Welcome And What’s Ahead

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Good morning and welcome to Let's Talk Wyoming. I'm Mark Hamilton, your host, and today we'll be taking a look at our crazy Wyoming weather. We'll talk about other things happening in our state of Wyoming in the tourist season is just right around the corner. And we'll also talk about our favorite Yellowstone National Park. Thanks for joining us, and we hope you enjoy the show.

No Winter And Rising Fire Risk

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Definitely spring outside here in Wyoming right now in Hot Springs County. 68 degrees today. I can't even believe it with the temperatures. I've been off the pod for a few months. I had a commitment that I had to fill, and so just didn't have enough spare time to do anything. But back in November is when I started this, and I had to do quite a bit of driving back and forth there in the basin. And I was kind of a little blurry about maybe some of the road conditions might be. And I didn't face one day of bad roads. It was crazy. Our weather has been. We didn't have winter this year. There's no Wyoming weather at all. No Wyoming winter. That doesn't make much sense. But there hasn't been. It's just been totally goofy. We've had a couple little snow events, three to four inches of snow, but it doesn't stay on the ground very long. A little cold weather, but nothing of any streams. We did get below zero a couple nights, and but that broke really easily. And so now we're at the point where it's as dry as a bone out there. And I just got back from Cheyenne over the weekend, Casper to Cheyenne, and it's dry everywhere. They had gotten a little bit of snow in the Cheyenne area a couple days earlier, but with the wind blowing like gale force down there and temperatures warming up, it's gone. And just crazy. I see we've got red flag warnings throughout the state. And I think we're just going to be fighting fires from now on. I don't see any type of real weather pattern coming in that's going to give us a bunch of moisture. It's scary right now, folks. And I think it's this way across the country. We saw some fires down in Oklahoma and places where they've had these fires start with the winds we've had. It's just been just not good for anybody. So we're just sitting around here just hoping for the best. That's all we can do as we go into the month of March.

Irrigation Decisions And Low Reservoirs

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My grass is starting to green up. I'm going to have to start thinking about firing up the irrigation system. I water here at our house with a well. We have city water, but I also have a well that I need to turn on. And I'm trying to determine if we're going to get any more freezing weather. We're going to get to that point where I don't think we can. And so it may just be I'm going to have to turn on the pump and get some water going to everything. I pine trees are definitely dry, and it's just dry out there. And I don't know what we're going to do. Boyson Reservoir here is to the south of us here through the Wind River Canyon. It is really low right now. Now, one thing about it, the the Wind River range is at above 100% on snowpack, but boy, that can go pretty quick with these type conditions and such, trying to fill back up into Boyson and the agricultural community, the farmers up in the Bighorn Basin, or uh be out and planting barley. A lot of them already planted barley last month and got that going and the field work going and with these dry conditions, they're going to be looking for some water pretty quick. Now, the one thing about that, the irrigation um group for the areas, they run different canals. It's a while before they turn the water to the canals, so I don't know when that'll be, but I'm sure it's gonna be the first part of April, the way we're going now. So a lot of things are gonna get affected. But here in the state of Wyoming, there was not a winter. And I've been around for quite a few years. I've never seen anything like this, and it was pretty evident by the time we rolled through January that winter wasn't coming. I don't know what's happened. There's weather modification, all these storms went to the east and to the east, and here we are just getting drier by the day. And around Hot Springs County, we had a lot of dry weather last summer and just catastrophic grass fires out to the east of us here and burned thousands and thousands of acres. And there's no recovery from that. And I don't know what those people, the ranchers out in that area, are gonna do for feed as you continue on. But I don't know, this may be biblical with everything going on in the world. It's a crazy time. It's a time that kind of like that Johnny Cash song, time to get right with the man is what's all about. But here in Wyoming, no winter. Spring is here, the robins are here, the red-winged uh blackbirds are here, all the birds are showing up. I guess it's nothing we can do, but just go ahead and have at it, get ready to start into spring and enjoy it while we can or just see what's in store in the months ahead.

Tourist Season And Rising Gas Worries

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In other happenings around the state of Wyoming here in the first part of March, and of course we're getting closer to tourist season. We all know that uh summer will be here. It was 68 and today and warm, and I see conditions next week are even warmer, so we're gonna start seeing tourists come into the state of Wyoming. Parks and Yellowstone and all of our sites are gonna be open. So we'll see how well it turns out, depending on what type of moisture we get and what type of fire issues we have. But state of Wyoming will be open for the tourist season, and I hope to see a lot of tourists out there. I don't know what's gonna happen with the events that are happening with Iran and Israel and the Middle East, is seeming to be kind of going a little off kilter. And if oil prices do go up and stay up, our gas prices have come up here locally, and I'm sure they've gone up around the state, depending how long this lasts. If it ends up prolonging and ends up in a long, long, long drawn-out affair, we could see some high prices, which I can believe that would have an impact on our local tourist season. So we'll see what happens there. But again, a lot of big things happening. I know here in Hot Springs County, we have become the fly fishing capital of the area with the Bighorn River, a blue ribbon trout stream going through Thermopolis here, through the Wind River Canyon and through Thermop. And we do have we're the capital of fly shops. Companies that will provide fishing trips, and uh I think at the last count I had five. There could be more, and depending on what other little independents are doing stuff. But right now the river is really low. There's not much water in Boyson, and so they've shut the cut down or the flow through the dam uh at Boyson to the bare minimum. There's a minimum they have to keep just to keep things going and such for water supply. And and like here in Thermop, the the city gets their water from the river, and the purification plant takes care of that. But you've got to have water for people to survive. So it's all gonna depend on the runoff. The mountains and the Wind River range are up over 100%. But boy, that can go quick depending on what happens. Weather comes in, gets pretty warm, and get that going too quick. Um, a lot of things will happen. Of course, it's dry everywhere, so everybody's gonna need this water. So it will be a long, long, drawn-out summer, but tourist season will be here.

Wyoming Politics And Election Season

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Also, another happening in the state, the legislatures uh heard at it down in Cheyenne, uh going back and forth. There's just so much politics anymore. I don't know what the point is that politics is getting almost unbearable with the divide between everyone and trying to reach some type of agreement on anything, is getting to be quite an issue. So, and we've got an election year coming up, and with our governor uh race, we have a Senate race that uh our previous uh Senator Loomis is stepping aside, and uh Harriet Hageman, our representative, who defeated Liz Cheney a couple years ago, she is going to run for the Senate, and so that leaves her position open. So there's a lot of people that are into the Fourier right now and trying to get one of those spots. So everything in the state is pretty fluid right now. And I guess we're gonna have, like everywhere else, we're gonna have election season coming up. So all that stuff is happening.

Data Centers And Water Demand

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Other thing I mentioned before uh months ago, I was talking about data centers here in the state of Wyoming and across the country, the impact, and they're building one in Cheyenne, and lo and behold, they put a little piece in the paper that they're gonna double the size of that data plant, um, data center, I should say. Kind of sneak it in there, and now they're gonna have to drill some wells. And it's amazing what I I said pretty much came true, as is I think this is gonna be a big issue for us. They magically come in and people lose track of it. And now that they've announced it, suddenly they put a little announcement in. I guess what we're gonna double the size of it, uh, double what we're gonna need in electrical power. Oh, we're gonna have to drill some wells up there to supplement the water. And magically, before you know it, you've got an issue that you can't uh handle. So we'll keep an eye on that. But just a lot of things happening here in the state of Wyoming. One of these days, uh, hopefully things will start to straighten up. We'll get a little bit of moisture, green grass will come up. But right now, I think we're a lot of places across the country are facing the same issue that we are here in Wyoming.

Winter Sports Wrap And Local Support

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So also sports. We're finishing up our winter sports here. We finished up last week with the 1A, 2A state basketball tournament. This weekend will be the 3A, 4A state basketball tournament for both the boys and girls. Wrestling was a couple weeks ago, so this weekend will be the last of the winter sports before we get started on the spring sports. And here in the state of Wyoming, that involves at most schools a track, and other schools do have soccer, and some of the larger schools are playing softball. But it's that time of year you start to wind down. The school year is winding down, and here it's March, and in a couple months you'll have these seniors graduating, and summer will be upon us. But good year for the sports here in the state with everything else going on. It's always good to get out and support the local young people at these sporting events, and it is a good uh opportunity for some entertainment and get you away from the TV and other things that are happening in our world. And if you're out there needing somewhere to go to get a breath of fresh air and take in the sights, always remember to come to the state of Wyoming. The doors are always open.

How Art Helped Save Yellowstone

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Today we want to take a look at more of our history as we do every week. And this article is by Doug Stevens Jackson and Moran, the partnership that saved Yellowstone. We talk about Yellowstone quite a bit on our show. It's one of those places that is a one in a million in my opinion, about everything that's in Yellowstone. Or this article, I should say, comes from the winter issue of distinctly Montana, because Montana and Wyoming help share Yellowstone Park. The West, that romantically unknown region beyond the Mississippi River, by the beginning of the second half of the nineteenth century, stories filtered back east of mighty mountains, expansive plains filled with millions of buffalo, plains Indians that were very different to the eastern tribes and wild, lawless mining towns. All this fed the voracious appetite of a populace wary with a long, brutal civil war. One place in particular seemed to capture the nation's imagination more than others Yellowstone. Early accounts from trappers and mountain men such as Jim Bridger painted a picture of a place so different, so bizarre and so extreme that they could scarcely be believed. The government needed to find out what was this vast territory that they controlled, about which little they knew for sure. One agency that looked to this was the United States Geographical and Geographic Survey of the Territories. Established in eighteen sixty seven, the predecessor of today's USGS, they chose doctor Ferdinand Hayden as the geologist in charge. Hayden was a well educated and trained as a medical doctor. However, prior to the Civil War, his interests turned to the new field of geology. By this eighteen sixty seven appointment, he was already a trusted veteran surveyor expedition leader, and by eighteen sixty nine he began his summer expeditions into the Western Territories where he explored and mapped the Colorado Front Ranges. In eighteen seventy he led an expedition into Wyoming's Wind River Range and the Henry Fork region of Idaho. Accompanying him on that trip was a young photographer by the name of William Henry Jackson. Jackson was originally from upstate New York. At an early age, when his mother taught him to sketch and paint, he became a prolific sketch artist, sketching everywhere he went, was made for a good companion to the extensive diary he kept. After enlisting in the Army during the Civil War, he endeared himself to his platoon mates by providing sketches of them, camp life, and their experiences. He discovered photography after the war, working as a photographer in photographic studios in Vermont. However, wanderlust for the gold fields of Montana finally got the best of him. In eighteen sixty six, he made his way to Nebraska City, where he signed on as a bull whacker on a team headed for Virginia City. By Salt Lake City, he had changed his mind and now dreamt of a new paradise known as California, making it to Los Angeles by the end of January of eighteen sixty seven. But like for dust bowlers who would follow seventy years later, California was not for Jackson. The Garden of Eden, it had been portrayed to be. Now feeling very homesick, he signed out on another wagon train heading east and ended up in Omaha by August of that year, where he decided to stay and return to photography. His travels had been grueling and at times degrading, but he had learned valuable life skills along the way. One day in the summer of eighteen seventy, Hayden appeared looking for a photographer to accompany him on his next surveying expedition to the wilds of Wyoming. Jackson's wife, Molly, says how much her husband wanted to join Hayden, so she offered to look after the businesses during the summer month while he was gone. Jackson would remain a vital member of Hayden's team for the next eight years, and Molly diligently watched over the business in his absence. Two privately funded expeditions ventured into the Yellowstone region in eighteen sixty nine and eighteen seventy. The first was a small prospecting expedition of Cook, Folsom, and Peterson, and the next year a larger one was led by Henry Washburn and Nathaniel Langford, with Lieutenant Gustafus Joan providing military protection and support by Helena financier Samuel Hauser. The Washburn expedition provided the first credible account of the extraordinary features of Yellowstone. Upon their return, Langford approached the new but respected periodical Scribner's Monthly to publish his account of the expeditions, Wonders of Yellowstone. Accompanying the article with sketches made by two expedition members, Charles Moore and Walter Trumbull. The sketches were crude, amateur, and not up to the Scribner's standard. The editor assigned the magazine's well regarded illustrators to rework the drawings, a gifted artist by the name of Thomas Moran. Moran had led a city life in Philadelphia, but inside he yearned to break up of greater majesty and grandeur. For about four weeks in the summer of eighteen sixty, at the age of twenty three, he adventured out into the wilds, a trip to the Picture Rocks area of the Upper Peninsula, Michigan. It was probably his first experience with camping. In November of eighteen seventy, he landed a job as the illustrator for the inaugural issue of the high end periodical Scribner's Monthly. Though Moran was a gifted artist and illustrator, it was difficult to make much sense of the Moore and Trumbull drawings and sketches. He had not seen these things with his own eyes. He did the best he could, but deep inside he fed right into his pent up wanderlust. He wanted desperately to see and paint them himself. He was keenly aware of the work and notoriety of the landscape painter Albert Bernstad for his paintings of the Yosemite Valley. Deep down he wanted that for himself too. About the same time, Hayden had heard of the Washburn expedition discoveries and immediately petitioned Congress for funds for a believable scientific survey of the area, backed up by images for the team's photographer, Jackson. By June of eighteen seventy one, Hayden's team was assembling all the necessary resources they had into Yellowstone. When Moran heard that there was to be another survey of Yellowstone that year, he moved heaven and earth to tag along. Moran knew Jay Cook, a wealthy financier involved with the Northern Pacific Railroad. Cook was also an associate of Lankford's, so he knew what the Washburn expedition found. A railroute through Wyoming would benefit greatly from the possible tourism Yellowstone could provide. Between Crook and the magazine, Moran was able to raise sufficient funds to tag along at no expense to the expedition, with promises of painting and stories in return. Hayden had actually planned to have two other artists along, including Albert Bernstadt, but neither of them could make it. This was Moran's big chance to establish himself as a rival to Bernstadt. So with his place on the team now assured, Moran headed west, rendezvousing with Hayden team in Virginia City in July of eighteen seventy one. Moran and Jackson couldn't have been more different in terms of life experiences. Jackson had been out west for many years now, first during his stint as a robust bullwhacker, then as Hayden's photographer. He knew the West how to live in it. By contrast, Moran at thirty four, six year Jackson senior, arrived looking thin and very green, with very little experience outside the city. According to Jackson, he was as poorly equipped for a rough life as anyone I've ever known. He had never been on a horse or held a gun and had great aversions to the fatty camp food. Many doubted he could handle the rigors of the upcoming mission, but he persevered, determined to prove them all wrong. Within days, he had enough horsemanship to be competent, and he practiced with his rifle until he would, at least, come close to the target. He said that while Moran practiced with his rifle, everyone ran and ducked for cover. Despite their different backgrounds, the two men hit it off right away. Both were self taught artists, loved music, and valued nature for its beauty. They quickly developed a deep friendship that would last well beyond the Yellowstone trip through the rest of their lives. The first wonder they encountered were the terraces of Mammoth Hot Springs. Something missed by the earlier Washburn expedition. While the geologists did what geologists do, Jackson and Moran set about creating images. They were soon working close together, helping each other with compositions to the The point where for many of their images, their representative, collaborating process, Moran even appears in many of Jackson's photos for scale, presumably as well as pitching in with the process of preparing plates and later helping to develop them. In return, Moran would often use Jackson's photographs along with his own field sketches to create his Yellowstone painting after returning back east. After Mammoth Springs, the expedition rode to the summit of Mount Washburn, down to Tower Falls over to the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. After the main party left the Grand Canyon, Jackson Moran spent an extra four days of photographing, sketching, and painting. They rejoined the main party on the shores of Yellowstone Lake. From there they fought their way over to the geyser basins through endless blowdowns of lodge pole pines. The Geyser Basin had already been visited by the Washburn Expedition, but it was Hayden's group who got to see the eruptions as some of the park's largest geysers. They gave them names such as Giant, Giantess, Grand and Castle. They also confirmed the regularity of one in particular which seemed to erupt about every hour. The year before Langford had given it the name Old Faithful. Now that Hayden Bart had gathered around it where Jackson preserved the moment with the very first photo of the most famous, most photographed geyser in the world. By fall, the survey was over and everyone returned to home. Hayden set out immediately lobbying Congress to set aside Yellowstone due to its unique features and geography. Congress again doubted some of the descriptions Hayden brought back. However, when faced with Jackson's photographs and some of the Moran's sketches and call for paintings, the doubts were soon put to rest. Congress almost unanimously passed the Yellowstone National Park Protection Act, which was signed into law by President Grant on march first, eighteen seventy-two. In commemoration of establishing Yellowstone as the world's first national park, Moran painted the huge seven foot by twelve foot painting of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone. It hung at the U.S. Capitol until nineteen fifty. Moran and Jackson remained friends for the balance of their lives. They reunited twice, once in eighteen eighty one for a railroad trip from Denver to Mexico and back, and again in June of eighteen ninety two when they reprised their trip to Yellowstone. After that trip, Moran painted another huge mural of the Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone. This one even larger than before at eight foot by fourteen foot. It now hangs in the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, DC. Today we take national parks for granted. There are sixty-three national parks in the US and over six thousand five hundred and fifty worldwide. But they all trace their origins to the world's first Yellowstone National Park. Through their images, Jackson and Moran were able to were able to convey the awe and majesty of that land in a way that Hayden's dry scientific reports could not. Suffice it to say, in the end, the impact of their art proved to be so powerful that even the most reluctant of the congressmen would have to vote to protect Yellowstone. Thank you, William Henry Jackson and Thomas Moran.

Closing Thanks And Sign-Off

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Thanks for joining us today, and we hope you enjoy our podcast. As per the Code of the West, we ride for the brand, and we ride for Wyoming.