarizing commissioners’ responsibilities regarding land use decisions. But he doesn’t practice what he preaches. He writes of preserving “charm and beauty,” sustainability and improving property values. Many of his decisions do the opposite. He notes that, legally, his decisions cannot be subjective, yet his votes often ignore the bulk of citizen and expert testimony, community plans and county staff recommendations.