As I write, Custer County School in southern Colorado is under the watch of armed sheriff’s deputies. This follows the suicide of a 15-year-old boy last week — the second such tragedy in about a year’s time — and a bizarre rumor that somebody was planning a shooting at the school. This rumor apparently had […]
Hal Walter
Posted inWotr
Living with autism
School is back in session, and once again I’m grateful. As the parent of an autistic son, I’ve become comfortable with the notion of school as not just a learning opportunity for Harrison, but also as respite care as well. When Harrison is back in school, I have a block of time to work. It’s […]
Posted inWotr
Micah True, born to run
It was less than two years ago that I first met the near-mythical Micah True, also known as “Caballo Blanco,” Spanish for White Horse, and the central character of the bestselling book, Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World has Never Seen. He recently made headlines when he was […]
Posted inNovember 8, 2010: Dr. No
There’s something in the water
A Colorado family discovers that their clear “Rocky Mountain Spring Water” is unsafe to drink
Posted inWotr
Democrats could play the donkey card in Denver
It’s been said that burros, beans and brawn won the West. Now, organizers of the Democratic National Convention are weighing whether iconic images of the Old West should be used to market the event in Denver this summer. The debate is not without significance. Democrats, who have been unable to gain a foothold in Southern […]
Posted inWotr
Enough winter already
While reading recently about Kit Carson’s role in the settling of the West, I was struck by how mountain men more than 150 years ago dealt with the elements, particularly winter weather. Amazingly, they rode horses huge distances over unknown terrain without wearing Gore-Tex, Thinsulate or other advanced “technical clothing.” They mostly ate bacon, beans […]
Posted inAugust 19, 1996: Western voices
Why Juan Valdez doesn’t haul coffee beans on a llama
Recently I read a story in an outdoor-sports magazine about how “superior” llamas are to horses, burros and mules for backcountry packing. It caused me to spit green grass juice. Over the last decade, I have trained, cared for and packed with burros, horses and llamas. I’ve even gone so far as to enter a […]