She Vanished on a Colorado Mountain. 19 Years Later, a Mysterious Dream Helped Rescuers Find Her. Michelle Vanek disappeared on Mt. of the Holy Cross in 2005, setting off the largest search for a missing hiker in state history. The trail went cold—until an all-women team reopened the case.

Nineteen years after Michelle Vanek vanished on a Colorado mountain, she appeared in a rescue volunteer's dream with a message: Send a team of women to find me.

I really loved editing this longread, by the talented Heather Hansman, for 5280

www.5280.com/she-disappea...

Are beavers a nuisance or a necessity? Here’s why Colorado wildlife officials are wading into the debate. You think the fight over wolves has been fierce? Let’s talk for a minute about declaring beavers a “keystone” species in Colorado.

Are beavers a nuisance or a necessity? Here’s why Colorado wildlife officials are wading into the debate.

This story is a must-read, devastating as it is. I can't fathom how anyone can continue to use AI chatbots in good conscience

AI Is a Mass-Delusion Event Three years in, one of AI’s enduring impacts is to make people feel like they’re losing it.

"Google’s AI summaries are cratering traffic and rewiring the web. In schools, ChatGPT hasn’t just killed the student essay; it seems to be threatening basic building blocks of human cognition."
www.theatlantic.com/technology/a...

Love him and the show so much!

“Incredible Luck”: How Paleontologists Found a Dinosaur Fossil Under the Denver Museum of Nature and Science “We won the dinosaur lottery,” says curator James Hagadorn, who helped ID the 67.5-million-year-old bit of bone.

"We won the dinosaur lottery."

Always a treat to edit @asherelbein.bsky.social! He spoke with the "incredibly lucky" scientist who helped unearth a 67M-year-old dinosaur fossil from beneath Denver's science museum, denvermuseumns.bsky.social:

www.5280.com/dinosaur-fos...

“The Phone Dropped, And Then Screaming”: Saving Two Hikers, One Struck by Lightning, in a Record-Setting Rescue Alpine Rescue Team member Jake Smith explains how more than 40 people came together to save two hikers stranded on Torreys Peak.

"The phone dropped, and then screaming."

I spoke with search and rescue volunteer Jake Smith about how a 40-person team pulled off the highest-altitude helicopter hoist rescue in Colorado history, including a near-fatal lightning strike that happened during the call:
www.5280.com/torreys-peak...

King Soopers Is so Bad, Some of Its Own Workers Won’t Shop There Grocery workers told 5280 that understaffing is so severe that they often can’t put food on the shelves before it spoils, let alone keep up with changing expired price tags.

Since 2019, the number of Kroger-owned stores has stayed about the same, but 10% fewer employees, each working 10% fewer hours, now staff them.

The result? Massive food waste, overcharging, and unsafe conditions, King Soopers workers told me. My latest in 5280:

www.5280.com/king-soopers...

The shroom boom is coming to Colorado, and it's a new Wild West. Fascinating, funny, mind-expanding feature by my colleague @milehighrobert.bsky.social, who microdosed in the name of journalism!

A great tribute to a Texas journalism legend. When I worked at the Observer, Ronnie would often stop by the office to do some writing and regale us with wild, meandering stories. He paved the way.

Can One of Colorado’s Rarest Birds Survive the Trump Administration? The Gunnison sage-grouse has lost 90 percent of its habitat. Impending changes to the Endangered Species Act could finish it off.

This flamboyant Colorado bird has one of the best mating dances in the animal kingdom. But fewer than 4,000 Gunnison sage-grouse remain, and advocates say changes to the Endangered Species Act could drive them to extinction.

My latest:
www.5280.com/gunnison-sag...

4 Ssssurprising Facts About That Viral Colorado Rattlesnake Mega Den 1. Rattlesnake moms babysit each other’s pups. 2. Every snake has a one-of-a-kind color pattern, like a fingerprint—and more.

Rattlesnake moms support each other by "babysitting" their babies, scientists studying a snake mega-den in Colorado have learned 🐍 www.5280.com/surprising-f...

I'm such a sucker for when an interviewee says "That's a great question."
Even though I usually know my question wasn't that good...it's so nice to hear 😂

looks like he's a very successful hairdresser! haha www.instagram.com/bryangaw/?hl...

The latest victim of Trump cuts? Beetles keeping an invasive plant at bay in Colorado A coalition using root-eating beetles to control invasive leafy spurges has been cut off from its federal grant money, putting the program, and the Yampa River watershed, in jeopardy

The latest victim of Trump cuts? Beetles keeping an invasive plant at bay in Colorado

Who Killed Thomas Riha? A New Exhibit Explores One of Colorado’s Coldest Cases More than fifty years ago, a University of Colorado Boulder professor named Thomas Riha vanished. The Cold War mystery has never been solved.

More than fifty years ago, a University of Colorado professor vanished under suspicious circumstances. The Cold War mystery has never been solved—and a new exhibit lets visitors play detective. www.5280.com/thomas-riha-...

A Colorado Representative Just Scored a Rare Win for Working Moms in Congress The Colorado Rep is leading a bipartisan effort to let new parents in Congress vote remotely—all while holding her nine-week-old son.

"Don't f— with moms."

Wrote about Colorado's @pettersen.house.gov, her record of advocating for working parents in her home state, and why she brought her nine-week-old to the House floor this week:
www.5280.com/colorado-rep...

Could Gondolas Really Soar Over Denver? We Asked the Experts Transportation gurus weigh in on whether the bold new plan for an aerial tram downtown is a flight of fancy—or if it stands a chance of lifting off.

Gondolas in Denver?!

For my first 5280 Magazine byline, I asked urban planning experts if a new proposal to build an aerial tram over downtown could really lift off. (Answer: probably not, but hey, at least we're dreaming big.)

www.5280.com/could-gondol...

On March 24, I'll join 5280 Magazine in Denver as senior editor. I'll be ~75% writing, 25% editing in this role—a longtime dream. Couldn't be more excited for this new adventure at an ambitious, creative, ASME-winning magazine I've long admired!

Jobs and Internships Since 1973, Texas Monthly has chronicled life in contemporary Texas, reporting on vital issues such as politics, criminal justice, the environment,

It's my last day at @texasmonthly.bsky.social. I'm so grateful for an amazing five years at one of the best magazines in the nation, with some of the smartest, kindest journalists around. You can apply for my job here! It's a good one. www.texasmonthly.com/about/jobs-a...

Kerrville Is the New Kerrville Planning a trip for the Folk Festival? Here’s where to stay, eat, and explore while you’re in town.

Kerrville flies under the radar a bit as a Texas travel destination, but dang, is it a lovely place. I was lucky enough to spend a near-perfect weekend there for this story www.texasmonthly.com/travel/kerrv...

The New York Times Denounced “Y’all.” We’d Like a Word. Is this even really a debate?

Thank you @dansolomon.com for this impassioned and necessary defense of Y’ALL www.texasmonthly.com/being-texan/... @texasmonthly.bsky.social

New Bee, Who Dis? A Shy, Solitary Insect Is Discovered in Texas The identity of this reclusive species was a mystery that took decades to solve.

New bee alert 🐝
The blue-tinged, solitary species was first spotted near Del Rio in 1987, but its identity remained a mystery until now, writes Chris Collins www.texasmonthly.com/travel/new-n...

The other day, I saw dozens of butterflies flitting around a mistflower and wondered why they go so crazy for that plant. Molly Glentzer found the answer 🦋 www.texasmonthly.com/travel/mistf...

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