Guest Column: Whaddya mean, you branded the hill?!

We may never know exactly what inspired Regas K. Halandras Sr. (father of Gus and Chris) to cut two giant letters — RH — into a hillside of sagebrush. The idea had been probably stewing for a while. 

According to Chris, Regas had seen somewhere an area of sage brush that had been cleared in a strange way. Instead of chopping the sagebrush with an axe, someone had found a way to mulch it close to the ground. The result left the area with a distinctive wood brown color, a stark contrast to the surrounding tall gray sage. The next time Regas went to town, he inquired at the Meeker Hardware: “What tool could he use to cut such a swath?”

Regas purchased a brand new brush cutter and mounted it behind his gray Ferguson tractor. In 1954, Regas found the perfect hillside on his ranch. It was visible from Highway 13 and flat enough to serve as a canvas. 

Several unforeseen difficulties popped up right away. The brush cutter, when mounted to the back of the tractor and connected to the PTO, was too heavy for the light 30 horsepower Ferguson. In trying to operate the equipment up the 20 degree slope, the tractor front wheel wanted to leave the ground. Second: Regas had no fancy survey transit or poles to mark off the 300 foot tall letters before cutting. 

What he did have was two young sons (Gus and Chris), a tractor, a flag, lots of dense sagebrush four foot tall and what Chris called “Greek engineering.” After a long discussion between Regas and Gus (all in Greek), a plan was formed. Gus would stand at the highway edge and direct Regas in marking the outline of the letter by waving a red flag. I can imagine more than one puzzled motorist slowing down to see what this teenager was waving a red flag at. Regas would watch the flag and place a sagebrush with its base pointing upward above the live sagebrush. This crude survey stake would guide Chris driving the wobbly tractor in cutting the brush. Chris had trouble getting the overbalanced, underpowered tractor up the steep hill face, so he found a less arduous route and circled around to the top of the letter. The trip up was accomplished by driving the tractor in reverse, backward up the hill. 

Chris started the first letter on the south edge and drove the tractor and brush cutter forward down the hill slowly. They had one chance to get this right. Sagebrush, once cut down, doesn’t grow back. Chris remembers his dad admonishing him with the statement, “Don’t veer off the line, or I’ll kill you.” I’m sure the words in Greek were more expressive than that, but they did motivate Chris. The lines were straight and even the difficult cut leaving the center of the R was well done. 

The job took a couple days to complete. It was a family effort. Regas, Gus, and Chris worked on the hillside. Maria cooked and supported the project. The whole family is rightfully proud of this accomplishment and also of their ranching tradition. Enduring years of good and bad, the Halandras family have literally made their mark in the land they are proud of. Regas K. Halandras died in Meeker in 1983, leaving the “RH” sheep brand and the ranch in the family hands. 

Gus told me a story of someone from Kansas sending him a package 30 years ago. The anonymous package contained a jigsaw puzzle depicting a map of Colorado. The 63 pieces were all the counties. Each piece had the county seat and a significant feature of that county. Rio Blanco’s feature was the “RH” on the hillside. After 69 years and being refreshed a few times, the giant letters “RH” are still clearly visible. The latest trim was done by John Halandras, grandson of Regas K., on a four-wheel drive John Deere tractor. The tradition continues. 

Watch on your next trip to Rifle on Highway 13 between mile markers 20 and 21 about 1,000 yards (three football field lengths) from the roadside. Look to the west, just below the high tension wires. Just don’t drive accidently off the shoulder, or… I’ll kill you!