Your source for news in Hot Springs County
Your source for news in Hot Springs County
Sorted by date Results 951 - 975 of 1309
Heat. Heat. And more Heat. Welcome to summer in Wyoming! While we love to complain about the cold in the winter, we’re also pretty vocal about the heat in the summer. Unfortunately, while the summer sun is wonderful if you’re working on your tan, its not so wonderful for the grasses and such on the prairie. We had such a beautiful, wet spring and everything grew like crazy, covering our red hills with lush grasses, but now, with the 90-degree plus temperatures we’ve been having, all that green has turned to brown, creating a highly dangerous fi...
Hot Springs County Fair is fast approaching! The fair board is calling for entries for building and livestock open class exhibits. The community is encouraged to enter their exhibits. There are plenty of classes in which to enter, including: Grain, Forage, Crops & Vegetables, Horticulture, Livestock, Poultry & Rabbits, Apiculture & Wool, Dogs, Cats, Culinary, Flowers & Plants, Needlecraft, Photography, Paintings & Drawings and Arts & Crafts. So if you have a beautiful quilt that you made, a photograph you took, flowers or delicious vegetables...
Recently I had the pleasure of renewing my bridge partnership with a close personal friend from Worland. We competed (not too well unfortunately) in a regional tournament in Casper over last weekend. After a break of some years from tournament action, it was an eye-opener to experience the competition again and to renew acquaintance with old friends and opponents. Amazingly, playing with teammates from the club in Worland, we won five matches and lost one on the last day of the tourney. The best part of the weekend was seeing the excitement...
It’s no secret that big chain stores and even some smaller businesses quickly get their products for the next season or holiday out just as soon as the current one passes, in some cases before it does. Seeing Christmas decorations next to Halloween candy or plastic eggs next to heart-shaped boxes of chocolates is pretty common these days. And that push to get products out has spread to summer vacation as well. No sooner do the colors and sounds of Independence Day fade and already shelves are stacked with the newest notebooks, folders, pens, b...
This is one of my most favorite weekends in Thermopolis -- All Class Reunion! Every year, Bobcats from across the country gather in this little place we called home to reminisce, see old friends and relive the good old days. (Not that we’re old. Really.) This is also a chance for alumni to visit their old stomping grounds, drag a few “mains” or maybe go down to Green Eye (realizing that water is a lot faster than we remember). Snider Point and the buffalo pasture are a must, and perhaps, if yo...
Last week I made the annual trip to PBS to watch their presentation of “A Washington Fourth.” I was particularly pleased that the “Beachboys” were prominently featured on the program since they succeeded in reviving some happy days when the problems we faced were, or at least seemed, much smaller. What I didn’t see was as entertaining as the group. I didn’t see a single scowl among the large crowd gathered in the mall area. No signs of protest slogans, no policemen in riot gear, no megaphone announcements, and no one being pushed or pummeled...
Wow. Once again, the Thermopolis Volunteer Fire Department entertained the crowds with a spectacular fireworks show. Sometimes, they don’t get all the credit they deserve for putting on the annual Fourth of July festivities, but a big “Thank You” to the guys for gathering all the donations from local businesses and individuals, making all the arrangements for the show, ordering in the fireworks and creating a safe space for folks to set off their own whizzers, bangers and sky rockets. Instead of spending the holiday with their own famil...
This past weekend afforded me an interesting opportunity, as well as a reminder, to witness duality when dealing with nature, especially when it comes to water. The Wind River and Bighorn River have generated quite a bit of discussion and speculation over the past few weeks, what with the runoff and occasional rainstorm impacting just how fast they each are moving. Saturday, I watched as a couple groups navigated the river in the canyon, waves soaking and spinning them, even helping their rafts...
Sixty plus years ago, Dad and I would arise at 4 a.m. in Torrington and have our lines in the water by first light at Glendo. We caught a ton (slight exaggeration) of fish there. As the years passed, as well as Dad, I began to realize that my mind wasn’t reliving the thrill of reeling in a good sized Rainbow, it was reveling in the warmth of a father/son relationship that transcended who could land the largest trout of the day though that competition was delightful. Worries, frets, regrets, and anxieties were left back in Torrington for Mom t...
Next week will see the annual observance of Independence Day, recognizing that day in 1776 when the United States adopted the Declaration of Independence and declared itself a free nation, no longer part of the British Empire. Though the legal separation of the 13 colonies from Great Britain actually occurred on July 2, it wasn’t until Congress debated and revised the language in Thomas Jefferson’s original document that the Declaration of Independence was finally approved. The following year saw the first observance of Independence Day, wit...
I wanted to say a quick “thank you” to our local businesses for all they do. We all gripe about how expensive everything is here, and how we could buy the same item online, or in a big box retail store much cheaper. I recently had an experience that I hope will encourage everyone to buy locally, and keep our hard earned dollars in our community. Last summer/fall I bought a flashlight from a local business. Sometime last winter it quit working, and as I wasn’t around to go to the store and talk to them about it, I put it out of my mind. I belie...
This past Saturday I was honored to be able to shoot photos of a very heartwarming event, the Ageless Aviation Dreams Foundation flights provided to some of the veterans at the Wyoming Pioneer Home. I watched these gentlemen getting off the Pioneer Home bus, some walking on their own, some with walkers or canes and even some with oxygen – looked over at the open cockpit bi-plane, and wondered how this was going to work. What happened was amazing. The pilot, Mike Winterboer and his wife, D...
Most teachers find after they have completed their Bachelors and spent a year in the classroom that it’s in their interest financially and professionally to seek a Masters in something...practically anything will be helpful to their career. Unfortunately, many interested in the three reasons to enter teaching (June, July, and August) soon find that they have been misled about the nature of the vocation they have undertaken. It seems there was an applicant for a high steel job in a city working on a high-rise project. Though he indicated he h...
Chamber of Commerce Executive Director We are only 53 days away from the 2017 Solar Eclipse. It is hard to believe that we have been planning for this event for almost 2 years. I have been surprised how many organizations have been involved in preparing for this “Once in a Lifetime” Event. Among the participants in these at these monthly planning meetings have been BLM, HSC Public Health, HSC Emergency Management, Mortimore Ambulance Service, HSC Search & Rescue, HSC Weed & Pest, HSCMH, Hot Springs State Park, HSC Planner, Town of The...
The Bureau of Reclamation made the decision earlier this week to up the flow from Boysen Reservoir to 9,000cfs, up from the 8,000cfs for the last week or so. If you’ve driven through Wind River Canyon you’ve undoubtedly noticed the water is high and the rapids are running swiftly. All you need do is drive over to the State Park and you’ll see a couple of the islands are “missing” and the walkway near the river is flooded in a number of places. The water at the boat dock below the terraces is so high it’s encroaching on the sidewalks there, as w...
Next month, Thermopolis will see plenty of alumni from various years when graduation weekend comes around. Still considering myself a bit of a “new guy” in the town — having been here just over a year — the weekend is one of the events I think is really interesting. I grew up in a town where the summer high school reunion was for one specific year, rather than all those years ending in a specific number, and I was thinking the other night about what my graduating class might have to say to thos...
by Bill Williams So, as most of you recall last November the Hospital District issue passed by a nearly 2:1 margin and everyone who worked so hard on getting it passed was ecstatic. The new board members all were sworn in within 10 days, the new board held a brief organizational meeting in early December and we appeared before the County Commissioners at their December 20 meeting and brought them up to date on what had been transpiring. Everything was proceeding as we expected until we got a call from our County Assessor in early April telling...
The wounding of a Congressman should have absolutely shocked and disgusted the American people, but we have degenerated to the point that political points are being raised and argued from all directions, and little is being noted about what we’ve become in the age of terrorism. ISIS with its ultimate cruelty and disregard for humanity and human life has encouraged those with mental aberrations to believe that there is some kind of divine right that allows them to indiscriminately take actions which have no relevance to problem solving. H...
by Amanda Moeller Director, Hot Springs Travel & Tourism What is the Lodging Tax? Who pays it? What happens to the money collected? According to the Wyoming Travel Industry Coalition’s Wyoming Lodging Tax Manual, “In communities that have approved the lodging tax, all establishments providing sleeping accommodations to transient guests (who stay less than 30 days) must collect this special sales tax.” Lodging tax is collected by motels, hotels, RV parks, dude ranches, bed and breakfasts, campgrounds, and vacation rentals. Every county in Wyomi...
This weekend marks the annual celebration of and for the daddies, the papas, and the old men. That’s right, it’s Father’s Day, a day that calls to mind images of dad flipping burgers on the grill and opening homemade cards and boxes containing ties. Father’s Day is a relatively new celebration, not really seen outside Catholic traditions until the early 20th century, when it was established to complement Mother’s Day — first celebrated in 1908. Father’s Day was first established in 1910. While celebrating those with whom we have genetic ties...
Mark your calendar for the Annual Gift of the Water Parade that is Saturday, August 5 at 10 a.m. The theme to this year’s parade is “Pages from the Ages — Celebrating over 100 years.” Many of our downtown buildings are celebrating their 100th birthday this year. It is amazing that we can look at some of the buildings and know that they have been there for at least a 100 years. The parade route is as follows: Line up starts at 9:30 a.m. on Arapahoe and Senior Avenue — make sure to check in and get your entry number. At 10 a.m. the parade wi...
We’ve talked a lot about spring and flowers and everything getting so green and beautiful right now, which got me to thinking about my grandmother and her little brother. In the old days, kids had to not only make their own fun, there was no such thing as an allowance, so in order to get treats, they had to use their ingenuity. My grandmother, Margaret, and her little brother, John, lived in Kirby as they were growing up. Their father, my great-grandfather, was the sheriff at the time. My g...
As part of a planned vacation, I brought my girlfriend to Thermopolis to spend the day, as I had visited the city six years ago. On that visit, I was only in town four hours as I traveled from Yellowstone to Cheyenne on my way back to Topeka, Kansas. I drove through the park, getting out to see things but did not do much else. I wanted to bring my girlfriend to see and try things that I found interesting, including trying the mineral water baths and swimming. We stayed at a local bed and breakfast, which was fantastic. I was glad to find them...
We all know the old saying about opinions and that everyone has one, and in this age of social media it’s very apparent everyone has an opinion. As American citizens, we are blessed with the freedom of speech, something many other countries are not allowed. Imagine living in North Korea where you cannot speak your mind, especially regarding anything political. While all of us may speak our minds, sometimes we forget when we’re typing away on the computer, that there is an actual human being on the other side of that screen. Granted, that per...
SHOP THERMOP! It is the war cry and basic marketing of our community’s businesses. We have all heard it, and we all have our own responses. The question I would present to these businesses is, why? What do you have to offer me that I can only get in Thermopolis? Nearly forty people recently went through an intensive half-day customer service and hospitality workshop. We all learned, or dusted off basic customer service skills that were taught many years and many jobs ago. I am sure that Mark Dykes will have written an article about what we d...
