Category Archives: June 2012

After two days of burnout operations on the northern perimeter of the Weber Fire, operations were effectively completed Saturday. That activity removed a significant portion of the remaining heavy fuels that were of concern to fire officials. Officials report the fire … Continue reading →

An unidentified juvenile is a suspect in starting the Weber Fire near Mancos. The Montezuma County Sheriff’s Office has issued a press release stating that the investigation into the cause of the fire near Mancos, conducted by the BLM and … Continue reading →

With unofficial results showing challenger Will Furse ahead of incumbent District Attorney Russell Wasley by just 9 votes, the unsigned ballots sitting in the county clerk’s office could play a role in deciding the outcome. Montezuma County Clerk Carol Tullis … Continue reading →

Unofficial results from the June 26 primary in Montezuma County are: County Commissioner, District 2 Keenan Ertel, 2271 votes, 60.74% Bud Garner, 953, 25.49% Pat DeGagne-Rule, 515, 13.77%   County Commissioner, District 3 Dewayne Findley, 2119, 59.27 % Casey McClellan, … Continue reading →

Montezuma County Sheriff Dennis Spruell called a report that the Weber Fire was known to have been started by recreational target-shooters “nothing but balderdash.” Monday evening in Mancos, Spruell told the Free Press that quoted remarks by La Plata County’s … Continue reading →

By Cindy McCombe Spindler Today, I have had a hard time doing anything other than watch the media coverage of the fires in Colorado. It is hard to see my home state get hit so hard. I have been thinking … Continue reading →

Greg Kemp, a longtime advocate of land-use planning, has successfully petitioned onto the Nov. 6 general-election ballot as an unaffiliated candidate for Montezuma County commissioner in District 3, the Mancos area. Kemp will face another unaffiliated candidate, Larry Don Suckla, … Continue reading →

Colorado appears to be heading into a severe drought similar to the one in 2002 that brought raging wildfires and extreme water shortages across the state. A weak winter snowpack combined with windy, hot weather during March, April and May … Continue reading →

Native filmmakers share the spotlight In 1939, film audiences watched as John Wayne jumped on a horse and galloped through Monument Valley in “The Searchers.” The film introduced beautiful red-rock Navajo land as the quintessential background for the Hollywood Western. … Continue reading →

Local writer Chuck Greaves’ new mystery novel, “Hush Money,” is not to be missed. Greaves has created a feisty and fun main character in Jack MacTaggart. “They say when writing your first book to write what you know. I know … Continue reading →

Controversy has also greeted plans for a different proposed commercial development, just south of the Grand Canyon. That development, slated for the Grand Canyon gateway community of Tusayan, Ariz., is a project of the Italian Stilo Development Group. It includes … Continue reading →

When Navajo Nation President Ben Shelly went public earlier this year with a plan to develop the East Rim of the Grand Canyon for tourism, the backlash was swift and strong — especially from the neighboring Hopi Tribe. “It can’t … Continue reading →

Park staff considers requiring backcountry hikers to pack out their waste Zack Summit, from Prescott, Ariz., and a couple of his friends went backpacking in the Grand Canyon in early April. Overall they had a pleasant time. But Summit isn’t … Continue reading →

Creston “Bud” Garner is ready to hit the ground running if elected as the Montezuma County commissioner from District 2 (Cortez). Two and a half years of faithfully sitting through the commission’s Monday meetings have prepared him for the job, … Continue reading →

As president of Ertel Funeral Home in Cortez, Keenan Ertel often becomes acquainted with people under the worst of circumstances. Nevertheless, he is a popular figure in the county – something he attributes to his efforts to make sure the … Continue reading →

Pat DeGagne-Rule isn’t one for sitting on the sidelines. She is a member of the Cortez Cemetery District board, a member and former treasurer of the Southwestern Cowbelles, a former member of the Cortez Cultural Center board, a member and … Continue reading →

Those who lived in the Four Corners in 2002 remember the fires that devastated the region during that dry summer. The fire season started locally with a wildfire on the New Mexico/Colorado border south of Elk Springs, and Elk Stream … Continue reading →