I know that it can be overwhelming to receive three, word- and info-packed newsletters every week—more if there’s some sort of breaking news—so I wanted to give y’all, and me, a little pause in which to catch up on things. Even the most devoted readers sometimes slide past a Land Desk dispatch, thinking they’re going to read it later, but then forget. To find the ones you’ve missed, just go to the archives and scroll on down the list (if you didn’t read my piece about an ill-fated backpacking trip, check it out).

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• Dams, dams, and more dams… You may have thought the dam-building era had ended, but now, even as Glen Canyon and Hoover become obsolete, a flurry of new dam-building (on a much smaller scale) is on the drawing block for the West.

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Okay, it is a pause day, but we couldn’t let this one slide. Like most national media outlets, the New York Times ran a piece on the fatal bear attack near Durango, which, like most stories, was a rewrite of the Colorado Parks and Wildlife press releases. But unlike other stories, the Times’ description of where the attack happened was straight out of bizarro world:

Uhhh…. wait. First off, Trimble is not a town, it’s a vaguely defined place marked by a road (Trimble Lane) and a hot springs. Second, the attack took place about 38 miles south of Telluride. Third, and most important, the attack took place just a few miles outside of Durango, which is a much larger town than Telluride. Oy.

The Land Desk @Land_Desk

Oh, come on, @nytimes !? This is so wrong: A. The bear attack took place a few miles from Durango, a bigger town the Telluride; B. It was about 40 miles south of Telluride, not 100. C. Trimble is not a town. Oy. If you’re not going to hire local journos, at least look at a map!

May 3rd 2021

14 Retweets92 Likes

Amy Maestas @maeamy_co

@Land_Desk @nytimes When I read this this morning, I was enraged. But for professional reasons, I held off on my dunk. I can't help but think Telluride was the place marker because NYT's white affluent readers know what it is but not Durango.

May 3rd 2021

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