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 station with bags for people to pick up and pack out their poo while hiking on Mount Elbert in Colorado, the second tallest peak in the Lower 48.

No More Free-Range Pooping: Human-Poop Bags At Hiking Trailheads Are A Thing Now

“Sustainable pooping” has become an outdoors recreation catchphrase, with people expected to pack their own human waste out in plastic bags. Kiosks with these human-poop bags are popping up along popular hiking trails, like Mount Elbert in Colorado.

Mark HeinzNovember 22, 2024

If Wyoming Grizzlies Make It To Utah, They’ll Probably Get Sent Back

While it’s almost certain that Wyoming grizzlies will eventually migrate into Utah, they won’t be welcome to stay there. Unlike Wyoming, Utah does not have a sustainable habitat for grizzly bears.

Mark HeinzNovember 22, 2024

University of Wyoming trustees meet Friday, rejecting a proposal to allow concealed carry on campus.

University Of Wyoming Trustees Reject Campus Concealed Carry On Split Vote

The University of Wyoming trustees voted Friday against allowing the concealed carry of handguns on campus. But the Wyoming Legislature could still override that decision.

Mark HeinzNovember 22, 2024

The University of Wyoming Trustees listen to public testimony Thursday about a proposal to allow carrying concealed handguns on the UW campus. The trustees postponed a decision on the matter.

Even If UW Won’t Allow Concealed Carry, Legislature Probably Will, Trustee Says

Even if the University of Wyoming doesn’t allow concealed carry of firearms on campus, the Legislature is probably going to approve it anyway, a UW trustee said Thursday.

Mark HeinzNovember 21, 2024

One of 10 wolves reintroduced to northern Colorado in December 2023.

After Colorado Wolf Found With Bullet Wound, Group Puts Up $50K In Rewards

After a bullet wound was found in a wolf carcass in Colorado, a conservation group has set up a $50,000 reward fund for tips about illegal wolf killings.

Mark HeinzNovember 20, 2024

$An electronic ear tag is placed just inside this cow's traditional ear tag.$

Wyoming, Other Western States Push Back Against Electronic Cattle ID Tags

Wyoming ranchers don’t like federally mandated electronic cattle ID tags. They hope to join other Western states in an agreement to just keep using brands for livestock identification.

Mark HeinzNovember 19, 2024

Montana wildlife agents sometimes use drones to chase grizzly bears away from farms and ranches on the high plains.

One Way To Scare Grizzlies Away: Yell At Them Over Drone Speakers

Montana wildlife officials have been yelling at prairie grizzlies through the speakers on drones to scare the bears away from people. But that doesn’t always work, like the Colorado black bear who didn’t budge when blasted with heavy metal music.

Mark HeinzNovember 19, 2024

People listen to a panel discussion on Monday regarding whether to allow the carrying of concealed firearms on the University of Wyoming campus.

Get Over Your “Squishy Feelings,” UW Alum Tells Concealed Carry Panel At UW

At a panel discussion Monday, most attendees seemed to be against allowing concealed carry of firearms at the University of Wyoming. But one supporter told attendees to get over their “squishy feelings” and follow the law.

Mark HeinzNovember 18, 2024

Coyotes and badgers will team up to hunt prairie dogs and ground squirrels. Between the coyotes’ agility and the badgers’ digging power, the rodents don’t stand a chance.

Wyoming Coyotes And Badgers Will Team Up To Hunt Prairie Dogs

Coyotes and badgers in Wyoming will team up to hunt prairie dogs. Badgers dig into the rodents’ dens, while the coyotes wait at the exit to snatch any varmints trying to escape.

Mark HeinzNovember 18, 2024

What's being called a 20-year storm left much of Colorado under deep snow this past week, which crusted over and forced herds of antelope onto eastern Colorado roads, where about 150 were killed, including 53 at once.

Winter Storm Drives 150 Antelope To Their Deaths, Including 53 From One Truck Accident

150 antelope were killed earlier this week when a winter storm blasted eastern Colorado with snow and sent the animals onto the highways. That includes 53 antelope which were plowed down in a single accident.

Mark HeinzNovember 16, 2024

Tearing up a Rolls Royce and other luxury cars in a cheap bear suit in an attempt to scam a California insurance company was “really stupid,” industry and wildlife experts say. Four suspects were arrested Wednesday in the ill-conceived scheme.

Tearing Up Luxury Cars In A Bear Suit To Scam Insurance “Really Stupid”

Tearing up a Rolls Royce and other luxury cars in a cheap bear suit in an attempt to scam California insurance companies was “really stupid,” industry and wildlife experts say. Four suspects were arrested Wednesday in the ill-conceived scheme.

Mark HeinzNovember 16, 2024

The rugged and remote Green Mountain area in the Laramie Range in Albany County is prized for its elk and bighorn sheep hunting. The proposed Britania Land Exchange would trade rugged Forest Service Land in Albany for two parchels farther to the north.

Fight Over Prime Wyoming Hunting Land Exchange Headed To Federal Court

A legal fight is brewing over a U.S. Forest Service land exchange that would take a "hunter's paradise" parcel in Wyoming's Laramie Range out of public use. Opponents of the swap filed a court petition to stop it this week and are threatening a lawsuit.

Mark HeinzNovember 14, 2024

Other Authors

LaPrele Dam has been standing for 115 years, more than double its original 50-year lifespan.

Failing LaPrele Dam Near Douglas Leaves Farmers With No Good Options

There doesn't seem to be any good options for people living below the 115-year-old LaPrele Dam near Douglas which is failing. It's scheduled to be breached by April 1, 2025.

Mark HeinzNovember 14, 2024

Colorado Says If You See A Deer In The Road, Hit It. Don’t Try To “Save Bambi”

If a deer jumps out in front of your vehicle on the road, Colorado officials say it could be best to just hit it. Swerving to try and “save Bambi” could lead to even more tragic results.

Mark HeinzNovember 14, 2024

An elk hunt near Sybille Canyon in southeast Wyoming became a mountain lion hunt for Matt Rivord of Laramie. He said more and more mountain lions have been showing up there.

Having A Mountain Lion Tag, Just In Case, Pays Off For Wyoming Elk Hunting Guide

Hunters keeping just-in-case mountain lion tags in their pocket when they’re out after elk and deer is increasingly common. It paid off for a Wyoming elk hunting guide.

Mark HeinzNovember 13, 2024

Wildlife biologist Cat Wood studied and photographed wolverines in Alaska, like in this file photo. She says a video taken Tuesday morning near Yellowstone National Park, though blurry, shows a wolverine.

Blurry Video Near Yellowstone May Be Extremely Rare Wolverine Sighting

A blurry video taken early Tuesday shows a creature bounding across a highway near Yellowstone National Park. Though the footage is blurry, the man who took it says it was a wolverine, and a wildlife biologist agrees.

Mark HeinzNovember 12, 2024

Students walk on the University of Wyoming campus in this file photo.

UW Eyes Change Of Campus Gun Policy To Allow Concealed Carry

The University of Wyoming might change its policy regarding carrying guns on campus. Now, it's essentially banned, but allowing concealed carry may be in a draft rule expected to be announced Wednesday.

Mark HeinzNovember 12, 2024

Trump’s Win Could Tip The Scales In Favor Of Delisting Wyoming’s Grizzlies

With the incoming administration of President-elect Donald Trump, it’s possible that federal protections could be removed for Wyoming’s grizzly bears.

Mark HeinzNovember 12, 2024

Plunging Temps Get Wyoming Big Game Moving, Increase Odds For Hunters

After a scorching start to hunting season in September and October, colder temperatures and snow in November are helping hunters out.

Mark HeinzNovember 11, 2024

Many modern pistol designs feature a safety lever built into the trigger. That mitigates the risk of accidental firing, if the pistol is being carried with a round in the firing chamber.

Wyoming Outdoorsmen Say In Grizzly Country, Have A Round Chambered In Your Handgun

When a grizzly is charging and milliseconds count, it’s best to have a round already chambered in a defensive handgun, Wyoming outdoorsmen told Cowboy State Daily. A hunter who shot and killed charging grizzly last month says it saved his life.

Mark HeinzNovember 10, 2024

It’s been nearly 30 years since John Talbott, inset, then Wyoming Game and Fish director, got caught fishing without a license and resigned.

That Time Wyoming’s Game And Fish Director Was Caught Fishing Without A License

It’s been nearly 30 years since John Talbott, then Wyoming Game and Fish director, got caught fishing without a license and resigned. The incident still lives on in Wyoming author C.J. Box’s “Joe Pickett” novels.

Mark HeinzNovember 09, 2024

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