The Power Within the Sun
The next several posts in this blog will be a series involving a look at the Native American tribes that once flourished where the trail is now proposed to go. The word “tribes” is a common term used to describe the various groups of people who once populated the continent. I prefer and will use […]
Out Past the 100th Meridian
Meridians are another name for lines of longitude. The concept of longitude is fairly old and can be traced back to Eratosthenes in the 3rd century BC. The measurement of longitude (particularly at sea) however is an entirely modern scientific construct. It wasn’t until the late 1700s, with the invention by John Harrison of a […]
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Exclamation Points
The other day on the WordPress “front page,” called Freshly Pressed, I stumbled on a very nice photo which I recognized immediately to be from the Badlands in South Dakota (not the photo above). I clicked on the blog to find out what the post might be about. The blog is called Everywhere Once and […]
A Legacy of Landscape
Following up on the earlier post about Ted Turner, an article appeared today in the Bozeman Daily Chronicle. It’s something of mini-biography of Mr. Turner and all of his Montana connections and land purchases throughout recent decades. The article describes Mr. Turner as a conservationist and a philanthropist of the first order. Although some of […]
Ted Turner Donates Bison to Boulder
The mascot for the University of Colorado is the buffalo. Another term is bison (interestingly, both terms mean ox-like animal), and soon the mighty bison (or buffalo) may be making an appearance in Boulder on more than just the side of a football helmet. An article in the Boulder Daily Camera reported that media magnate, […]
Buffalo Jump
Great news is coming out of South Dakota where Wind Cave National Park just added over 5,500 acres to the southern end of the park. The land was a former ranch which was purchased by The Conservation Fund before being annexed by the park (an 11 year process). The new section includes a small cliff […]
Oh Give Me a Home . . .
The following link is a great introduction and preview of photographer Michael Forsberg’s feature Great Plains – America’s Lingering Wild. Taking center stage is the alluring landscapes and wildlife of the Great Plains, and the photography is just as fascinating as the wildlife. It is absolutely well worth watching the entire 10 or 11 minutes. The […]
The State of the Prairie
There was an interesting article from the Chicago Tribune today about how Illinois, which is kown as “the Prairie State,” has only 0.01% of its native prairies left! Imagine if West Virginia, “the Mountain State,” had only 0.01% of its mountains left; or if Rhode Island, “the Ocean State,” had only 0.01% of its coastline […]
From Town to Church
Here’s a quick update on a story I blogged about a few months back. As you may or may not recall, this past summer the town of Scenic South Dakota was for sale for the tidy sum of $799,000. Well, it turns out that a buyer has been found. It appears that the buyer is […]
Verbatim
It’s enjoyable to search for, and ultimately find, great quotes about the Great Plains. So here’s a really quick post with some of my favorites: A world of grass and flowers stretched around me, rising and falling in gentle undulations, as if an enchanter had struck the ocean swell, and it was at rest forever […]
His Horse is Spirited
One of the best things about the Great Plains is its history. The region is home to so many amazing tales and household names from this nation’s past – Lewis and Clark, Sitting Bull, Custer, Crazy Horse, Red Cloud, and Calamity Jane to name just a few. I recently stumbled upon a quote about one […]
A Horse of a Different Color
Horses have a long history on the Great Plains. There is evidence of early horses (from the genus equus, which includes horses, donkeys, and zebras) in parts of North America from many thousands of years ago. It is not entirely clear what their relationship with humans might have been, but it’s likely that climatic changes […]
