Hiwan Hills had a quite successful slash collection this weekend.  I don’t know exactly how much was collected, but it was at least several roll off dumpsters.  Great job to the residents there for helping to keep the land clear. It’s a great step to help prevent wildfires in the area.

JeffCo is sponsoring more slash collection this year.  From their site:

Remote Slash Collection Sites, Schedule & Fees

2012 Slash Drop-off Options for Mountain Residents

 Please take this short, four-question survey regarding slash collection options!

All times 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

June 16 & 17
Location: Conifer High School @ 10441 Hwy. 73
Host: Elk Creek Fire Dept.

June 23 & 24
Location: Station #2 @ Hwy. 72 & Camp Eden Rd.
Host: Coal Creek Fire Dept.

August 11 & 12
Location: Near station #3 on Settler’s Drive @ 8445 S. Hwy. 285
Host: InterCanyon/Indian Hills Fire

Fees for 2012 Remote Slash Collection Program

Small Pickup – Bed High: $5
Small Pickup – Cab High: $8
Small Pickup – Above Cab High: $10

Large Pickup – Bed High: $8
Large Pickup – Cab High: $10
Large Pickup – Above Cab High: $12

Trailer – Single Axle: $10
Trailer – Double Axle: $15

Dump Truck – Cab High: $20
Dump Truck – Above Cab High: $25

 

---

Collection site will accept the following items:
Slash / limbs / tree debris / pine needles
Maximum length: 8 Feet
Maximum diameter: 6 Inches

Collection site will NOT accept the following items:
Household trash / tree stumps
Construction material
Refuse from commercial operations

 

---

Questions?  Please call Emergency Management at 303-271-4900.

Rooney Road Recycling Center is a privately-run slash drop-off site near Golden that operates in the off-season.

 

Fortunately, the #LowerNorthForkFire is not anywhere near Evergreen.  My estimate is that it’s about 25-30 miles away, but, that’s just a guess.  The evacuation zone is about 15-20 miles away, according to the Jeffco Sheriff’s map from today.  The fire is about 4000 acres so far.

Jeffco Sherrif's Map, from http://jeffcosheriff1.blogspot.com/

Our hearts and thoughts go out to everyone effected by the fires and sincerely hope the fires get put out soon!

You can find the most updated info on the fire here.

You can also find interesting radio traffic about this here.

Here’s a good article form the Denver Post about the Colorado River, particularly the upper part.

“I’ve just always enjoyed guiding over here. And fishing it, for that matter,” said Dye, a career guide with The Blue Quill Angler in Evergreen (303-674-4700). “This river is so diverse. But like all rivers, it has its good times and its not-so-good times.”

Dye has witnessed the cycles of the upper Colorado, and like many, his concern has heightened recently over one of those “not-so-good times.” For the moment, the fishing is fine, albeit not what it once was. But times are changing, enough that Dye wonders how many more days remain to come.

“I’ve fished this river since I was a kid and just hate to see it go by the wayside,” he said. “It’s such a sweet fishery, it really is. But I’m just starting to feel that pinch like it could really take a downturn.”

Read more: River advocates fear that two proposed water diversions could hurt fishing on the upper Colorado – The Denver Posthttp://www.denverpost.com/outdoors/ci_20217411/river-advocates-fear-that-two-proposed-water-diversions#ixzz1pn9Ggarv

[Show as slideshow]

We went for a walk the other day and noticed several new things.  First, the finished trail and fences on the south side.  They look really good and I’m sure after a while when the grass grows it’ll be great!  Hopefully, the fence will last and people won’t break it down.  In case you were one of the folks who cut the trail all the time, It’s really not good to cut it.  It kills the grass and causes erosion and looks pretty bad.  So please, everyone, be cool.  The fence looks great!

Also, noticed that Evergreen Parks and Recreation put a LOT of effort into removing much of the pond seaweed with boats, rakes and trucks.  Notice the huge piles on the shore in the gallery below.

[Show as slideshow]

I went for a walk around the lake last night and took a few pictures.  It was a really nice walk; the weather was perfect, the lake was smooth and there were lots of people enjoying the evening. The park and rec district is doing some nice work on the trail around the lake.  Smoothing it out, widening in places, adding more gravel where there’s usually standing water after a rain, rebuilding some rock walls and trying to close the makeshift trail that people have blazed cutting the switchback on the south side of the lake.

They’ve put up two fences, one at the top and one at the bottom, but people have decided to ignore that and trample the fence down and just walk right over it. It’s really too bad that people don’t have the respect for our lake, trail and the Parks and Recreation Districts work to protect and maintain a good trail system.

As I said, the walk around the lake was really beautiful, including a really nice wedding at the Evergreen Lake house (for reservations, please call the Lake House at 720.880.1311).  Have a look at this small gallery and let us know how you like to enjoy the lake.

[Show as slideshow]

Please join The Evergreen Design Center on Friday, July 29th from 5:00 until 8:00 as they welcome Melanie Warinske (Nuchols), former president of the Evergreen Chamber and one of Colorado’s most original artists at their July Artist Reception. Melanie’s powerful combination of metal, wood and found objects are centerpieces of private homes and corporate offices throughout the country. The Evergreen Design Center is privileged to show her work  at the Evergreen Design Center Friday the 29th.
Receptions are an informal and family-friendly way to spend a summer evening. Here is the schedule of other great local artists coming to the Evergreen Design Center this summer:

Friday, August 26th J. Chester Armstrong, wood sculptor
Friday, September 30th Denise West, oil and watercolor painter

We’ve had EDS Waste Solutions for a long time, probably about 8 years.  But we spent a lot of time collecting all of our recycling in the basement and hauling it to the King Soopers recycling center.  We really wanted Curb-Side recycling, which EDS offers, but for an additional cost, and you need to use your own containers.

Then we heard from some friends about Mountain View and that they offer free Curb-Side recycling and give you free cans too!!  We’ve been using these really old trash cans, but they’re really beat up and falling apart and hard to haul around.  When we found that Mountain View would bring us 2 free cans, we were sold and immediately switched.

Mountain View Trash and Recycling Cans

The Recycling is great!  Single Stream and they take just about everything.  We’re OK with a small box of some recycling that we take to King Soopers every now and then.  Mostly, we’ll need to take the non-corrugated cardboard, but beyond that, Single Stream, Curb-Side Recycling is a big WIN for us.

Recycling Rules

Thank you EDS for all the years of garbage Collection!

Thank you Mountain View for the new collection, Recycling and cans!

(A note to EDS:  We’ve had several other families switch just because we did and the Mountain View deal is so good.  If you had a similar deal, we would not have switched.  It might be time to re-examine your offerings to be more competitive.)

June 1 – The Congress and Evergreen School of Music

June 15 – Mountain Holler and Juggernaut

June 29 – Max Wagner and Mighty High Band

July 13 – Your Father’s Mustache and Acoustic Mining Company

July 27 – Josh and the Empty Pockets and The Hooligans

August 10 – Megan Burtt and the Cure For Love and Open Space

August 24 – Tunisia and Fresh Jefferson

Here are a few pictures from the Soda Creek Fire last week.  Some of the smoke and some of the burn area after the fire on Highway 103.  Fortunately, it didn’t get very big and our fabulous firefighters knocked it down right away!

[Show as slideshow]

Now that the ice has completely melted and we’ve had some great warm weather, some wind, a few fires, another few inches of snow, then some more wind and now some real spring weather, I thought I’d post some photos of some interesting ice. There were at times some large cracks showing and there was one day when part of the main skating rink was flooded because of an obvious crack somewhere under all the snow. Fortunately, it didn’t affect the skating much.

Also, part of the southern boardwalk had additional 4×4 supports put in that couldn’t stand up to the ice.

[Show as slideshow]