Dry. Hot. Windy. Summer 2020 crisped this patch of earth – until last week’s monsoon surge. Forests were tinderboxes, trails obscured by fallen trees, wildlife scarce — except in town.

Ouray saw only 0.17 inches of rain the first 12 days of July, then picked up 2.35 inches more by the 28th. The first 22 days of the month, daytime temps averaged a rather intemperate 81.8 degrees, 3.5 degrees above the normal 78.3; nights averaged 53.7, 2.6 degrees above normal (51.1). For the next six da...