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...

Orion Catron first ran because he really, really didn’t want to walk. As a freshman at Ridgway High School, he wasn’t connecting with classmates or pushing himself. “I think my parents recognized this...

Halfway through Monday, Sept. 22, 2025, at 12:22 p.m. Mountain Daylight Time, astronomical summer officially yielded to autumn. Seasonal change has been a nagging presence. It’s nearly dark by 7 p.m O...

Like many with remote positions, Leah Klempner and her husband explored the country through their travels. They made their way to Ouray in 2020 and immediately fell in love, returning each summer afte...

When it came to planning and building Ridgway’s brand-new Cimarron Athletic Field, my wife, Leslie T. Chang, and I had very little to contribute. We aren’t engineers or contractors, and neither of us ...

Our neighborhood reservoir, Ridgway State Park, has become a popular destination for outdoor enthusiasts. The park is a modern chapter in the long and rich history of the Uncompahgre Valley. It is a s...

A lot of things can change during a high school cross country season. The course layouts and elevation can vary widely across the unique terrains of Colorado. Competition evolves week to week, with sc...

This year's missing monsoon finally showed up the night of Aug. 22. By the next morning, Saturday, a much wetter, greener, cooler world greeted Ouray County residents and summer visitors. Interestingl...

The American West, including the Western Slope of Colorado, experienced significant population growth in the latter decades of the 19th century. “Boosterism” was one of the government strategies used ...

Ouray gardeners, like their counterparts across the Four Corners states, count on the Southwest Monsoon from July to September. In the city of Ouray it brings over 30% (7.31 inches) of our average ann...