November 30, 2008

Perspectives: Snowmobiling in Yellowstone

 Comment about video = Jackie and Craig Mathews owners of Blue Ribbon Flies in West Yellowstone being the tree huggers they are ought to quit adding to the drift boat traffic on the Madison River. This poor river is overfished because of the popularity of drift boats. I am a wade fisherman and I don't believe that drift boats should be used because I no longer can afford one therefor they create unfair access and put to much pressure on the fishery. Then Jackie and Craig can be out of business like their neighbors.


Economy vs. environment: Town reacts to snowmobile controversy
By JESSICA MAYRER

Chronicle staff writer

As an the argument plays out in the courts about how many snowmobiles should be allowed in Yellowstone National Park, many West Yellowstone business leaders say their town is taking the brunt.

"Our whole livelihoods are at stake," said local businessman Clyde Seely.

Snowmobile technology is getting cleaner and businesses have adjusted to accommodate environmental concerns, yet many who make a living off of tourism here say conservation groups won't give up until snowmobile operations go out of business all together.

U.S. District Court judges have weighed in on the issue twice this past year, prompting the park service to announce a 318 cap on snowmobiles allowed in the park each day and then to abruptly revert to an existing cap of 720. Most agree that the issue is far from over.

"The GYC is killing us with death by a thousand cuts," said Pat Povah from the Deep Well Ranch.-----------------> more

November 26, 2008

Media Fail to Connect Dots on Bailouts

By Dan Kennedy

Journalists blind to how government is chief cause of many industry problems.

Have you noticed that the media largely fail to connect the dots between related events?

In all the reporting on the auto industry’s ills, little is said about the government as the chief cause. Politicians holler at auto executives in hearings and beat their chests in interviews, but never mention Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) mileage standards. Just like unaffordable union contracts, incredibly mentioned often by the same politicians who now wish to give the unions expanded, unchecked power to wreak the same destruction in other industries via the Employee Free Choice Act (which steals away free choice).

In all their reporting of how the sub-prime mortgage meltdown purportedly triggered the financial industry collapse (as a child’s sneeze might topple a meticulously constructed, floor to ceiling house of cards), they uttered hardly a word uttered about Barney Frank and Gang’s push for financial institutions to provide mortgages to the woefully unqualified. Nobody mentioned the he Clinton administration’s pushing for home ownership as a God-given right to be facilitated at any cost, let alone the years of criminal conspiracy and obscene executive compensation at Fannie and Freddie.

The next big mess in the making, where the dots are not being connected,-----------------------> More

Snowmobiling Jackson Hole Wyoming

snowmobiler full moonJackson Hole Wyoming is in the heart to some of the best snowmobiling in the world. Yellowstone National Park to the north provides incredible access to the wonders of nature. For the powder hound Togwotee Pass provides hundreds of miles of trails through picturesque mountains, forests and abundant open bowls. Gros Ventre River area provides a great wildlife viewing trip. Granite Creek has a gorgeous hot spring pool fed by from the towering Gros Venture peaks. The Grey's River provides abundant snow and miles of trail much like Togwotee Pass.

There are many opportunities around Jackson Hole and a wide selection of guides, tours and rental shops to accommodate you.---------------------------------> More

November 13, 2008

The Credit-Default Swap: What is this thing, anyway?

by Christian Bowne

U.S. Securities & Exchange Commission Chairman Christopher Cox recently acknowledged that the $33 trillion market in credit-default swaps is regulated by no one. Billionaire Warren Buffet, in a 2003 prediction worthy in its prescience of Nostradamus, warned, "The rapidly growing trade in derivatives poses a mega-catastrophic risk for the economy, derivatives are financial weapons of mass destruction that could harm not only their buyers and sellers, but the whole economic system." Finally, President George W. Bush calls for "extraordinary measures under extraordinary circumstances" in deference to his ordinary gravitation toward unfettered capitalism.

A credit-default swap is a contract in which a buyer makes a series of payments to a seller to receive a right to payoff if the credit instrument defaults or another specified credit event such as restructuring or bankruptcy occurs. A credit-default swap is a credit "derivative," gaining its value from the underlying credit risk of a given financial instrument. These underlying financial instruments include commodities like oil, loans, bonds and indeed residential subprime mortgages, to name only a few.

The so called "swap" is a derivative in which two parties agree to exchange the risk of one stream of cash flow against another.-------------------------------------> More

November 12, 2008

Ski Resorts Around Teton Valley Idaho

skier Grand Targhee, Grand Tetons, Alta WyomingTeton Valley is world famous for its crown jewel, Grand Targhee, that towers over the eastern horizon of the valley. But Grand Targhee isn’t the only option for skiing in the immediate area. Just over the Teton Pass is the Valley of Jackson Hole, home to Snow King resort which is in the town hill of Jackson and is smaller but is affordable and convenient and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is the destination resort of the three.


Grand Targhee Resort


There’s only one word for skiing at Grand Targhee: extraordinary.  Though other words such as effortless, knee-deep, and uncrowded all apply.  The key is the more than 500 inches a year that fall on the backside of the Tetons – the snowier Western side – each year.  Add to that a skiable terrain of nearly 2000 acres, with more than 1,000 reserved for Sno-Cat Adventures, and you have an experience beyond compare.  In addition to Grand Targhee’s legendary powder, families love our corduroy grooming with cruising runs that are a signature of Grand Targhee Resort.

boy skiing Grand TargheeIt's not only about legendary powder; those who love to carve will begin to salivate just thinking about shredding the pristine corduroy.  And if awesome freestyle terrain is on your agenda, look no further.  We’ve got two parks plus natural freestyle terrain to get you stoked.  North Pole Terrain Park gives everyone a chance to ease their way into the world of freestyle riding.  Trick Town takes the action up a notch, with numerous features, including table top, rainbow, flat down flat and flat down rails and more. Center Earth freestyle area is a dynamic playground based on natural features and enhanced with expert grooming.


Jackson Hole Mountain Resort


Jackson Hole Mountain Resort offers visitors one of the best ski and snowboard experiences in the world. It is world renowned for its steep and deep terrain, consistent fall line, deep, light powder and endless backcountry, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort also allows beginners and intermediates to excel at their own pace on a variety of groomed runs and open bowls.


corbuts, jackson HoleJackson Hole Mountain Resort has been rated as the third best ski resort country and who could argue with that. Jackson Hole has 4,200 vertical drop and that drop comes right out of the Grand Teton Mountain Range. These spectacular mountains crown jewel the Grand Teton Towers over the Valley and resort at a majestic 13,770 above sea level. When they say ski the big one they mean it!


With 2,500 acres of inbounds terrain, a 4,139' vertical rise, 459" of average snowfall each winter, and unparalleled backcountry access, Jackson Hole offers a truly unique winter experience. Two distinct mountains in the heart of the Tetons - Rendezvous and Apres Vous - make up Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and have been home to incredible skiing and snowboarding for the past 40 years. Whether you're here to experience "The Big One's" wild, untamed terrain, rolling, wide-open groomers, or you're just getting out on the snow for the first time, it's bound to be an experience you'll never forget.


Snow King Resort


Since Snow King’s founding in 1939 as the first ski area in Wyoming, Snow King has served as Jackson Hole’s ‘Town Hill.’ Generations of residents have grown up learning to ski there. It’s a real part of the community, where parents can drop off their kids for after-school turns and adults can do some bump skiing during their lunch hour. But it’s not just a place for townies, its steep terrain will challenge the best of skiers yet has great terrain for the beginner.With Jackson Hole Mountain Resort only a short drive away, Snow King doesn’t bother trying to compete with its high-octane neighbor. Instead, it positions itself as the little guy who just tries harder. With its short-but-steep ski area, ski-in/ski-out accommodations, and ultra-convenient location, I felt right at home at Snow King. It is what it is an unassuming and fun mountain where people come to ski, and not to be seen.-------------------------------------------------> More

November 11, 2008

Skiing Jackson Hole

Jackson Hole SkierJackson Hole is world famous for one of its ski resorts but Jackson Hole is lucky enough to have three of them. All have differing attributes, Snow King is In the town of Jackson and is smaller but is affordable and convenient Grand Targhee is plumb over on the far side of the Grand Tetons but for that reason it gets much more snow so is Jackson hole’s powder cache, and Jackson Hole Mountain Resort is the destination resort of the three and certainly is the gem.


Jackson Hole Mountain Resort


Jackson Hole Mountain Resort offers visitors one of the best ski and snowboard experiences in the world. It is world renowned for its steep and deep terrain, consistent fall line, deep, light powder and endless backcountry, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort also allows beginners and intermediates to excel at their own pace on a variety of groomed runs and open bowls.


Corbut'sJackson Hole Mountain Resort has been rated as the third best ski resort country and who could argue with that. Jackson Hole has 4,200 vertical drop and that drop comes right out of the Grand Teton Mountain Range. These spectacular mountains crown jewel the Grand Teton Towers over the Valley and resort at a majestic 13,770 above sea level. When they say ski the big one they mean it!


With 2,500 acres of inbounds terrain, a 4,139' vertical rise, 459" of average snowfall each winter, and unparalleled backcountry access, Jackson Hole offers a truly unique winter experience. Two distinct mountains in the heart of the Tetons - Rendezvous and Apres Vous - make up Jackson Hole Mountain Resort and have been home to incredible skiing and snowboarding for the past 40 years. Whether you're here to experience "The Big One's" wild, untamed terrain, rolling, wide-open groomers, or you're just getting out on the snow for the first time, it's bound to be an experience you'll never forget.


downhill ski racer, Snow King MountainSnow King Mountain


Since Snow King’s founding in 1939 as the first ski area in Wyoming, Snow King has served as Jackson Hole’s ‘Town Hill.’ Generations of residents have grown up learning to ski there. It’s a real part of the community, where parents can drop off their kids for after-school turns and adults can do some bump skiing during their lunch hour. But it’s not just a place for townies, its steep terrain will challenge the best of skiers yet has great terrain for the beginner.


With Jackson Hole Mountain Resort only a short drive away, Snow King doesn’t bother trying to compete with its high-octane neighbor. Instead, it positions itself as the little guy who just tries harder. With its short-but-steep ski area, ski-in/ski-out accommodations, and ultra-convenient location, I felt right at home at Snow King. It is what it is an unassuming and fun mountain where people come to ski, and not to be seen.

Grand Targhee


Grand Targhee Skier, Grand Teton There’s only one word for skiing at Grand Targhee: extraordinary.  Though other words such as effortless, knee-deep, and uncrowded all apply.  The key is the more than 500 inches a year that fall on the backside of the Tetons – the snowier Western side – each year.  Add to that a skiable terrain of nearly 2000 acres, with more than 1,000 reserved for Sno-Cat Adventures, and you have an experience beyond compare.  In addition to Grand Targhee’s legendary powder, families love our corduroy grooming with cruising runs that are a signature of Grand Targhee Resort.


It's not only about legendary powder; those who love to carve will begin to salivate just thinking about shredding the pristine corduroy.  And if awesome freestyle terrain is on your agenda, look no further.  We’ve got two parks plus natural freestyle terrain to get you stoked.  North Pole Terrain Park gives everyone a chance to ease their way into the world of freestyle riding.  Trick Town takes the action up a notch, with numerous features, including table top, rainbow, flat down flat and flat down rails and more. Center Earth freestyle area is a dynamic playground based on natural features and enhanced with expert grooming.---------------------------------------------------------------------------------> More Info

November 08, 2008

Lone Mountain's Big Sky Ski Resort and Moonlight Basin

Jackson Hole PowderRarely has so much bounty gone so unplundered as at Big Sky's Lone Peak the biggest place you’ve never skied. There’s rarely a lift line at this sprawling side by side Montana resorts, except when waiting for the marquee 15-person tram that takes skiers to the top of 11,166-foot Lone Peak. A big reason for Big Sky’s quiet is the perceived remoteness of the resort: although it sits only about one hour south of the Bozeman airport.

Big Sky is a destination ski resort if there ever was one, which means midweek skiers share the place with almost no one. The other reason is its sheer size: Those who do make the journey soon disperse over three mountains and nearly 4,000 skiable acres, with a correspondingly huge menu of terrain. From the resort’s tip-top, a snowboarder can drop into the black-diamond slopes of Liberty Bowl and ride all the way down to this winter’s new Dakota triple chair, which opens access to 200-plus acres of expert-level open bowl skiing. Less adventuresome skiers gravitate to Andesite and Flatiron Mountains, where large groomed boulevards like Big Horn and Madison Avenue are served by several high-speed quads.

Corbut'sBut one of the most intriguing developments at Big Sky has been the linking with an adjacent resort, Moonlight Basin which shares Lone Peak; the joint Lone Peak Pass creates a 5,512-acre playground that gets 400 inches of snow a year with access to the gun-sight gullies that spill off of Lone Peak — and may leave skiers who’d been happily humming “Don’t Fence Me In” suddenly wishing someone would have.------------------> More

November 01, 2008

Hunting in Montana, elk, moose, mule deer, bear

Serendipity and the Bull elk, black wolf in Yellowstone Park

The Greater Yellowstone/Jackson Hole region offers some of the best big game hunting anywhere. Outside of Jackson Hole Wyoming is the National Elk Refuge where 6 to 10 thousand Elk spend their winters, south of Dubois WY is the largest herd of Rocky Mountain Bighorn Sheep, Moose can be found in most in most river bottom and a few mountain tops and everywhere in between, and there are tens of thousands of Mule Deer throughout the region.