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Turn Back the Pages … hiker survives from mountain lion encounter

Cyndi Palmer
Sky-Hi Daily News
Construction on improvements to Granby's water system began as workmen prepared the site near the Granby airport for a 500,000-gallon water storage tank in 1983. Some preparation had also been completed for the site of the water treatment plant near Kaibab Park.
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Five years ago, Altus Construction, a general contracting limited liability company whose vision was to build affordable, quality homes, stopped operating after its owner abruptly left the county. Reports indicated the owner was fearful about threats being made in connection with the company’s problems.

– Amy Blahnik and her dog Maddie escaped a dangerous encounter with a mountain lion while running in a heavily wooded area near the Young Life camp. The Bingo pavilion in Grand Lake was dedicated in honor of Louie Heckert and the late Gladys Heckert. And, the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District had developed seven alternatives for storing Windy Gap water, three of which included building a reservoir in Grand County.

Ten years ago, Midwest Auto Salvage asked the Grand County Board of County Commissioners to amend its special use permit to allow a 175-car increase.



Commissioners voted unanimously to amend the special use permit to allow storage of 200 cars, up from 25. Terms of the amendment also required immediate attention to fencing, or reducing visibility on the 5-acre parcel.

– The East Grand Board of Education discussed a plan to install lights at Middle Park High School’s football field. Members of the Gridiron Club presented the plan and told the board they already had volunteers to supply the labor, equipment and technical support needed for the proposed project.



Twenty-five years ago, as many as eight records for rainfall were broken for the summer in Grand County and several records were broken for precipitation in August alone. Officials from the National Weather Service in Denver reported precipitation was well over 50 percent above normal for the county’s entire east end and in August the precipitation recorded at Berthoud Pass was “a whopping” 187 percent above normal. Records were also broken at the Bureau of Reclamation pumping plant on Lake Granby.

– An agreement was reached in district water court that assured Granby its water supply would be protected from any upstream well use for snowmaking at the 1-year-old SilverCreek ski area. The stipulation agreement allowed snowmaking with water taken from wells along the Fraser River upstream from Granby if it did not negatively impact the town of Granby’s water supply.

– Beverly Watters and Doug Lynch of Granby were wed. A Bell 214 B jet helicopter placed 21 lift towers for the new Zephyr Lift at the Winter Park ski area. Devil’s Thumb ski ranch was up for lease for the winter. And, the Regis-Maryvale Corporation, owners of acres of prime meadow along U.S. Highway 40 between Fraser and Winter Park, was considering annexation of the land into the town of Fraser.

Fifty years ago, two contracts had been awarded to two Colorado firms as part of the Mission 66 program of the National Park Service designed to provide better facilities for the ever-increasing number of visitors to Rocky Mountain National Park. A Greeley company got the bid on the clearing and grading contract for the new Grand Lake park entrance ($28,204) and a Loveland company was the lowest bidder on the extension of water and sewer systems and construction of a sewage treatment plant for RMNP’s utility area ($70,440.50).

– Five hunting seasons with a total of 49 licenses allowed for hunting bighorn sheep in the Gore Range had not resulted in even one animal being bagged by a hunter. In fact, previous hunters had failed to located the sheep in that area, but Brooks Tarrant reported seeing six rams and bagged “a full curl ram” on Rock Creek. Other successful spots included No Name Creek in Glenwood Canyon and Maroon Creek drainage near Willow Creek.


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