Editor's note: The Ouray County Plaindealer is pleased to feature local artists in an occasional feature, "Spotlight on the Arts." This is the latest installation of this new feature, which has a goal...

I’ve been to Mesa Verde many times, to Canyons of the Ancients west of Cortez, to Bears Ears National Monument, Canyon de Chelly and to Hovenweep National Monument. They're all very interesting but I...

Update: As of 10:10 p.m., the highway is now open, the Ouray County Sheriff's Office said. Original story: Highway 550 is currently closed due to a fatal, multi-vehicle accident about two miles south ...

Work is expected to begin next year on an estimated $13.5 million project on U.S Highway 550, which will include a wildlife underpass and fencing near the Billy Creek State Wildlife Area and a southbo...

The city of Ouray’s crackdown on property owners for failing to clear snow from their sidewalks in a timely manner has elicited a mixture of public praise and criticism. City officials mailed 38 lette...

Ouray County Attorney Leo Caselli earned near-perfect scores from commissioners on his first annual performance review, which was approved by the board on Monday. He was scored on 17 categories that e...

The spectators who gather this weekend to watch the San Juan Skijoring competition in Ridgway likely have no idea how much work went into putting the event together. Skijoring is a somewhat new sport,...

Vehicle registration fees in Colorado now include a $29 charge for the new “Keep Colorado Wild” pass, which is intended to generate funding for state parks and outdoor-related initiatives and will gra...

Days before Barbara Peterson died in 2013, her manicurist who had become a good friend came to her bedside and painted her fingernails. She was unconscious, and would soon succumb to the metastatic br...

Ridgway State Park is taking a step toward becoming an International Dark Sky Place by participating in a mentorship program that will help officials, who hope the park will be certified within two ye...

When Michelle Nauer told Deputy Clerk Cristy Sulewski she wanted to run for county commissioner, Sulewski started crying. They weren’t tears of sadness, or happiness, she said, but for a moment, “it f...

The Ouray Planning Commission voted unanimously Tuesday to approve the sketch plan for the Waterview Planned Unit Development, an affordable housing development with up to 70 homes on the north end of...

If elk could walk over the horizontal bands that mark the mountains surrounding Ouray, maybe people could too, a young Bob Risch thought. The idea would eventually spark the creation of one of the cit...

Ouray County Commissioner Ben Tisdel will pass the torch to Michelle Nauer on Jan. 10, leaving a board he believes is getting back to normal business after eight years marked by highs and lows includi...

Michelle Nauer flips carefully through an old book, gently turning the pages and scanning the lists of handwritten names. She points out the delicate cursive of the late 1880s, almost like calligraphy...

Colorado is tightening restrictions on single-use bags used by businesses, but the new rules that took effect on Jan. 1 will have little impact on many local businesses, which are too small to require...

A former funeral home operator who sold whole bodies and body parts in a scheme defrauding families who trusted her with final arrangements was sentenced to 20 years in federal prison on Tuesday afte...

Western Colorado Nordic skiers have a new trail system to enjoy thanks to a partnership between a Montrose-area group and the U.S. Forest Service. The Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National For...