On the Slope
News
Commissioners to discuss emergency plans for flooding
By James Hanlon, Special to the Plaindealer 
July 7, 2026
Wildlife escaping the Gold Mountain Fire are moving closer to town, prompting state wildlife officials to advise the public on how they can simultaneously help animals and give them the space they nee...
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News
Timeline unclear for return to homes in evacuated area
By Deb Hurley Brobst 
July 6, 2026
Evacuees of the Gold Mountain Fire — who have been displaced for more than a week — hope they will return to their homes soon, are thankful for the firefighters working tirelessly to quell the flames ...
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Main, News...
By Mike 
July 2, 2026
The U.S. Forest Service this afternoon expanded the closure area in the Uncompahgre National Forest east of Ridgway, as the Gold Mountain Fire makes another big run. The original closure largely encom...
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News
By erin@ouraynews.com 
July 2, 2026
Water managers are asking residents to avoid excessive water use and putting more demand on their distribution system. Ridgway Mayor John Clark announced during a Ouray County Board of County Commissi...
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News
By erin@ouraynews.com 
July 2, 2026
Ridgway Reservoir will close to boaters as soon as planes dispatched to assist with the aerial attack on the Gold Mountain Fire arrive. It's hard to tell exactly when that will be, but Colorado Parks ...
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Main, News...
Evacuations expand, forest closes as forecast offers little relief
July 1, 2026
A wildfire that started as a wisp of smoke on a cliffside just north of Ouray last weekend exploded to more than 15,000 acres by Wednesday, driven by winds north to the Cimarron Range east of Ridgway....
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Main, News...
By Deb Hurley Brobst Special to the Plaindealer 
July 1, 2026
Fourth of July events in Ouray will be scaled back this year in response to the Gold Mountain Fire, with the July 3 fire department benefit concert and the Independence Day parade and kids’ games a go...
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News
No word when owners will be able to return
By By Mike Wiggins, Erin McIntyre and Deb Hurley Brobst mike@ouraynews.com erin@ouraynews.com 
July 1, 2026
Rachel Nichols helped Russell McCrady when he needed emergency treatment for his dog. Little did she know he would return the favor when she and her husband encountered their own emergency, after they...
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News
Forced to flee, Denver-area couple improvises, moves celebration
By Mike Wiggins mike@ouraynews.com 
July 1, 2026
The navy blue suit was ready for James Lindaman to attach his great-grandfather’s Air Force airman’s pin to the lapel. Michelle Lindaman spent months arranging every detail of her wedding, from the fl...
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Feature
July 1, 2026
Compiled from the files of The Ouray County Herald, The Ridgway Sun, and The Ouray County Plaindealer 60 Years Ago July 7, 1966 Dynamite charges started Ouray’s Independence Day Celebration with a ban...
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News
By Deb Hurley Brobst Special to the Plaindealer 
July 1, 2026
Ouray County commissioners responded to the good, the bad and the ugly from the “2026 Employee Viewpoint Survey,” saying they were pleased county employees said they generally like their jobs, committ...
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