It’s time to take a look at what’s happening around Wyoming, for Friday, September 13th. I’m Wendy Corr, bringing you headlines from the Cowboy State Daily newsroom - brought to you by ServeWyoming - Wyoming's center for volunteerism and AmeriCorps service for the last 30 years! For volunteer opportunities, visit ServeWyoming dot org"
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A fast-moving and unpredictable wildfire near the Wyoming-Montana border has prompted an urgent evacuation notice for residents and ranchers north of Recluse in Campbell County.
The Short Draw Fire was discovered about 2 p.m. Wednesday, but exploded to an estimated 20,000 acres overnight - and as of Thursday afternoon had grown to over 30,000 acres. Cowboy State Daily’s Greg Johnson reports that firefighting crews on both sides of the Wyoming-Montana border are working furiously to save homes and ranches from the volatile and out-of-control wildfire.
“The Campbell County Fire Department said, you know, they are feeling pretty stretched, having already fought several very large wildfires this season, and this is just another one, but that there are actively working around people's homes, trying to save those homes until other help can can arrive and they can try to get a handle on the fire.”
For now, a cause of the fire hasn’t been determined. What fire officials know is that it appears to have started near some structures and a road. But along with the Short Draw Fire, local firefighters continue to battle and monitor numerous other fires around Campbell County.
Read the full story HERE.
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The future of University of Wyoming’s athletics competing in the Mountain West Conference has become much more uncertain.
The Pac-12 Conference announced Thursday morning that it's poaching some of the most prominent schools in the Mountain West Conference to fill holes left by a host of big-name schools who exited the conference last year, like UCLA, USC, Oregon, Washington and the University of Colorado.
But Cowboy State Daily’s Leo Wolfson reports that the schools that are leaving the Mountain West Conference for the new “Pac-2” will change the dynamics of Wyoming Cowboy Athletics.
“The four schools that are leaving Colorado State, Fresno State, Boise State and San Diego State are some of the strongest programs in the conference, and it puts Wyoming in kind of a precarious position moving forward…Wyoming could still theoretically be one of the teams selected to join the PAC 12. They still need to get more teams, and it wouldn't be out of the question.”
The conference, which some people now refer to as the Pac-2, only has two members now, Oregon State and Washington State. Wyoming will play at Washington State for its season finale November 30th.
Read the full story HERE.
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When it comes to bragging rights this deer season, Ryder Seely of Wheatland already has everyone else beat.
Stalking to within bowshot range of a big mule deer buck is tough enough in perfect conditions. And outdoors reporter Mark Heinz says Seely did it with his napping 1-year-old daughter in a kiddie pack on his back.
“Late Tuesday, he connected with or, or thought he got a good arrow into a pretty sizable mule deer buck. But of course, it got dark right after he took the shot, so he said, I'm not going to try to try to be up here in the dark trying to find this deer… So I thought, Okay, I will go home, rest up, come back in the morning and come back and get my deer. So he wakes up Wednesday morning, and then it is formed by his wife, that the daycare to which they take their one year old daughter, was closed. He said, I can't leave that deer up there. I have to go back up. Well, what the heck? I'll just take my daughter with me.”
Seely works as an Albany County Sheriff’s Office deputy. He said overall, it was a fantastic experience with his younger daughter. As they grow, he hopes his girls learn to love hunting as much as he does.
Read the full story HERE.
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Two months before billionaire Joe Ricketts abandoned his controversial plan to build a 230,000-square-foot luxury resort in the middle of a migration corridor near Bondurant, the Chicago Cubs owner and Ameritrade founder was buying a new piece of exclusive property with lots of conservation value.
That property is the Granite Creek Ranch, nestled in the southern Gros Ventre Mountains near Jackson, and Cowboy State Daily’s Renee Jean reports that the ranch is just downstream from where an iconic scene in the 1992 movie “A River Runs Through It” was filmed.
“It was the near not too far from there is where they shot that scene in the movie, A River Runs Through It, where the boys steal a boat and careen over the waterfall. So this ranch is not very far from where that was shot. Most of that movie was shot in Montana, but this one little piece was shot on granite creek falls near granite Creek Ranch. So that gives you an idea, though, how stunning this place is and what the conservation value might be.”
Not everyone is so certain that Ricketts’ plans for Granite Creek Ranch will be tasteful, particularly in light of his recently abandoned efforts to rebrand Bondurant as Little Jackson Hole — over and above the objections of those living there.
Read the full story HERE.
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Owners of the historic Kemmerer coal mine are abandoning a $30 million project to relocate 3 miles of U.S. Highway 30 to get access to millions of tons of coal.
Energy reporter Pat Maio has been told the company doesn’t need to access those reserves due to declining demand for coal.
“The head of Kemmerer coal operations said in a letter to WYDOT that it's not feasible at this time to do this because, you know, coal demand is slipping. The markets have changed, you know, to the bust cycle, they call it, rather than the boom cycle. And you know, they don't have the long term contracts lined up to proceed with a $30 million overhaul of US highway 30. The area that they wanted to move is located just north of town, there of Diamondville and Kemmerer… and it would have pushed back the road probably about half a mile, and it involved, you know, work crews cutting into the side of a cliff.”
The design process of moving the highway began in 2018, but was put on hold a few years ago, then restarted in May 2023, before being abandoned this month.
Read the full story HERE.
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After a bipartisan coalition of southern congressional representatives introduced a bill to ban running predators down with snowmobiles, Wyoming’s Rep. Harriet Hageman and Sen. Cynthia Lummis said southerners should stay out of the Mountain West’s business.
The SAW Act, or the Snowmobiles Aren’t Weapons Act, would ban deliberately running down wolves, coyotes and other predators on all federal land in the United States. Outdoors reporter Mark Heinz spoke to Wyoming’s congressional delegation about the proposed legislation.
“This is in direct response to what happened in Daniel. According to the reports and what we've reported, the whole thing started with the wolf being run down by a guy on a snowmobile. And so there is now a coalition, a Democrat and Republican coalition from southern states that have introduced a bill to the House to ban that practice on federal lands. And of course, there is a lot of federal land in Wyoming… our senator, Cynthia Lummis did get back to me, and she says… Why are people from states that don't even have snowmobiles trying to dictate policy regarding snowmobiles in the west.”
One of the bill’s sponsors, Rep. Matt Gaetz of Florida, is among Hageman’s strongest conservative allies in the U.S. House, even though they are apparently at odds regarding the SAW Act.
Read the full story HERE.
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A Campbell County teen charged this past winter with 22 crimes will be sentenced in November after pleading guilty to five child sexual exploitation charges.
Cowboy State Daily’s Clair McFarland reports that 19-year-old Corbin Behnke was charged after a 15-year-old Gillette boy who was weary of Behnke’s advances made a snapchat decoy account, pretending to be an 11-year-old, in order to catch him.
“He was charged with 22 counts including, I mean, I mean, bestiality was one of them, and there were solicitation and sexual exploitation of children counts all piled in there due to what court documents said was just a, I mean, characterized almost as a habit of trying to get these teenage boys even ranging down to 11 to text him lewd photos or have sexual exchanges with him.”
At a September 4th hearing, Behnke pleaded guilty to one count of sexual exploitation of children, and four more of solicitation to commit sexual exploitation of children.
Read the full story HERE.
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A 53-year-old Casper man faces six felony drug charges and two misdemeanors after allegedly trying to flush his stash of drugs down his toilet as Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation agents knocked at his door.
Tyrone “T-Bone” Jackson was arrested Jackson Monday following a search warrant for his residence on CY Avenue in Casper. Cowboy State Daily’s Dale Killingbeck was in court for Jackson’s arraignment Thursday.
“According to the affidavit in Casper Circuit Court, when DCI agents knocked on the door. They didn't get a response, and so they entered the facility after announcing themselves, and they found the suspect trying to flush evidence down the toilet. That was unsuccessful, and now he is facing some serious charges and potential prison time.”
Following the search of Jackson’s apartment, the agents found methamphetamine, fentanyl, crack cocaine, cocaine and marijuana. Some of the substances had been broken down and packaged for resale.
Read the full story HERE.
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Montana tribal leaders say they’re not going to ignore comments Republican U.S. Senate candidate Tim Sheehy made about Native Americans being drunk in the morning.
Politics reporter Leo Wolfson is on assignment in Montana covering the tight race between Sheehy and Democrat Jon Tester. He attended a press conference in Billings on Thursday, where tribal leaders said an apology is all they’re asking for from the senate candidate, who has been endorsed by former President Donald Trump.
“The Native American vote in Montana largely already votes Democrat… One gop strategist told me yesterday that … anyone who's offended by these comments is probably already a Tester supporter… But of course, the tribal leaders… feel like their people have been offended and they need to speak out.”
Wyoming’s Republican congressional delegation has told Cowboy State Daily they view the race between Tester and Sheehy as highly significant because it will determine whether Republicans or Democrats take a majority of the Senate chamber.
Read the full story HERE.
