In the seven years we've owned the Plaindealer, it has become pretty obvious that we need more resources to help cover stories related to public lands, environmental issues and climate challenges. We ...

The year 2025, Ouray’s hottest year ever recorded, began with a very cold, dry month. January 2025’s mean temperatures were 4.8 degrees below normal both day and night, making it the only below normal...

So far this winter we have had a reprieve from icy sidewalks and snow shoveling — a far cry from what Silverton experienced with the legendary "Big Snow” in March 1884. We are complaining about the pe...

Birdwatching is one of the most accessible hobbies for people of all ages. Little special equipment is required, though beginners often find binoculars and a guidebook to help them identify bird speci...

Ridgway coach Jonny Zaugg dedicated to helping young c limbers of all skill levels When Jonny Zaugg returned to Ridgway several years ago, he saw an opportunity to give back to the community and be th...

Dreaming of a white Christmas? Wunderground’s “meteorologists qualify a white Christmas as one with at least an inch of snow on the ground [SOG] on Christmas morning,” (Hayden Marshall and Jonathan Er...

The Hills are alive with the sound of coaching, as Scott “Scotty” Hill received his indoctrination to the Ridgway High School coaching ranks at the San Juan Mountain Madness basketball tournament earl...

Dear Editor: The Dec. 4-10 edition of the Plaindealer made me realize just how long it’s been since that moniker has had anything to do with the paper’s content. And now it appears, with the publicati...

The winter of 1905-06 was a dangerous time for the high-altitude mines above Telluride as snowstorm after snowstorm hit the region. Just four years earlier, the infamous 1902 "White Death" avalanche h...

Dear Editor: I read the dichotomous reports in the Ouray County Plaindealer, Dec. 11, 2025, issue, which define two types of Ridgway's “creative” people. One was the person who recently asked the Ridg...

Certain career milestones set apart high school basketball players, the most well-known being 1,000 points. But on the defensive end, there’s an equivalent figure, with 300 career steals signifying a ...

Before the Thanksgiving holiday, Ouray High School hosted its “Meet the Trojans” night, akin to a college's Midnight Madness event to celebrate the start of basketball season. On a night with at least...

Ouray finally woke up to its first measurable snowfall Monday, Nov. 24. While waiting for the magic of winter’s arrival, late or not, I found myself wondering: Would this 2025-2026 season’s first meas...

I still can’t believe we own a newspaper. It feels silly to type that sentence. We’re almost seven years into being the caretakers of this community institution, publishing for 148 years. And yet, it ...

Was the famed "Outlaw Thanksgiving" in Brown’s Park history or simply a tall tale? According to Ann Bassett, the "Queen of the Cattle Rustlers," it was a Thanksgiving feast for the ages, hosted by non...

Ouray’s first frost occurred Oct. 17, three weeks after the average frost date, Sept. 26. It was a fitting end to a hot, droughty summer. Occasional downpours helped but were no substitute for a full ...

Separately, the Ridgway, Ouray and Telluride High School cross country teams are among the smallest in the state. Each is successful in their own right — especially ahead of the state championship rac...

In my career as a journalist, I’ve covered dozens of state championship games and events. At this point, it might even be in the triple digits — and there are a handful of things they all have in comm...

The second win of the season is rarely cause for celebration. But when the Ouray High School volleyball team defeated Pinnacle 25-18, 25-18, 20-25, 26-24 on Saturday, it secured the program’s best fin...

The San Juan Mountains are not just a mountain range; they are the jagged, breathtaking spine of southwestern Colorado. This is a land of untamed peaks, alpine meadows and sheer rock faces. Our mighty...