Friday,
September 29th - Fire Burning Near Carter Lake...
A fire is currently burning in an area reported
to be southeast of Carter Lake in grass and little
timber, so far. At last report, it is said to be
approximately 15-20 acres and growing.
Berthoud Fire Department and Larimer Co.
Sheriff's Office Emergency Services have responded
and are on the fire. One Single Engine Air Tanker
has been working the fire and a second
"SEAT" is ordered.
There is no current word on mandatory or
voluntary evacuations. Evacuation notices
themselves will be made with our emergency phone
notification system ("reverse 9-1-1").
No further information is available at this time.
5:00PM Update: Our latest information is that
the fire remains at approximately 20-25 acres.
There were two home evacuations as a precaution in
the Bertha Ridge Road area, but the homes were
eventually not threatened. It is presumed the home
owners have returned.
There are two and possibly three SEAT (Single
Engine Air Tankers) working this fire as well as
many engines from several agencies.
Officially, containment has been estimated
at around 30-40%, but grass fires may often stop
abruptly even in the absence of fire line and thus
this does not mean we have a majority of the fire
actively spreading.
The Roosevelt Hot Shot Fire Crew will be coming
in to assist shortly and resources will be on
scene all night, but the situation seems to be
much improved. Movement / fire growth has not been
too much of an issue and Incident Command seems
optimistic.
In the absence of a much altered situation from
what has just been reported, this will probably be
the last entry regarding this fire located to the
southeast of Carter Lake.
Listen to this article
Northern
Colorado Birding Fair
Wednesday,
September 27th - Northern Colorado Birding Fair...
Crazy about birds, or just curious? Come spend
a free day of fun and learning at the second
annual Northern Colorado Birding Fair at Larimer
County's Fossil Creek Reservoir Regional Open
Space on Saturday, October 7th.
The fair begins with guided birding walks at
7:00am. The Rocky Mountain Raptor Program will
release a rehabilitated raptor at 8:00am..
Kid-friendly booths, hands-on activities,
presentations, and birding walks continue until
the event culminates with a second raptor release
at 1:00pm.
Compete in the Bird Olympics, try to make a
bird nest or get through Bird Hurdles. Go on an
intermediate or beginner bird walk and scavenger
hunt (binoculars available, or bring your own).
Listen to presentations for all ages from experts
in the field or a great storyteller. No matter
what tickles your fancy, birders young and old,
first-timers to experienced, will find something
at this event to fit the bill. Sponsors will show
the latest in bird viewing equipment and resource
materials. Food will be available for sale from
10:00am - 1:00 pm.
Entry to this event is free for everyone.
T-shirts will be given away to the first 150
children 12 years of age or under to complete
their passport by visiting all of the booths. Door
prizes will be given away hourly. Friends of
Larimer County Parks and Open Lands will provide
free Daz Bog coffee from 8 a.m. - 10 a.m.
The event will be held at Fossil Creek
Reservoir Regional Open Space which is located on
Carpenter Road, 1-mile west of the I-25/Hwy 392
Windsor exit. For more information call (970)
679-4534.
This
week's photo appropriately features the wonderful
Fall colors along CR 41H, a currently prevalent
sight throughout the Northern Colorado region.
Every autumn across the
Northern Hemisphere, diminishing daylight hours
and falling temperatures induce trees to prepare
for winter. In these preparations, they shed
billions of tons of leaves. In certain regions,
such as our own, the shedding of leaves is
preceded by a spectacular color show. Formerly
green leaves turn to brilliant shades of yellow,
orange, and red. These color changes are the
result of transformations in leaf pigments.
The green pigment in leaves
is chlorophyll. Chlorophyll absorbs red and blue
light from the sunlight that falls on leaves.
Therefore, the light reflected by the leaves is
diminished in red and blue and appears green. As
this chlorophyll breaks down with the colder
temperatures of Fall, remaining pigments become
more dominant.
If
the leaf contains carotene, as do the leaves of
aspen, birch and hickory, it will change from
green to bright yellow as the chlorophyll
disappears. In some trees, as the concentration of
sugar in the leaf increases, the sugar reacts to
form anthocyanins. These pigments cause the
yellowing leaves to turn red. Red maples, red
oaks, and sumac (above photo) produce anthocyanins
in abundance and display the brightest reds and
purples in the autumn landscape.
The range and intensity of
autumn colors is greatly influenced by the
weather. Low temperatures destroy chlorophyll, and
if they stay above freezing, promote the formation
of anthocyanins. Bright sunshine also destroys
chlorophyll and enhances anthocyanin production.
Dry weather, by increasing sugar concentration in
sap, also increases the amount of anthocyanin. So
the brightest autumn colors are produced when dry,
sunny days are followed by cool, dry nights.
For more images of this
year's Fall colors throughout Colorado, be sure to
visit the CBS News 4 "Colorado Colors"
website, via the link provided below.
Saturday,
September 23rd - SMN Endorses Angie Paccione For
Congress...
Storm Mountain
News announced today that they are officially
giving their endorsement to Angie
Paccione (D) for the 4th District of Colorado
seat, in the United States Congress.
"We are not in the
practice of endorsing political candidates and
this is the first time we have ever done so",
stated SMN owner Darrell Spangler. "It was
the unanimous agreement of our staff that this
endorsement was an exception. We strongly feel a
change is needed in Congress and that Paccione
offers the best ideas and direction for that
change and will better represent the values,
viewpoints and opinions of the People of Colorado
in Washington, D.C.."
This unusual decision to
endorse a political candidate was reportedly made
after reviewing the voting record of incumbent Marilyn
Musgrave (R), and the overall direction the
current administration is taking America.
Spangler added, "We
feel that Musgrave has failed to listen to her
constituents and instead voted lockstep with
George Bush throughout her past term, allowing him
to run shotgun over America and the world,
ignoring and violating both United States and
International law along the way. This is
unacceptable behavior for our leaders. Our hope is
that new faces and ideas in Washington will return
our great nation to its previously respected
status as a world leader and pioneer of the
future. The past six years have been some of
America's worst, with the blame lying squarely on
the current administration and the members of
Congress, like Musgrave, who supported them."
SMN has confirmed that their
publication will remain unaffiliated with any
political party and will continue to present views
and opinions, equally and impartially, from any
and all candidates. Darrell Spangler is officially
registered in Larimer County as
"Unaffiliated", as are the majority of
the SMN staff and associates.
