County

Salazar to open new center

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar will dedicate the new Quarry Visitor Center at the Dinosaur National Monument, Wednesday, Sept. 28, 2011. Salazar will be the keynote speaker at the ribbon cutting ceremony. The new 10,500 square foot quarry exhibit hall will open to the public Oct. 4. It has been more than five years since the public has seen the dinosaur fossils. courtesy photo

RBC I Dinosaur National Monument’s renowned fossil quarry will reopen to the public early next month, one week after Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar dedicates the park’s new Quarry Visitor Center nearby, superintendent Mary Risser announced. Secretary Salazar will be the keynote speaker at a ribbon-cutting ceremony Wednesday, Sept. 28, for the new 7,595 square foot visitor center. The public is invited to the 10 a.m. event, which formally unveils new exhibits explaining the monument and its features, an auditorium for programs and viewing of park films, a monument information desk and the park bookstore. One week later, on Tuesday, Oct. 4, the new 10,500 square foot Quarry Exhibit Hall will open to the public. The hall, built over the site of the world-famous Carnegie Dinosaur Quarry, provides close viewing of almost 1,500 dinosaur bones from the Jurassic Period, all exposed on the cliff face where they were deposited about 149 million years ago. The new exhibit hall will also feature information and displays about the Jurassic environment and its inhabitants. “Oct. 4 is the 96th anniversary of the creation of the original 80-acre Dinosaur National Monument,” Risser said. “This will be the first time that the public will be able to see the dinosaur fossils in more than five years. What an exciting way to mark Dinosaur’s founder’s day. The National Park Service and Uintah County invite the public to join us in this celebration.” Exhibits in the new visitor center, now located down the hill and separate from the fossil quarry, will introduce visitors to Dinosaur National Monument’s natural resources, homesteading history, petroglyphs, geology, paleontology and rivers. They are designed to stimulate the interest of visitors and encourage them to explore the 210,000 acre monument on their own. Interpretive and educational items also will be available for sale in the Intermountain Natural History Association’s bookstore. The ribbon cutting for the visitor center was scheduled one week earlier so that the public can see the new interpretive exhibits as soon as they are installed. “The grand opening of the fossil quarry hall is a week later – still the original opening date – because of the added complexity of that building’s construction and additional time needed to install its exhibits and clean the fossil wall,” Risser added.

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  • Jake Blazon at bat for the Meeker Cowboys. The MHS team brought home two wins against Olathe and lost two against the North Fork Miners. The location for this weekend’s games has not been announced due to weather and field conditions. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
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Rio Blanco County and the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts are still asking for your help to identify additional hatch-outs of crickets so that control efforts can be put in place. The success of the program will highly depend upon local landowners and the public helping to locate crickets as soon as they hatch.  See last week’s paper for a list of ways to help or contact the County Weed & Pest District at 970-878-9670 or the Conservation District office at 970-878-9838 with any questions. Website: www.WhiteRiverCD.com
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Jake Blazon at bat for the Meeker Cowboys. The MHS team brought home two wins against Olathe and lost two against the North Fork Miners. The location for this weekend’s games has not been announced due to weather and field conditions. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
Jake Blazon at bat for the Meeker Cowboys. The MHS team brought home two wins against Olathe and lost two against the North Fork Miners. The location for this weekend’s games has not been announced due to weather and field conditions. Read the full story online at ht1885.com.
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The 2024 Meeker High School boys basketball team held their awards banquet last week. Jace Mobley was named Player of the Western Slope League and all-conference, Ryan Sullivan all-conference, Jonathon Fitzgibbons all-conference, Ethan Quinn honorable mention all-conference, Jacob Simonsen honorable mention all conference. Mobley will play in All State games. Coach Klark Kindler was named Western Slope Coach of the Year. Left to right: Bryan Rosas, Simonsen, Quinn, Fitzgibbons, Mobley and Sullivan.
The 2024 Meeker High School boys basketball team held their awards banquet last week. Jace Mobley was named Player of the Western Slope League and all-conference, Ryan Sullivan all-conference, Jonathon Fitzgibbons all-conference, Ethan Quinn honorable mention all-conference, Jacob Simonsen honorable mention all conference. Mobley will play in All State games. Coach Klark Kindler was named Western Slope Coach of the Year. Left to right: Bryan Rosas, Simonsen, Quinn, Fitzgibbons, Mobley and Sullivan.
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It's that time again! Another edition of great local news stories is 
🐰 Hopping 🐰 your way this morning! Catch up on everything thats 🐣 hatching 🐣 in Rio Blanco County this week.
Need a copy? Signing up is fast and easy! Visit our website at ht1885.com/subscribe to get a copy sent to your door every week! 
We appreciate all your continued support!
It's that time again! Another edition of great local news stories is 🐰 Hopping 🐰 your way this morning! Catch up on everything thats 🐣 hatching 🐣 in Rio Blanco County this week. Need a copy? Signing up is fast and easy! Visit our website at ht1885.com/subscribe to get a copy sent to your door every week! We appreciate all your continued support!
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Mormon crickets have hatched near Rangely. They were all sighted on BLM land north of Hwy. 64 near the junction of CR 96 and CR 1, down a dirt road near the Moffat County line. The picture shown was taken yesterday by Mary Meinen from Rangely. She says the crickets are about the size of a ladybug (less than 1/2”). Some of them are actually yellow in color but most of them are darker. They are milling around and getting ready to start moving soon. Note: Photo is not to scale. Rio Blanco County and the White River and Douglas Creek Conservation Districts are still asking for your help to identify additional hatch-outs of crickets so that control efforts can be put in place. The success of the program will highly depend upon local landowners and the public helping to locate crickets as soon as they hatch. See last week’s paper for a list of ways to help or contact the County Weed & Pest District at 970-878-9670 or the Conservation District office at 970-878-9838 with any questions. Website: www.WhiteRiverCD.com
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