Team History
The Ouray Mountain Rescue Team (OMRT) has a rich and colorful history spanning more than five decades. Someone even wrote a book about us.
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OMRT Celebrates 50 Years in 2024
In 2024, we are celebrating OMRT’s 50th year of search and rescue operations with multiple community events throughout the year.
Please visit our Events page for our full list of 50th anniversary activities!
National Search and Rescue Award
We recently won a national Search and Rescue award for completing the most inspirational rescue of 2021.
Many thanks to the annual SAR award sponsors Rocky Talkie and American Alpine Club for recognizing our team’s ongoing efforts to save lives in the rugged backcountry of Ouray County.
Colorado Mountain Club’s Annual Valor Award
We were proud to be awarded the Colorado Mountain Club’s annual Valor Award for completing a dramatic rescue on Mount Sneffles in the summer of 2021.
Many thanks to the CMC for selecting our team for this prestigious award.
No Individual Heroes
In 2018, author Karen Risch published a 368-page book documenting many of our team’s most remarkable and memorable rescues since the team was founded in 1974. Karen is a long-time Ouray resident and a 14-year veteran of the Ouray Mountain Rescue Team. Her book is available for purchase at Ouray Mountain Sports, Ridgway Adventure Sports, and many other shops throughout Ouray County.
Annual Newsletters
In 2015 we began self-publishing an annual newsletter documenting our most notable missions and activities over the prior year. If you would like to receive a copy of our annual newsletter, please click here to join our mailing list. We only send emails once or twice per year, and we never share or sell email addresses.
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