Tom Ross

Industrial hemp's future as a crop in Colorado awaits federal action

The Rocky Mountain Farmers Union is lobbying actively for decriminalization of industrial hemp at the federal level, and bills were introduced in the House of Representatives and Senate late this winter.

Triple Crown, tubing season to descend on Steamboat this week

The Yampa River is expected to dip to 500 cfs Friday, within commercial tubing range, as 86 youth baseball teams settle in to Northwest Colorado. Before the tournament is over, teams will have played in Hayden and Oak Creek as well as in Steamboat and Craig.

Routt County poised to award design contracts for new bridges

County Manager Tom Sullivan previously said that the county’s funding match on the bridge projects is comparable to what it would spend just to repair one of the old bridges.

City to focus on employee hours, compensation

Steamboat Springs City Manager Deb Hinsvark told a group of about 20 senior citizens Monday that as city officials enter the autumn budget process, staff and the City Council will seek to restore employees in the Planning and Parks, Open Space and Recreation Services departments to 40-hour work weeks. At the same time, city officials hope to bring salaries of all city employees up to current market rates for their job descriptions.

Tom Ross: Thunderhead Trail at Steamboat Ski Area offers good training for hiking bigger mountains

The best wildflower viewing on the Valley View trail is above Christie Peak, where you can spy the trumpet-shaped lavender blossoms of the clematis vine, which wraps around other shrubs.

Get ready for Tour de Steamboat road bicycling event with training tips

Tour de Steamboat organizer Kent Eriksen, of Eriksen Cycles, has training tips for people aspiring to the full 110-mile ride or one of the shorter options.

Steamboat woman undergoes double mastectomy and immediate reconstruction

Peggy Wolfe had already been contemplating creating a blog about her experiences with breast cancer surgery when film actor Angelina Jolie went public with her own double mastectomy. The news coverage galvanized her thoughts and helped her turn intent into action.

Tom Ross: The Yampa River tribe

On last week's trip down Yampa Canyon in Moffat County, we quickly slipped into the routine sharing of chores, honored our leaders and our shaman, and paid heed to our most-skilled rowers.

Elk River Road to see up to eight log trucks daily

A logging operation targeting roadside hazard trees will also cause the closure of the last mile of Forest Road 315 on Rabbit Ears Pass beginning this week and continuing for two weeks.

Yampa River flow double commercial tubing level, but Tuesday could be the day

Local officials urge people who are tempted to purchase their own tubes and float the Yampa while the river remains above 1,000 cfs this weekend should take safety precautions: life vests are a must.

With just 1 flight, Yampa Valley Regional Airport passenger numbers down 3,500 in April and May

Yampa Valley Regional Airport Manager Dave Ruppel said he had heard some complaints about the limited number of flights this spring but said the addition of the second flight this month has made it easier for travelers to make connections in Denver.

Landmark North Routt business gets permit revision from Routt County

Ironically, it wasn’t live music at the Hahn's Peak Roadhouse that concerned Routt County officials and neighbors this week as much as the possibility that contaminants from pastured horses on the property could run off and find their way into the water supply.

Average home price in Routt County up 22 percent through April

Routt and Summit counties are comparable markets in terms of single-family home sales: Summit has 95 such transactions averaging $758,860, and Routt has 94 transactions and an average price of $773,377.

Habitat closes on 1st side of duplex after months of waiting

New Habitat homeowner Kat Kelly is looking forward to Saturday, when Connell Resources will arrive to pave her new driveway, and not long after, when she will host a gathering so members of the community can see what they helped build for her family.

Routt County Search and Rescue makes most of smartphones

Routt County Search and Rescue’s never-ending mission to rescue adventurers from the backcountry surrounding Steamboat Springs has changed dramatically with the growing numbers of skiers, hikers and snowmobilers who carry smartphones.

Grief counseling is part of hospice services in Routt and Moffat counties

The impromptu student grief counselors were among the nine Katy Thiel had been meeting with every Friday throughout the year to help them come to terms with the loss of one of their own parents.

Tom Ross: Yampa River has peaked in Steamboat, twin bare spots on Storm Peak have yet to merge

There is historic precedent for farmers and ranchers keeping an eye on the changes in prominent snow fields shimmering in the June heat in order to gauge how much longer they would have snowmelt to irrigate with.

Hundreds of mourners gather at Steamboat's Howelsen Hill to remember Asher Lesyshen-Kirlan

A stiff breeze ruffled international flags set out as if a World Cup skiing competition was about to take place as mourners gathering at Steamboat's historic Howelsen Hill to remember Asher Lesyshen-Kirlan, 9.

Parkinson's presence in Northwest Colorado

An epidemiological study reported in a medical journal devoted to neurology shows that Routt and Moffat counties are at the low end of the scale, in terms of the incidence of Parkinson’s disease nationally.

Living well with Parkinson’s disease

For those battling a chronic illness, the fear of being limited physically becomes very real. But for area residents diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, doctors’ orders quickly quelled that fear: Push yourself harder to maintain a high quality of life.

Parkinson's patients searching for answers

More than 500,000 and as many as 1 million Americans are estimated to have Parkinson’s disease, according to the National Institutes of Health.

May in Steamboat Springs was warmer than you think

Weather observer Art Judson reported that the average daily high temperature in May was a mild 64.6 degrees with 12 days when the daily high was in the 70s or higher.

Traffic between Craig and Steamboat to be routed over temporary bridge

Duckels Construction is in the midst of a $3.1 million project to replace the existing U.S. Highway 40 bridge over the Elk River that originally was built in 1958 and now is deemed functionally obsolete.

May nearing average rainfall for month in Steamboat Springs

Much of the moisture in May accumulated during a two-day event that ended May 20 with 0.9 inches of total precipitation that included nearly an inch of snow.

New events add depth to summer tourism season in Steamboat Springs

The Steamboat Mountain Village Partnership will add depth to the early part of the summer resort calendar this year with a new event that will blend Routt County’s ranching traditions with locally grown barbecue pork dishes and blended cocktails June 15 during Savor Steamboat.

Tom Ross: Finalist for Colorado Book Award due in Steamboat to talk about future of water in the West

Of all the research author Stephen Grace did for his book "Dam Nation," the information that concerns him most is the revelation that we have been living in an era of relative water abundance in the late 20th and early 21st centuries.

Elk River has peaked; Yampa refuses to give up

Consistently warm weather over the next couple of weeks could support streamflows by saturating soils with snowmelt, resulting in a more efficient runoff.

Longtime CMC geology instructor publishes field guide to local rock formations

Some of the stones on Rocky Peak at the head of Strawberry Park north of Steamboat Springs are among the oldest rocks on earth. They are about 2.7 billion years old.

Steamboat hedge fund manager ranked 7th among Barron's top 100

Hedge fund manager Deer Park Road Corp. employs 15 people, 13 of them full time. Fourteen of them have professional roles with the company, and an even dozen already lived in Steamboat Springs at the time they signed on.

Sheraton Steamboat Resort plans $8.2 million project to resurrect hotel suites

The construction project would return the Sheraton Steamboat Resort at the base of Steamboat Ski Area to 285 guest rooms.

Shell's preliminary ozone monitoring near Hayden detects no violation of federal standards

Routt County Environmental Health Director Mike Zopf said he would make a 2013 budget request that the county seek a cost-share with the city of Steamboat Springs for an ozone monitoring program. The program is estimated to cost $175,000 for three years.

Tom Ross: When a pocket dialer might have been preferable

In the case of this early morning phone call, the caller’s dog had experienced a close encounter with erethizon dorsatum — a porcupine.

Winter weather advisory issued for mountains surrounding Steamboat

Things will change drastically by midweek. After a forecast high in the mid-60s Monday, the daily high should rise to 75 degrees under mostly sunny skies Tuesday and touch 80 degrees Wednesday.

Repriced Steamboat Barn Village lots attract 15 offers

Fifteen offers on 13 building lots at Steamboat Barn Village could signal contract home construction.

Tom Ross: Steamboat and Ouray have hot springs in common

I’ve always urged that it’s important to visit other mountain towns to gain new insights into the quirky, little burgh we happen to inhabit.

Improved load factors, higher fares boost Steamboat airline program reserves

The committee that reports to Steamboat Springs City Council on the airline contracts that secure the majority of Steamboat’s and Routt County’s air service received good news Friday — the past winter’s ski season jet flights weren’t nearly as expensive as once feared. But challenges remain.

Stories by Tom

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