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.
Latest from Mark Heinz
Don’t Expect To Find Many ‘Zombie’ Firearms Parts In Gun-Savvy Wyoming
Firearms slated for destruction after seizures or buybacks are reborn as “zombie” gun components for sale on the open market. Wyoming gun enthusiasts say you can’t trust these parts, and firearms owners here are too savvy to use them.
Mark HeinzDecember 25, 2023
Flamethrowers, Chainsaws, Guns: Last-Minute Gifts For The Outdoors-Person Who Has Everything
What do you get the outdoors enthusiasts on your Christmas list who already have everything they need? Outdoors reporter Mark Heinz has some suggestions ranging from flamethrowers to chainsaws to deer teeth...
Mark HeinzDecember 22, 2023
Environmental Groups Sue BNSF Over Grizzlies Getting Drunk, Hit By Trains
Two environmental groups are suing Burlington Northern Santa Fe railroad for being too careless about its trains killing drunk grizzlies. The grizzlies eat fermented grain on the railroad tracks, pass out, and then get run over.
Mark HeinzDecember 22, 2023
‘Flying Deer’ Isn’t A Christmas Gag, It’s Common Wildlife Biology Practice
Wildlife researchers frequently move deer by slinging them under a helicopter, which means Santa doesn’t have an exclusive on flying critters. But unlike Rudolph, Wyoming’s flying deer need a little help to get airborne.
Mark HeinzDecember 21, 2023
Grizzly 399 Likely Hibernating While Warm Weather Has Kept Other Bears Out Late
Wildlife photographers who have followed Grizzly 399 for years, say the bear and her super-sized cub have likely gone into hibernation. Not so for many other bears, however, as warm weather has kept them active in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem.
Mark HeinzDecember 21, 2023
Backcountry Skier Gets Rare Video Of Wyoming Wolverine Tearing Across The Snow
Wolverines are so rare and elusive, even people who spend countless hours in the vast outdoors never get to see one. On Monday, backcountry skier Nick Gaddy took video of one ripping across an alpine snowfield on the Wyoming side of the state line near Cooke City.
Mark HeinzDecember 20, 2023
Fremont County Officials May Mount And Display Mistakenly Shot Bighorn Ram
A bighorn sheep ram that was allegedly shot in the wrong hunting area in Fremont County might grace the county courthouse – if elected officials can pony up a $1,500 taxidermist’s fee.
Mark HeinzDecember 20, 2023
Colorado Cheers Release Of Wolves, Wyoming Ranchers Not So Much
As Colorado officials cheered the release of five wolves Monday, ranchers on the Wyoming side of the state line say it’s only a matter of time before they have to deal with them.
Mark HeinzDecember 19, 2023
Wyoming Man Bags 1-Ton Monster Bull Bison In Once-In-A-Lifetime Hunt
A Bondurant man put in for a bison hunting tag for 14 years before drawing one – and after hunting the lumbering beasts in the wild, he dropped a 1-ton trophy-class free-range bull.
Mark HeinzDecember 18, 2023
Star Valley Couple Captures ‘Five Days Of Mountain Lions’ On Video
A couple from in Lincoln County were surprised recently, but not alarmed, when a pair of mountain lions lingered near their driveway for five, feasting on the carcass of a deer that they’d killed. So they setup a videocamera and watched them for nearly a week.
Mark HeinzDecember 17, 2023
Wyoming Arctic Truck Company Builds 6x6 Snow Trucks That Can Drive Anywhere
The Iceland-based Arctic Truck company just opened its first North American shop and located it in Cheyenne. Two 6x6 customized F-350 trucks, which can cost between $250,000 - $450,000 each, recently drove from Cheyenne to the Magnetic North Pole across frozen sea ice and boundless fields of deep snow.
Mark HeinzDecember 17, 2023
Oil, Gas Wells Don’t Bother Antelope In Prime Wyoming Migration Route
Instead of harming antelope along Wyoming’s “Path of the Pronghorn” migration route, oil and gas wells might have spared some from freezing to death during the devastating winter of 2022-2023.
Mark HeinzDecember 17, 2023
Torrington Man's Love Affair With His 1973 Ford Bronco
The obsession started in 1969 when one of Ed Schreiner's relatives drove up in a brand new Ford Bronco. Now Ed Schreiner puts 50,000 miles a year on “Stella Louise," his 1973 Bronco, traveling to places across Wyoming and the West to capture scenic photos of his classic ride.
Mark HeinzDecember 16, 2023
Turning A Semi-Automatic Gun Into A Machine Gun Has Some Serious Drawbacks
Although to some, it may sound like a fun idea, converting semi-automatic firearms to fully automatic is illegal, unsafe and probably not worth the risk of huge fines and prison time, say Wyoming gun enthusiasts.
Mark HeinzDecember 16, 2023
Man Shoots Deer, Makes Dentures From Deer, Then Eats Deer With Dentures
A rugged Canadian woodsman once made himself dentures out of a deer’s teeth — and then ate the deer with its own teeth. A Wyoming dentist said that was ingenious, but not advisable. A Wyoming outdoorsman calls it “badass.”
Mark HeinzDecember 15, 2023
UW Football Superfans Say They Can’t Wait For $85 Million War Memorial Upgrade
The legendary home of University of Wyoming Cowboys football, War Memorial Stadium, is getting an $85 million upgrade that’s likely to boost some game ticket prices, but Pokes superfans say they don’t mind.
Mark HeinzDecember 14, 2023
Wyoming Golden Eagles May Have Been Among 3,600 Birds Slaughtered In Montana
Some of the 3,600 birds allegedly slaughtered by two Montana men during a multi-year killing spree could have been golden eagles from Wyoming. The two men were indicted by a federal grand jury in Montana last week.
Mark HeinzDecember 14, 2023
If A Bear Charges You While Skiing, Go Fast Or Trip Someone, Says Ski Instructor
Video of a bear charging across a Lake Tahoe ski slope on Sunday has a Wyoming ski and snowboard instructor advising a skier’s best options are speed, or putting a slower skier between you and the bear.
Mark HeinzDecember 12, 2023
Wyoming Ranchers Near Border Brace For Colorado To Get Wolves This Month
Some Wyoming and Colorado ranchers aren’t fans of Colorado’s plan to reintroduce gray wolves this month. It will harm big game herds and possibly threaten smaller, endangered Mexican wolves, they say.
Mark HeinzDecember 11, 2023
Wyoming's Grizzly Population Unlikely To Turn Into Inbred Redneck Hillbillies
Despite only receiving a few grizzly bears per decade in Yellowstone, Wyoming's grizzlies are not in danger of turning into inbred redneck hillbillies as the genetic pool is large enough where inbreeding is not yet a concern.
Mark HeinzDecember 10, 2023
Three Deer Running Around Sheridan With Christmas Lights In Their Antlers
Santa may have a bunch of flying reindeer, but the deer in Sheridan have the most holiday spirit – at least those three bucks that have been strutting around town with Christmas lights in their antlers.
Mark HeinzDecember 08, 2023