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Show f- . RECREATION TV listings Comics C5 EDITOR: SHARON GHOLDSTON gfi ITf3 IL 1 J I! ,D3 I THE DAILY HERALD 344-23- THURSDAY. APRIL 2, 1W8 .'If?!"" ",. JUiL 'f . IT' F, V, Mitch & ryan Alta the favorite among respondents e-m- 1 ail According to our handful of fans, Alta is a pretty great place to ski. So this weekend, well be there. Two weeks ago, we asked for comments on the best local resort, and those who took to time to us overwhelmingly supported Alta, nestled up Little Cottonwood Canyon in Salt Lake County. The main reason for this is that they do not allow snowboarders," ail wrote Nick Alder. Not nice. Remember, boarders are people too. Mitch's sister boards (and Mitch tries to board.) One of the Herald's photographers boards. We still talk and associate with them (whenever no one is around). Heck, we wouldn't even mind if a boarder or two lived a few (hundred) houses 4 . I away. J. .'a ft It's OK to board. ft He did go on to say some nice things about Alta. Park City got a plug from Kevin Call in Orem. "I consistently have more fun there than anywhere according to Kevin's A man of few words. Thanks. We also got a series of from people with the last name of Taggert. Two in Cody, Wyo., and one in Provo. All liked Alta very much. One even demanded we send him his tickets. Unfortunately; bis name was not the one drawn from the pile of entries. KEVORK Released: to some guy from Ohio. Before you want to wish an avalanche on us, the names of all those who submitted their votes were put in a box and drawn out by The Herald newsroom's very own telecommunications coordinating engineer, Lesa. Like our skiing skills on mogul runs, it was extremely random and had nothing at all to do with the fact that both of us spent some time of our lives in Ohio. But if he is reading this, a jar of original Stadium mustard would be greatly appreciated. So, Mr. Jon Weaver from Aurora, Ohio, here's your 15 minutes in the sun. But, by the sound of your voice" on the phone Tuesday, we presume you don't care too much about being famous for a few. You want your tick-et- a and you want them now. It might have been the connection between Ohio and Provo, but Ryan thought he heard a small river of drool hit the ground. And rightfully so. The only thing better than Alta is Alta in the spring, so long-distan- ce we've been told. Talk about timing, Jon and hi3 family will be here in less than two weeks for their annual trip. Although we couldn't give them enough tix for the whole family, a pair of freebies should make their day at Alta a little brighter. Jon did mention in his that Solitude is another of his favorites. Can't say that we blame him. ail NEXT WEEK: You get to hear our picks for top Utah resorts. Well rate the greenies, blues and black run3 as wfcll as the chili and other intangibles that caught our fancy this season. Well give you a sneak peak at where Ryan's headed. He still has the Brighton itch and hasn't found anything to whet his appetite as much. But he hasn't been to Alta at least not w'uen they had all the runs open. it could be a Judging by the close race going into the final week. Mitch Wilkinson is the Daily Herald city editor. Ryari Van Benthuysen is a Herald staff writer. 1 COPY herd of elk graze in the meadows of Yellowstone National Park with By SCOTT McMILLION " Bozeman Daily Chronicle , AND THE WINNER: Two lift tickets to Alta paid for by The Herald go A B OZEMAN, Mont. It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. Call it a tale of two winters. One occurred in 1988-8Tbe other took place a year ago. Both killed a lot of elk and both filled freezers for a lot of hunters. But there's a new twist in the equation, one that wasn't there nine years ago: It's one that eats a lot of elk, runs in packs and howls at the 3. moon. "We've got wolf predation now," said Tom Lemke, area biologist fi the Montana Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks. "That's going to be a factor in how fast they recover or if they recover. People perhaps are going to have to adjust to lower elk numbers for a number of years to come." Since the elk herd is smaller and the number of wolves is growing, their impact on the elk is bigger than it would be with a larger herd, Lemke said. "The extent of that impact remains to be seen." Doug Smith, Yellowstone National Park's chief biologist, said there are three wolf packs in the northern part of the park. Each of them kills an estimated 150 to 180 elk a year. That's a total of 450 to 540 animals. Plus, they kill an undetermined number of newborn elk calves in the late spring and early summer, making quick meals of the tiny animals. "They hit the newborn elk calves pretty hard," Smith said. "How many, I don't know." The number of calves is crucial to rebuilding a herd. Biologists gauge their survival with what they call a "recruitment rate" which is the number of calves per 100 cows that survive their first winter. . The average recruitment rate for the northern Yellowstone herd is about 35, Lemke said. This winter, which has been an easy one for elk, it wolf-recove- Elk numbers are down 30 percent in the northern Yellowstone elk herd and have been cut almost in half from peak levels reached in 1994. No big surprise there. Last winter was a brutal one. Thick crust on the snow made it hard to find forage, hunters found easy work and thousands of elk starved to death. The same thing happened in the winter of 1988-8As of late February, the herd measured 10,400 arimals, down from 16,800 in late winter 1S95, the last time a good count was made. In the winter of 1988-8the herd fell from 19,000 elk to just under 11,000. But the herd snapped back fast. By 1994, there were 19,000 animals in the herd again. Biologists are wondering if that will happen this time. 9. 9, Mt. Holmes, left, and ML Dome in the background in DJA.NSEZIAN,The Associated Press Wyoming in this Aug. 15 photo. ' . "I sincerely doubt that," he said. But if wolf predation means smaller elk numbers and smaller migrations out of the park, fewer hunters may be allowed to take to the field. As much as 50 percent of the northern Yellowstone herd migrates out of the park in some winters and the late hunt is designed to reduce elk numbers. Now, wolves may start doing more of that work for hunters. Over the past three winters, an average of 1,897 elk have been killed in the late hunt each year. A smaller elk herd could be good news or bad news, depending on your ry JEFF ROBBINSThe Associated Presi Released: Wolves similar to this Mexican gray wolf released Sunday in Arizona are expected to keep Yellowstone populations from booming. is only eight. In late winter 1990, a year after the last big winter kill, the recruitment rate was 19, more than twice as high. That means the herd is as small as it's been in a long time and the number of calves is at a near record low. Lemke said he has heard concerns that wolf predation may spell the end n of the popular hunt in the late-seaso- Gardiner area in January and February. perspective. Last winter, thousands of elk moved farther than normal, causing landowners some grief. A small herd would ease concerns for those people. 4 Also, rising numbers of people 'J. have accused the National Park Service of allowing the elk herds to ' grow too large, claiming that the park's northern range is overgrazed. If wolves keep the elk herds from growing to previous levels, it would probably have "positive effects on the habitat," Lemke said. Ironically, many of the people who accuse the Park Service of overgrazing its land are the same ones who fought the 1995 wolf so hard. They could find one sore sp'ot easing the pain in another one. rein-troducti- on REC REATI0N BRIEFING L. SportscareSs earning to Provo PROVO A sportscard show will be 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday at the Best Western Cotton Tree Inn, 2230 N. University Parkway, Provo. Dealers from all around Utah will be in attendance to buy, sell, and trade all types of sportscards. Admission is $1. Door prizes will be given away hourly all day. For more information, call Dave Hyler of Critters Sportscards at or Tom Kobler at 465-02- 82 465-436- 3. throwing, mountain man runs, canoe races, dutch oven cooking contest, frying pan toss, candy canyon and pre-18- traders. All participants (14 years and older) must be dressed in e era clothing to participate. The public is welcome. Entrance fees are $4 per car load per day or $1.50 per person to walk in. Overnight camping is available for primitive and modern camping for $15 for the weekend. Camping is on a pre-184- 0, fur-trad- basis. For more information, call Barry (Hatchet Jack) Lindley at (801) or Jaydell (Red Bear) Jaques at 9 or Fort Buenaventura (301) first-com- Traders plan rendezvous OGDEN The 12th annual Easter Rendezvous at Fort Buenaventura is slated for April 11 and 12. Camp set up is April 10. Events include a black powder rifle shoot, knifetomahawk 40 first-serv- e e 394-76- 07 775-523- at (801) 621-480- 8 or (801) 392-558- 1. Fort Buenaventura is the location of the first permanent settlement in V Utah and is a State Historical Park, covering 40 acres of pristine wooded area. Miles Goodyear and his Shoshone wife, Pomona, built the fort in 1845 and lived there until 1848. The replica fort was built at the exact location of the original fort and to the same specifications. Shotgun cSasses effered SALT LAKE CITY A shotgun clinic will be 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday and run every Saturday for six weeks at the Lee Kay Center for Hunter Education, 6000 W. 2100 South, Salt Lake City. Participants will learn basic shotgun shooting techniques. Techniques for trap, skeet and sporting clays will also be covered. Bring your own shotgun and proper ammunition for your gun. If you don't have your own shotgun or need more information, call RaLynne Takeda at (801) The cost is $20 per week per person. 538-471- 0. BLM honoring two Two Utah WASHINGTON, D.C. residents will receive the Bureau of ' Land Management's 1993 "Making A ' Difference National Volunteer ; Award, which will be presented by director Pat Shea on April 29 in ; : ; Washington, D.C. ; Scott Greenwood of Moah, and Louise Murch of Vernal, were among ; eight winners selected by a national ;" panel of BLM and partner represent-- . ; tives to receive this honor. ' Greenwood has been a volunteer . See BRIEFING, D2 U i: |