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Grand River Hospital blood drive
The Grand River Hospital and Medical Center will host a blood drive on Thursday, Oct. 29 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m.. The Blood Mobile from St. Mary's Regional Blood Center in Grand Junction will be in the parking lot east of the hospital entrance, near the emergency room entrance. Grand River Hospital and Medical Center is located at 501 Airport Road in Rifle. If you give blood, you can also receive a free cholesterol screening.Donating blood is a safe and easy way to save lives. Each pint of blood donated can save up to three lives. Grand River Hospital and medical Center hosts the St. Mary's Blood Mobile several times a year. For questions regarding the blood drive at Grand River Hospital and Medical Center, please call (970) 625-6439. For more information about the Blood Mobile and St. Mary's Regional Blood Center, please call (970) 244-2555.
State park closures for the season
Rifle Gap State Park and Harvey Gap State Park will close the boat ramps to all trailered vessels between Nov. 1 and April 1 to prevent the spread of aquatic nuisance species, including zebra and quagga mussels. Hand launching of small boats will be allowed until the lake freezes over, which usually occurs in late December. Colorado State Park regulations prohibit the launching of boats from trailers except at designated boat launching areas in the state parks. The Cedar and Cottonwood Campgrounds are open for camping with electrical hookups throughout the winter on a first-come, first-serve basis. All facilities with running water will be shut down for the season, including all flush restrooms, water hydrants and the dump station on November 1st.
The park office will remain open throughout the winter from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday so that visitors are able to purchase park passes, camping permits and registrations. Although the park is staffed every day, office hours vary on the weekends depending on Ranger availability, and visitors should call ahead to schedule a time to meet with the Ranger staff.
Throughout 2009, Colorado State Parks is celebrating its 50th anniversary as a leader in providing opportunities for outdoor recreation, protecting the state's favorite landscapes, teaching generations about nature and partnering with communities.
Attracting more than 11 million visitors per year, Colorado's 42 State Parks are a vital cornerstone of Colorado's economy and quality of life. Colorado State Parks encompass 242,531 land and water acres, offering some of the best outdoor recreation destinations in the state. Colorado State Parks also manage more than 4,000 campsites, and 57 cabins and yurts. For more information on Colorado State Parks or to purchase an annual pass online, visit www.colorado.gov/parks.
Hyp-Yoga comes to Battlement Mesa
Breathe. Stretch. Listen. Change. Whether working on specific goals like stress reduction, weight loss or quitting smoking, or just to relax and recharge, Hyp-Yoga is now available at the Battlement Mesa Activity Center helps align the mind with the body and its behaviors with a unique and effective combination of yoga and hypnosis.Hyp-Yoga sessions features expansive full-body poses and deep breathwork, opening up the body and calming the mind, making the gentle hypnosis that follows incredibly effective. When practitioners learn how to open up their subconscious mind to helpful and beneficial suggestions, there is unlimited potential for positive improvement and behavioral changes.
“We are so incredibly excited to add Hyp-Yoga to the Battlement Mesa Activity Center,” said Robin Conner. “It realty gives new meaning to the idea that you can do whatever you want if you put your mind to it! The great thing about the program is that it's really gentle, so no matter what your fitness or yoga level, you can do it, enjoy it and see results.”
If you can't make it to the Battlement Mesa Activity Center, Hyp-Yoga is also available for at-home and on-the-road use with a 5-edition CD collection and a Weight Loss DVD. The CDs ($14.99 each or 5/$49.99) each include 10 minutes of yoga poses , with pictures included for guidance, followed by a hypnosis session and cover the following topics — Freedom from Emotional Eating, Sleeping Better, Learning to Flow (stress prevention), Increased Energy and Living in the Present Moment. The 6-week Weight Loss DVD Program ($39.99) includes guided yoga sessions followed by hypnosis, as well as tips and tricks to help change behaviors, a nutrition guide and a yoga poses poster.
For more information, please visit www.hyp-yoga.com or contact maggie@michaelrogerspr.com. For a full class schedule at the Battlement Mesa Activity Center, please visit www.bmac-co.org or call 970-285-9480.
Volunteer opportunities at YouthZone
YouthZone's Pals mentoring program is now in its 30th year matching adults and teens with young Pals. There are now 48 Pals matches from Carbondale to Parachute, including eight Roaring Fork High School students who joined last month. Share your life, be a Pal mentor! Call YouthZone at 945-9300 or visit www.YouthZone.com.
Conservation Districts annual dinner party
Mount Sopris, Bookcliff and South Side Conservation Districts and Natural Resources Conservation Service will hold its annual dinner meeting at 6 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 6, at the Ramada Inn in Glenwood Springs. This meeting is held each year for those who would like to know more about the accomplishments and current t projects of the conservation districts and Natural Resources Conservation Service and for the landowners that have worked with us in the past. The evening's events will include a social hour, dinner and a program honoring “The Ranch of the Year.” Please call the district office at 945-5494, ext. 105, for reservations by Oct. 30. Dinner is $30 per person.
Comments sought on snowmobile trail grooming
The White River National Forest is proposing to re-issue special use permits to two area clubs who groom and maintain public snowmobile trails on the forest. Together, the Rifle Snowmobile Club and the Flattoppers Snowmobile Club have maintained 190 miles of snowmobile trails on the Rife and Eagle Ranger Districts since the 1990s.“These organizations provide a valuable service on the forest,” said Kyle Grambley, recreation specialist for the Rifle Ranger District. “By re-issuing these permits, the public will have access to this tremendous opportunity for at least the next five years.”
Under the terms of the proposed permits, the Rifle Snowmobile Club would continue maintaining 124 miles of snowmobile trails, of which 90 miles are marked and groom and 34 miles market only. Groomed trails are 12 to 16 feet wide. The club would be responsible for maintaining directional signs, confidence markers and hazard signing along all of the trails The Rifle Club would continue maintaining a temporary equipment storage building on National Forest System lands and has proposed to maintain the west Elk Trailhead, including the cleaning of the outhouse and plowing the parking lot. The Flattoppers Snowmobile Club would continue maintaining 66 miles of groomed trails, including signs and confidence markers.
Questions or comments regarding these two snowmobile permits should be directed to Kyle Grambley at the Rifle Ranger District, 0094 County Road 244, Rifle, CO 81650 or call (970) 625-6852. Comments should be submitted by Thursday, Oct. 29.
