Report from the Rockies

November/December 2007

Scott Hampel , MDF Regional Director

Summer Ends with a Bang in the Rocky Mountain Region!

Autumn is here! By the time that you read this, many of you will have already spent some time in the field. Others are just beginning to enjoy their time pursuing their favorite big game or small game species. It’s this time of year that reminds us why MDF members, volunteers and staff, have gotten involved in wildlife conservation. Being in the outdoors, seeing those fall colors, sneaking on those crunchy leaves, smelling that sage, and spotting that “trophy” buck remind us just how fortunate we are to share in our country’s hunting tradition. For many of us, it makes us want to continue to work to ensure that our mule deer have a future long after we have gone. It’s this passion, commitment and sense of renewal that keeps MDF chugging along. Here’s what has been taking place.

Visits to nearly all chapters throughout Colorado, Wyoming, Nebraska and New Mexico took place by Regional Director Scott Hampel to provide support and make preparations for a variety of events in 2007 and upcoming events in 2008. 

On Aug. 17-19, the Mile High Chapter hosted a booth at the 2007 Bass Pro Fall Classic where several memberships were obtained, a raffle drawing for a firearm was conducted, and Bass Pro Shops presented the Mile High Chapter with a check, thereby becoming a Conservation Partner to assist in funding habitat work to be completed in the Radium State Wildlife Area near Kremmling, Colo., in 2008.

On Friday, Aug. 24, 2007, the Pikes Peak Chapter hosted its annual fundraising event at the Knights of Columbus Hall in Security, Colo. With a Friday evening event scheduled, the chapter volunteers were a little skeptical and concerned about attendance. As it turned out, the chapter had its largest crowd ever with 85 people in attendance and raised over $6,000 which also set a milestone for this smaller chapter. Special thanks to Matt and Lisa Friedel, Mike and Kathleen Kondus and their family, and Earl and Sara Lasley for making the time and commitment to keep this chapter moving forward. These volunteers remain enthused and look forward to setting records again in 2008. If you are interested in volunteering for this chapter, please contact Matt Friedel at 719-439-7745 or Mike Kondus at 719-491-3028.

On Aug. 29, 2007, the annual Colorado Technical Advisory Committee met with Bob Meulengracht, Scott Hampel, and Joe Straley representing MDF along with Bruce Watkins (Colorado Division of Wildlife), Wes Anderson (US BLM), Keith Geizentanner (USFS), and Terri Skadeland (NRCS) to review and prioritize Colorado projects. As a result of this meeting, several projects were identified to receive funding. Additional follow-up work is in progress by MDF to allocate the funds to these projects. Stay tuned.

Early September involved an eight-day trip to visit chapters in Rock Springs, Kemmerer, Lander/Riverton, Casper and Laramie. If you are in these areas and would like to become a volunteer or make donations, please contact the following:  For Rock Springs, contact Joshua Coursey at 307-389-7459 or Joey Faigl at 307-382-7612; for Kemmerer, contact Christa Whitmore at 307-877-2292; for Lander/Riverton, contact Clarke Daniels at 307-330-4760; for Casper, contact Scott Brownell at 307-267-9647; for Laramie, contact Ed Elliott at 307-760-2653. The Snowy Range Chapter of Laramie will host its 2007 event on Dec. 1, 2007.

The Central Wyoming Chapter conducted its Magnum four-hunt raffle in August. The winners include Greg Pope (Casper, Wyo.) – 2007 Canadian Moose Hunt; Bob Corbitt (Roanoke, Va.) – 2008 Wyoming Elk Hunt; Jeff Larson (Casper, Wyo.) – 2007 Canadian Mule Deer Hunt; and Corey Gamroth (Casper, Wyo.) 2007 Nebraska Whitetail Hunt. The Central Wyoming Chapter also hosted a booth at the 2007 Wyoming Hunting and Fishing Heritage Expo in Casper on Sept. 7-9 where 19 new or renewing members were obtained.  The Snowy Range Chapter has also been busy in a spring/water development project near Laramie. Details of this project will be included in a future issue of MDF magazine.

On Sept. 22, 2007, the High Mountain Chapter of Walden, Colo., hosted its fifth annual fundraising event at the Jackson County Fairgrounds. This small chapter in this small Colorado mountain town came out in support of MDF and had its largest crowd ever with nearly 90 people and raised $4,700. A special thanks to Rae Redman and her family for making this event a success.

The Frenchman Chapter of southwest Nebraska has been busy at work preparing for its first annual fundraising event held on Oct. 26, 2007. At the time of this writing, the results have not been determined, but this enthusiastic group of conservationist is expecting to have 200 people in attendance. Information will follow in the next MDF magazine. If you are interested in joining this committee or making a donation, please contact Brian Perks at 308-737-1305 or Chad Taylor at 308-697-3843. Brian and Chad are biologists of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, and they have a variety of projects in their area that need your help and funding.

The Pass The Buck Chapter of Rifle/Silt, Colo., will host its annual fundraising event on Nov. 10, 2007, at the Battlement Mesa Activity Center in Parachute, Colo. For information or tickets, please contact Jon or Joan Nestor at 970-876-2036.

A visit to the Santa Fe Trail Chapter of Raton, N.M., and Northern New Mexico Chapter of Santa Fe, N.M., took place on Sept. 26 and 27. These chapters are looking forward to hosting events in 2008. To help out, contact Bill Crigler in Raton at 505-445-3469 or Jacob Tolk in Santa Fe 505-615-0770.

On a final note, MDF has partnered with the Colorado DOW by offering a firearm drawing to those hunters who submit teeth from their harvested buck deer in the Colorado Game Management Units 54, 61, 62, and 80. The Colorado DOW has sent a letter to those hunters who have drawn 2007 general licenses (i.e., excluding landowner vouchers and private land only licenses). In short, successful hunters are being asked to extract and submit teeth from their harvested buck deer so the CDOW can judge age and develop a statistical model for the age composition of harvested bucks. This will provide some insight into the potential trade offs between hunter opportunity and quality deer management for these specified units. Only those hunters who are hunting the specific units, have received the informational letter/packet from the CDOW, and submit teeth will be eligible for this drawing.