Author - News

Columns, Feature

Small but mighty: Ridgway girls’ track and field secures first league title as independent program

In high school track and field, athletes are limited to competing in four events. It’s a way to ensure competitive balance, limit wear and tear on ath...

May 7, 2025

Columns, Feature

Soccer finishing season with strong kick

After a 4-0 victory over Bayfield on Monday, the Ridgway High School girls' soccer team clinched a record of .500 or better for the eighth time in the...

April 30, 2025

Columns, Feature

As weather warms, so does Ridgway soccer team

It’s probably no coincidence that the Ridgway High School girls’ soccer team has heated up on the field as temperatures have warmed up outside. In the...

April 23, 2025

Columns, Feature

Sharing between soccer, track breeds success

It can be difficult for a coach not to oversee every aspect of an athlete’s training or competition during a given season. It’s also rough to juggle s...

April 16, 2025

Columns, Feature

Ridgway stands toe-to-toe with larger school

Editor's note: The Plaindealer is trying something new – publishing a sports column with information about local high school sports during the seasons...

April 2, 2025

Main, News...

Fire surges into Cimarrons

Evacuations expand, forest closes as forecast offers little relief

By Mike Wiggins and Erin McIntyre mike@ouraynews.com erin@ouraynews.com

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....

Main, News...

City curtails holiday events

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...

News

Blaze forces evacuations, destroys family cabin

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...

News

Fire crashes wedding party

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...

News

Looking Back

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...

By Matt Meyer Special to the Plaindealer

Remote-triggered avalanche in San Juan Mountains

First responders receive first COVID-19 vaccines