Archives-Advocacy & public lands

BCHA Bike/Horse Educational Presentations

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Randy Winter, BCHA Trail Advisor On September 28, 2021, Randy and Cheryl Winter, along with their horse, Ellie, met up with a few cyclists from the Boulder High School Mountain Biking Team. Randy, BCHAs Trails Committee Advisor, and his herd mates have provided bike-horse interaction presentations to multi-trail user groups for quite a long time. As Cheryl described, “their horse Ellie had her early in-hand training days at trailheads. Bikers helped us train her to accept bikes by giving her cookies when she did well. So when Ellie saw the onslaught of bikes coming at her she had visions of cookies dancing in her little red head.” The day (pictured here) was the fourth consecutive session covering a total of 130 high school students. These presentations were about 30 minutes, and seemed to be well received. Afterwards, attendees were invited to come meet Ellie and give her a cookie. WEEEELLLLL, Ellie sure charmed them all and she was soon swarmed over by students.  Some were petting and laying over her back because she was “so soft”, others were taking selfies with her. For many it was their first up-close and personal time with a horse. While others who had ridden before said the experience made them want to start riding again. Whichever way you took it, Ellie was there to help. Needless to say she was a star and helped get the bike/horse world off better connected! [divider style=”solid” color=”#cccccc” opacity=”1″ icon_color=”#666666″ icon_size=”15″ placement=”equal”]To arrange a bike/horse educational presentation with your group please contact Randy Winter […]

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City of Boulder OSMP Irrigated Agricultural Lands—An Ecosystem Collapsing

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By Linda P In order to protect those from recent activities reported by the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office of over $100,000 of damage to PD mitigation equipment on Boulder County Open Space Lands names and locations have been omitted. Many of us are deeply concerned about the health and future of our OSMP irrigated agricultural lands. Now more than ever it is time to preserve our soils, local food resources, and agricultural history for future generations. We must protect and encourage the purpose for which these lands were purchased. One City-owned Open Space Irrigated Agricultural Property About 30 years ago, our tax dollars funded the acquisition of this property for OSMP agricultural land use and practices. Since 1994, I have kept horses at this property. The pastures were once safe, healthy, and ecologically diverse (see Photo A). The impact of the current unprecedented growth of prairie dogs on these irrigated agricultural parcels is evident in this recent photo (see Photo B). This type of damage to our OSMP’s agricultural lands is unprecedented and unacceptable. This parcel was in poor shape when it came under management of the lease holder. The family worked hard, for several years, to bring it back to a sustainable and profitable operation (see Photo A). Fields were tilled, replanted and irrigated. With great care and respect for the land, the leased parcels became verdant and were able to support cattle, horses, and hay operations. This agricultural operation worked for both parties—it provided income to the family and the City of Boulder. But not only that! It

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Baby it’s Goin, Goin, Gone—a spectacular landscape soon to be was!

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By Linda P “After purchasing the land in the 1980’s, Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) partnered with the U.S. Natural Resource Conservation Service to stabilize and improve the soil by seeding native grasses. Thirty years later, the grass cover and height create some of the best ground nesting bird habitat in Boulder County.” It’s hard to believe the above description from my current visit to this open space. Here we go again with another public hearing on the Gunbarrel Hill Integrated Site Project on February 13th. Last week I loaded up my horse and met two friends at Gunbarrel Hill. We tacked up and went to take a look at the current conditions. As we rode all our familiar trails (trails ridden for more than 20 years) we found that the four—North, South, East, West prairie dogs (PDs) colonies have exploded and are quickly coming together. The marvel of the 30-year grassland restoration is turning into a wasteland—just another badly managed City of Boulder Open Space property. Like a swarm of locusts, PDs are devouring everything. We silently walked past holes, so many only just recent (within the last few months). Our emotions went from anger, to a deep sense of loss, because we knew it will all be gone soon. My crystal ball says, “without immediate intervention, and yes that means lethal control, this 30-year restoration project will be gone within one to two years.” So I ask, where are all those ground nesting grassland birds going to go? How is our visitor experience

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A Call to Action: Prairie Dog Management Practices

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On Tuesday May 7th at 6:00 PM the City of Boulder Open Space Board of Trustees will be presenting their recommendations to Boulder City Council on prairie dog (PD) management. We are asking our members to please consider taking the time to attend this meeting, or to write a letter to all City Council members (e-mails below), and to support the OSBT’s recommendations (see attached). Boulder County has a rich agricultural heritage, which began in the late 1860s and the future of agriculture in Boulder County and the health of our grasslands should be of concern for all citizens. The mission of Boulder County Open Space is to preserve and protect the natural environment and land resources that characterize Boulder. We foster appreciation and uses that sustain the natural values of the land for current and future generations. The proper stewardship of our grasslands, includes maintaining a healthy balance for all species and should not favor one component to the detriment of others. Continuing to protect agriculture as way of life, and the farmers that lease and care for the open space agricultural properties also needs to be protected. The voice of private property owners and the concerns they have about adjoining open space land management practices also needs to be heard as escalating numbers of colonies are destroying their lands. No one denies that prairie dogs (PD) are important to the ecosystem, but when one species numbers causes the destruction of another through lack of natural predation, and destroys grasslands then they must be managed, and all

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What is Happening to Our OSMP Agricultural Lands and Open Space

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All Boulder County Horse Owners, Agricultural Property Owners and Lease Holders, and Open Space and Mountain Parks Users should be concerned about the detrimental effects of having too many prairie dogs on our Open Space properties. We encourage you to get active now. That means getting out to attending City Council and Open Space and Mountain Parks meetings as much as you can in the next few weeks. Decisions are now being made about the forthcoming Grassland and OSMP Agricultural Land Management Plans that will affect us all. For starters, we will be seeing a 30% decrease in funding for OSMP management over the next few years. So what is the “prairie dog problem?” Over the last few years, many of our agricultural lands and open space properties have been dramatically and negatively affected by an over population of prairie dogs, which is the result of a lack of predators, fragmented land parcels, and current management policies. Essentially, the prairie dog problem is one of density and overgrazing, which has led to destruction of our agricultural land, diminished economic value, and a decline in ecological diversity. Although Boulder County authorities once believed that, “the presence of prairie dog colonies…leads to …overall species richness in the grassland prairie,”1 today’s increased density and size of the colonies has resulted in the opposite effect. Ranchers who have been leasing and managing open space lands are pulling out of their leases. Why? Because production yields of hay and grazing acres have been so depleted by the over grazing of prairie dogs. This

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National Public Lands Day

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Your Invited! It’s National Public Lands Day Saturday, September 30th 9:00 AM – 12:00 PM  This is your invitation to participate with BCHA and Boulder County Parks & Open Space in a fun morning of building a new equestrian trail at Heil Valley Ranch.  This new trail will connect the new horse trailer parking / trailhead at Heil and two other new trails with the existing trail system. Show your appreciation for public lands by joining up with the project!We will be fine-tuning the new pedestrian/equestrian connector at Heil Valley Ranch. The work will be moderately strenuous and will include the use of hand tools such as McLeods, pick mattocks, and your brawn. It is about a 15 minute walk away from the parking lot and your vehicles, so it is a good idea to bring a backpack to carry water, snacks, clothes, etc. Location:  “The Corrals” at Heil Valley Ranch 2-1952 Geer Canyon Dr, Boulder, CO 80302 Click for Map Directions to the “Corrals” at Heil Valley Ranch: From Boulder:  Travel north on Foothills Highway 36.  Turn left on Lefthand Canyon Drive.  Turn right on Geer Canyon Drive, and drive 0.3 miles.  Meeting location and parking will be on the left just before the road turns from paved to dirt. From Longmont:  Travel west on Nelson Road, then turn left on Foothills Highway 36.  Turn right on Lefthand Canyon Drive.   Turn right on Geer Canyon Drive and drive 0.3 miles.  Meeting location and parking will be on the left just before the road turns from paved

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Bison Back Home on the Range in Larimer County

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If you have never had the opportunity to visit this Open Space in Larimer County either by foot, horse or bike you should. Rich in PaleoIndian history, with a Clovis site and buffalo kill site, this is a true open space gem. On November 1st an iconic species, buffalo, was returned to the prairie. Ten bison, carrying on the valuable line of genetics from the Yellowstone herd but without the disease brucellosis, now roam 1,000 fenced acres of the Red Mountain Open Space and Soapstone Prairie Natural Area. The buffalo are only visible from the roadway near the Soapstone Prairie access. For photos and more visit the Larimer County Facebook page. To support the herd and help fund fencing, supplies and veterinary staff you may donate to advancing.colostate.edu/BISON. LindaP

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In the Name of Freedom

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Wednesday, January 13, 2016 6:30 PM Lyons Regional Library 405 Main Street, Lyons, CO Free. No registration required. Join Carol Walker, author of Galloping to Freedom, a photographic documentation of the plight of wild horses in Wyoming. Walker’s book documents the Checkerboard Roundup of 2014 and follows the journey of a few horses that end up in a Wyoming sanctuary against all odds. Come learn about what’s happening to wild horses in Wyoming this January as she presents over 200 vivid photos of these wild horses. Learn more about Galloping to Freedom in this article published in the Boulder Weekly December 23rd.  

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North Trail Study Area (NTSA)

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Learn more about this beautiful area, provide your input and help shape the future of the NTSA as an equestrian, hiker, environmentalist or simply as a citizen of Boulder County on the North Trail Study Area. This content was reposted from an e-newsletter by: City of Boulder Open Space & Mountain Parks Steve Armstead Environmental Planner , Open Space and Mountain Parks  Starting in April, the City of Boulder’s Open Space and Mountain Parks (OSMP) Department will kick off its development of the North Trail Study Area (TSA) Plan with a series of public workshops and online opportunities to gather input from the community. This plan seeks to improve visitor experiences and increase the sustainability of recreational amenities on OSMP’s northern lands while also conserving the area’s diverse natural, cultural and agricultural resources. It will include recommendations to modify and enhance the miles of trails on OSMP lands north of Linden Avenue and the Diagonal Highway. The North Trail Study Area Plan may include proposals for trail reroutes, and special resource and activity management measures. It will also direct how OSMP will manage undesignated trails – which may lead to the restoration of visitor-created paths that are not sustainable or are not compatible with conservation goals for other resources. OSMP needs your input to identify priorities for this plan and to help us shape it. We encourage you to learn more about this plan by signing up for email updates or by visiting NorthTSA.org in the coming weeks and months. For more information watch the following video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3h1epUHssM Linda P

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I also grow weary!

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I wanted to share the Joder Family Statement with you concerning the family ranch that was purchased by Open Space. I too grow weary, as Linda Andes-George stated in today’s Daily Camera Guest Opinion, and in my opinion feel that the management of the property, including agreements on what trails go where, to be done in the context of our Trails Study Area (TSA) process. If at all possible, I would like to see the TSA process done a bit quicker then previously stated, so we all may enjoy this beautiful new addition to our Open Space lands, this includes bears, bobcats, birds and then of course all us other users. Below is the Joder Family Statement: First, we need to say at the outset that we, the four Joder family members, are much like a microcosm of the Boulder community — we each have different outdoor activities we enjoy, we have somewhat different ideas about land use in general, and we also have slightly differing opinions on what should eventually be done with the city’s new acquisition. Therefore, the following points are somewhat general and may be slightly contradictory. When we sold the property, we knowingly put our trust into the Open Space process for determining land use and we believe that, once the process is completed and all voices are heard, the right balance will have been struck. Here are the main points upon which we have come together: 1) Whatever the use, we feel strongly that the impact on the biodiversity of the

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