Pumas descend on Durango

Thirty different three-hundred pound pumas arrived in Durango this week. The larger-than-life cats are the backbone of a major local public art project that is getting underway entitled, "Pumas on Parade." In coming months, a Southwest Colorado artist will put his or her mark on each of the blank casts of a sculpture by Loveland artist Rosetta. The pumas will then be displayed throughout the community and several will be auctioned off to benefit the San Juan Mountains Association.

"Pumas on Parade" was the brainchild of Felicity Broenen, the development director for SJMA, and is being coordinated by Jules Masterjohn. Masterjohn explained that other communities have undertaken similar projects but never one as small as Durango.

"They've done the Trail of Painted Ponies in Arizona and ducks in Eugene, but I don't think a community this small has ever done a large scale project like this," Masterjohn said.

Thirty regional artists have been selected to "artify" each of the now white cats. While most of them are from Durango, there are also four from Pagosa Springs, three from Mancos, two from Silverton, two from Moab and one each from Cortez and Dolores.

"I was originally selected but had to back out because the puma wouldn't fit in my studio," Masterjohn joked.

The pumas will be fully designed by the end of May and on June 4, they will be paraded through town in celebration of the 100-year anniversary of the San Juan National Forest. The 30 cats will then be displayed throughout the summer in and around Durango and along both stretches of the U.S. Hwy. 160 corridor. In Sept., Masterjohn would like to put the cats under one large roof for educational purposes, but is still searching for a space. Eventually, several of the cats will go into private ownership and SJMA will be the beneficiary.

"The end result is after the display, we will have a gala fundraising event and we will auction off a number of the pumas for San Juan Mountains Association," she said.

Masterjohn noted that "Pumas on Parade" has been totally collaborative community effort. The project was jumpstarted by a $10,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts but has received transportation support from Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory and Azteca Landscaping, marketing support from the Durango Area Tourism Office and help from many other individuals and organizations.

Locals react to wolf management

As the wolf debate comes to the Durango community, people are listening, discussing and determinedly gaining information.Two venues of dialogue occurred this past week. The first on Thursday evening at a lecture presented by Rob Edward of Sinapu, anon-profit dedicated to the restoration and preservation of native carnivores. Around 40 people attended the lecture that recreated the history of wolves in the San Juans. Edward also explained the progress of a Colorado Wolf Management Working Group created by the Colorado Division of Wildlife to make recommendations for populations of wolves that may migrate to the state. And Monday evening an open house was held by the Colorado Division of Wildlife to present the wolf management plan to the community. The conference room at the Double Tree was crowded with ranchers and wolf advocates alike and though the event was not expected to be a public forum, those attending posed several questions to the DOW's Gary Skiba. Concerns included the number of wolves expected to migrate to the state and how long it will take packs to form in the region. Skiba responded that the only documented wolf sighting was the female killed on I-70 last spring, and it is unknown as to numbers and if there are any other lone wolves in the state. Other questions centered on last week's decision by Federal District Court Judge Robert E. Jones to keep wolves in the lower 48 states listed as "endangered" under the Endangered Species Act as opposed to downgrading the species to "threatened." Now, with the ruling, all wolves in the State of Colorado are protected under the ESA. If in the future the state decides to recover wolves to their historic native regions and populations increase, it would be possible for the wolf to be delisted at that time and the state would take management of the populations.Other comments from Monday night's forum ranged from advocate statements that there cannot be a healthy eco-system without top level predators, to ranchers who are supportive of wolf populations and looking for ways to improve ways to protect their livestock through non-lethal measures, to those ranchers who still believe in the three "S" management plan: Shoot, shovel, and shut-up.Comments on the wolf management plan are welcomed by the DOW until March 4. For more information, log onto www2.merid.org/graywolf.

Local police nab counterfeiter

This week, the Durango Police Department put an end to the local spread of fake $20 bills. Two weeks ago, several counterfeit $20 bills were passed to area merchants. Luckily, the fake $20 bills were easy to spot as they all had the same serial number. Jason Lee Dinges, an 18-year-old Fort Lewis College student, was not so lucky. He has been arrested for the Class 5 felony.

Dinges passed several of the counterfeit notes to the Everyday Store, Tempo Mini Mart, Exxon Mini Mart and a Mustang gas station. He also passed one note at an unknown location in Dolores. In addition, several counterfeit notes were thrown on the floor at the CUB at Fort Lewis College. Police are asking whoever found these notes to turn them in to local law enforcement.

While Dinges was booked into La Plata County Jail on three counts of forgery, investigators are still looking for the person responsible for manufacturing the counterfeit notes.

Plowing hits Vallecito Nordic trackBeginning last week, plowing took over a portion of the Nordic track at Vallecito Reservoir. One lane of the E. Vallecito Road has been plowed for approximately ¼ mile to some private land. Still, the inside lane of the road will remain open for skiing. The Forest Service asks that cross-country skiers continue to park, as usual, at the campground. There will be no parking or turnaround available at the end of the plowed area. The private landowner has a right to access his property and has received ause permit from the Forest Service for the plowing, which is expected to last through the end of February.

On the subject of skiing at Vallecito, there will be a fundraiser and party this Tuesday, Feb. 15 at Steamworks, 801 E. Second Ave., to support the volunteer grooming operation. The event includes food, drink, a silent auction and "a few laughs at the expense of the groomers." Call 259-7785 for details.

-compiled by Will Sands and Shawna Bethell