Outdoors Reporter

Mark Heinz

Mark Heinz covers the outdoors and wildlife for Cowboy State Daily.

He previously worked or freelanced for numerous newspapers and magazines across Wyoming, Idaho and Montana, covering all manner of news and feature stories. He has a strong background in topics related to wildlife, hunting, and wildlands conservation. He's written extensively since the 1990s about the controversies surrounding wolves, grizzly bears and mustangs.

He also enjoys people-centric stories with quirky edge of humor and has written several such pieces for Cowboy State Daily.

Mark lives in Laramie with his wife, Kendy, and the youngest of their five children.

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Latest from Mark Heinz

A SHERP ATV rumbles through the Blackfoot River near Missoula, Montana.

Fishermen Outraged Watching Huge ‘Tonka Truck’ ATV Rip Up Montana Riverbed

A Montana fishing guide said he was outraged watching someone drive a huge “Tonka Truck” SHERP ATV right through a river next to him. The huge balloon-tired ATV ripping up the riverbed was illegal, and the driver may be cited.

Mark HeinzAugust 09, 2025

Wolves in Yellowstone National Park helped save aspen trees there by eating elk that were gobbling aspen saplings, scientists claim. But now bison are moving in on the aspen, eating it and knocking the trees over.

Wolves Might Have Saved Yellowstone’s Aspen From Elk, But Now Bison Are Eating It

Scientists say wolves helped save aspen trees in Yellowstone by eating the elk that were gobbling aspen saplings. But now bison are moving in on the aspen, eating it and knocking the trees over.

Mark HeinzAugust 09, 2025

A wolf in Wyoming gets a drink in this file photo.

Colorado Wildlife Agents Target Sheep-Killing Wolf That Might Be From Wyoming

A wolf that killed three sheep in Colorado is safe for now, as wildlife agents can’t go after it because of a wildfire. Meanwhile, locals say it’s a wolf that wandered in from Wyoming in February.

Mark HeinzAugust 08, 2025

Wyoming Ranchers Ask U.S. Supreme Court To Hear Wyoming Corner-Crossing Case

The Wyoming Stock Growers and other agricultural groups want the U.S. Supreme Court to hear a Wyoming corner-crossing case. They say the high court should finally settle whether corner-crossing is legal.

Mark HeinzAugust 08, 2025

Third Colorado Wolf Wanders Into Wyoming And Dies

A third wolf reintroduced to Colorado wandered into Wyoming and died in late July, wildlife officials announced Wednesday. The female was one of the wolves brought in from Oregon in December 2023.

Mark HeinzAugust 06, 2025

Controversy that’s blown up over American Eagle denim ads, stating that actress Sydney Sweeney has “great jeans.” Dubois-area resident and outdoorsman Cade Cole spoofed it with his own “good jeans” social media post, posing with a revolver and his dog, Magnum.

Wyoming Outdoorsman Spoofs Controversial Sydney Sweeney Jeans Ads

Heads have been exploding over the controversial “Sydney Sweeney has great jeans” American Eagle denim ads. A Wyoming outdoorsman decided to spoof it with his own, saying he has great jeans, too.

Mark HeinzAugust 06, 2025

A federal judge’s Tuesday, Aug. 5, 2025, ruling could open the door to putting wolves back on the endangered species list in Wyoming and across the West.

Federal Judge’s Ruling Could Open Door To Putting Wolves Back On Endangered List

A federal judge’s Tuesday ruling could open the door to putting wolves back on the endangered species list in Wyoming and across the West.

Mark HeinzAugust 05, 2025

A screenshot from the arument scene in "Marriage Story."

Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver Screaming At Each Other Keeps Wolves From Cattle

Oregon wildlife officials are using audio of actors Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver screaming at each other in the movie “Marriage Story” to scare wolves away from cattle. It seems to work, but isn’t very practical, a wolf expert says.

Mark HeinzAugust 05, 2025

A turnaround in Wyoming’s logging and lumber industry might start with clearing forests of massive amounts of dead trees, previously killed by pine beetles.

Shift In Timber Rules Could Clear Way For Revival Of Wyoming’s Lumber Industry

Wyoming’s few remaining lumber mills have struggled, but a shift in federal and state timber policy might change that. Trump has ordered an “immediate expansion” of timber production, and Gov. Mark Gordon on Friday ordered Wyoming to follow suit.

Mark HeinzAugust 05, 2025

A big male black bear that got stranded in the storm drains under Colorado Springs got out by climbing out of a manhole. While startling, the incident also illustrates what wildlife officials say is becoming common in the city.

Bears Are So Common In Colorado Springs They’re Climbing Out Of Manholes

A big male black bear that got stranded in the storm drains under Colorado Springs escaped by climbing out of a manhole. While startling, the incident also illustrates what wildlife officials say is becoming common in the city.

Mark HeinzAugust 04, 2025

Fish plunge from a specially designed holding tank slung under a helicopter and into a backcountry lake, as part of the Wyoming Game and Fish Department’s fish stocking program.

Wyoming’s Backcountry Lakes Are Stocked By Dropping Fish From Helicopters

In the pre-dawn darkness on Tuesday, a line of Wyoming Game and Fish Department vehicles rumbled into the Dubois Municipal Airport and parked next to a Robinson R66 helicopter. The mission? Stock 16 high-country lakes with roughly 40,000 fingerling-sized fish.

Mark HeinzAugust 02, 2025

A wrangler leads a mustang colt back to the herd during a Bureau of Land Management horse roundup July 26 in the remote Adobe Town area in south-Central Wyoming.

Lost, Young Wild Horse Tries To Join Up With Pronghorn Herd During Roundup

A young mustang briefly joined a band of pronghorn during a recent Wyoming horse roundup. Wild horse advocates say the colt was lost after being separated from his mother during a BLM roundup.

Mark HeinzAugust 02, 2025

Other Authors

Wildlife Agents Still Search For Whoever Poached A Park County Grizzly

Wildlife agents are still trying to track down whoever shot and killed a grizzly bear found dead in late May alongside a remote hiking trail in Park County. A bear expert says if the grizzly had been killed in self-defense, it would’ve been reported.

Mark HeinzAugust 01, 2025

Delisting Grizzlies Drives Support — And Opposition — For Nesvik’s Confirmation

Former Wyoming Game and Fish Director Brian Nesvik is poised to be the new chief of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. His stance in favor of taking grizzly bears off the endangered list drives much of his support — and opposition.

Mark HeinzJuly 31, 2025

Lummis, Hageman Introduce Bill Targeting Endless Endangered Species Listings

Wyoming Republicans Cynthia Lummis and Harriet Hageman want to rename the Endangered Species Act the “Endangered Species Recovery Act.” It’s a reminder that species shouldn’t be listed forever if they have recovered enough for delisting, they say.

Mark HeinzJuly 31, 2025

Money Could Be Coming For Wildlife Crossings, Including $30M Project Near Dubois

A planned $30 million wildlife crossing near Dubois — which could save hundreds of deer — is on hold because of a lack of federal money. Supporters of wildlife crossings say that money could start coming soon.

Mark HeinzJuly 30, 2025

The Miracle Mile is actually an 8-mile stretch of the North Platte River near Casper, and one of Wyoming’s most prized trout fisheries.

Anglers Upset Over Plan To Ban Boats On Wyoming’s Famed Miracle Mile

A proposal to ban watercraft on the upper stretch of the North Platte River’s Miracle Mile section near Casper is drawing fire from some anglers who want to kill the rule before Gov. Mark Gordon signs off on it.

Mark HeinzJuly 29, 2025

Colorado is about halfway through building what officials are touting as the world’s largest wildlife overpass – a $15 million megastructure spanning six lanes of Interstate 25 south of Denver.

Colorado Halfway Done With World’s Largest Wildlife Overpass Spanning I-25

Colorado is about halfway through building what officials are touting as the world’s largest wildlife overpass. It’s a $15 million megastructure spanning six lanes of Interstate 25 south of Denver.

Mark HeinzJuly 29, 2025

Controversy has been stirring regarding a channel connecting Pine Creek and the New Fork River near Pinedale. Anglers have used the channel to move boats between the creek and river for years, but now some are alleging that a landowner there is blocking it off.

Floater And Fishing Access Fight Flares Over Channel Near Pinedale

Anglers and locals say a new landowner is blocking a historic channel connecting Pine Creek and the New Fork River near Pinedale, raising the temperature over public access and state law.

Mark HeinzJuly 28, 2025

Members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints walk along the Wyoming Mormon Trail near Lander, reenacting the trek of their forbearers who passed through during the 1800s while journeying toward Salt Lake City.

After A Decade-Long Closure, 29 Miles of Mormon Trail Through Wyoming Reopens

After a decade-long hiatus, a 29-mile section of the Mormon Trail through Wyoming was recently fully reopened. It means members of the LDS church can make the historic two-day trek along the trail in period clothing pulling handcarts.

Mark HeinzJuly 27, 2025

Knight Lake, formerly Swastika Lake, in southern Wyoming.

18 Months After Name Change, Wyomingites Still Argue Over ‘Swastika Lake’

Nearly 18 months after Swastika Lake in Albany County was renamed Knight Lake, there’s still controversy and arguments over whether the change was justified or erased history.

Mark HeinzJuly 25, 2025

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