In Brief: Full moon for uphilling; short list for big Aspen Words book award; can congressman get trail completed?
Full moon dinner Tuesday for uphillers at Cliffhouse
The full moon dinner at the Cliffhouse invites lunar lovers Tuesday to skin or hike up the main route on Buttermilk for a monthly meal beneath an illuminated winter sky.
Uphillers can scoot up early and enjoy fireside cocktails and a cash bar when the Cliffhouse opens at 5 p.m. From 5:30 to 8 p.m., á la carte dinner options — including the Mongolian Grill — will be served. No outside alcohol is allowed.
Organizers ask uphillers to remember to wear their orange strap in a visible location, and to be sure to bring a light for the way down. Ample parking is availabvle at Main Buttermilk and limited parking at Tiehack and West Buttermilk. No dogs are allowed on the mountain.
Aspen Words award narrows to short list
The sixth annual Aspen Words Literary Prize awards have narrowed to a short list, and the awars ceremony is scheduled for Wednesday, April 19 at The Morgan Library in New York City.
The ceremony program will include a conversation with the five finalist authors moderated by Kate Tuttle, executive editor for books at People Magazine, along with the announcement of the 2023 winner. A celebratory reception a winner toast will immediately follow.
The short list for the award: “How Not to Drown in a Glass of Water” (Flatiron-Macmillan)
by Angie Cruz; “Calling for a Blanket Dance” (Algonquin) by Oscar Hokeah; “The Haunting of Hajji Hotak and Other Stories” (Viking-PRH) by Jamil Jan Kochai; and “The Consequences” (Graywolf Press) by Manuel Muñoz.
General admission and livestream access are free with donations of any amount helping to defray event costs and support the Aspen Words mission. VIP tickets are available for $250 and include an docent tour of The Morgan Library, a pre-ceremony prosecco toast, premium reserved seating for the ceremony, a wine and hors d’oeuvres reception following the ceremony, and a hard copy of the prize-winning book.
Doors open at 6 p.m. ET, with the event to follow at 6:30-7:45 p.m. and reception until 8:30 p.m.
The Aspen Words Literary Prize is a $35,000 annual award for an influential work of fiction that illuminates a vital contemporary issue and demonstrates the transformative power of literature on thought and culture.
Congressman brings back bill to finish Continental Divide Trail at last
Routt County is home to some of the last remaining unfinalized sections of the Continental Divide National Scenic Trail in Colorado, dubbed the Muddy Pass Gap that follows along Colorado Highway 14 toward Walden, as well two miles alongside U.S. Highway 40 east of Dumont Lake.
For decades, trail advocates and organizations have been trying to reroute and finalize the last sections of the trail along safe, scenic routes and get the trail off high-speed highways. Toward that goal, Rep. Joe Neguse, ranking member of the U.S. House Subcommittee on Federal Lands, reintroduced the Continental Divide Trail Completion Act on Wednesday, March 1.
The goal is completion of the trail before its 50th anniversary in 2028 by acquiring land to eliminate gaps between trail sections and relocating existing portions of the trail where necessary to maximize conservation and enjoyment of the trail corridor, according to Neguse’s office.
The completion act would direct the U.S. secretaries of agriculture and interior to create a dedicated trail completion team to work in coordination with affected stakeholders to complete the necessary planning work to optimize the trail, identify priority tracts for acquisition and work to acquire those lands where possible.
Glenwood awards pay-as-you-throw to local waste company
Mountain Waste and Recycling won the bid for Glenwood Springs’ pay-as-you-throw program.
The city is now entering negotiations with the local waste company to include trash, recycling and maybe even yard waste pick-up.
Both Mountain Waste and Recycling and Waste Management turned in a request for proposal to be the city’s main trash hauling company for residents in housing of seven or fewer units.
Housing units of eight or more will not be required to be on this contract, but will eventually be subject to a recycling statute by the city of Glenwood Springs, and eventually the state too.
“The extended producer responsibility statute did get passed in the state of Colorado, which basically means that in the next several years most communities or haulers are going to have to go to some form of recycling anyhow,” Glenwood Springs Public Works Director Matt Langhorst said.
The main idea around pay-as-you-throw is to allow the city to charge more per larger bin size while offering curbside recycling pickup to encourage people to recycle more, while also saving space in the South Canyon Landfill.
“One of the main reasons why the current system isn’t working for us from a landfill perspective, is that we’ve done audits of our trash and we know that 80% of what’s going into the landfill right now could be recycled,” South Canyon Landfill Manager Liz Mauro said.
“This bill will expedite the completion of the trail and close existing gaps, ensuring more people can enjoy these outdoor spaces. It is long past time for us to get this done,” said Neguse, whose district includes Routt County.
