The first weekend of summer has been a scorcher, with temperatures flirting with triple digits in metro Denver for the first time this year.
With the heat comes a burst of desire to head to a river, creek or lake to seek relief. But waterways across the state — flush with recently melted snowpack — are often still a bone-chilling 45 degrees or so.
Fall in, jump in or get tossed in, and things can turn deadly serious in a flash, said Todd Miner, a retired senior instructor in the Department of Emergency Medicine at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.
“You get in that cold water, and it’s really tough to stay in control,” he said. “People don’t recognize how debilitating that can be.”
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Add to the cold a formidable current, and chances for serious accidents — even fatal ones — only multiply. Stand up in the creek, and expect to get your foot wedged and pinned in between rocks on the creek bed, said Capt. Harold Osborn with North Metro Fire Rescue.
“A lot of times, (people) don’t understand the flow dynamics of the river,” he said.
Osborn was one of 15 members of the North Area Technical Rescue Team practicing water rescues on a roaring Clear Creek last week west of Golden. The 150-member organization, now in its 30th year and made up of emergency officials from nine local fire departments, performs specialized rescues in Denver’s northern suburbs, including rope rescues, confined space rescues, trench rescues and collapse rescues.
On Wednesday, the focus was water rescue training in Clear Creek Canyon. A rescuer was tethered to the shore or was free swimming across a raging current, then grabbing hold of a free-floating “victim” and pulling them back to land. Lt. Jacob Charney, with North Metro Fire Rescue, was in charge.
“Because the water’s so high, we do the training in the spring,” he said, wearing a dry suit and helmet as a bloated Clear Creek rushed past. “It’s the most difficult conditions because of the velocity of the water.”
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Less than two weeks ago, the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office closed the creek through downtown Golden to belly boats, inner tubes and single-chambered rafts — as well as body surfing and swimming — until water levels subside. People on kayaks, river boards, whitewater canoes and multi-chambered, professionally guided rafts can still ride the creek.
The closure comes after three years of particularly deadly water activity in Colorado. More than 30 people died on the state’s waterways and water bodies last year. There were 32 deaths in 2023 and a record 42 fatalities in 2022, according to an unofficial tally kept by Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
This year, so far, has been a departure from that deadly record. As of Friday, the state had seen eight deaths recorded in 2025, according to news releases from CPW.
In comparison, by the first few days of June last year, there had already been a dozen deaths on Colorado waters.
Fire and rescue crew members carry a boat during water rescue training in Clear Creek Canyon in Jefferson County on Thursday, June 18, 2025. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
“We are not on the same pace as last year, and that is fantastic news,” CPW spokeswoman Kara Van Hoose said.
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She credits the drop in water deaths to a cooler and wetter May, with Memorial Day weekend almost a total washout.
“When it rains, people are less likely to be out on the water,” Van Hoose said.
This year’s deaths in Colorado waters have largely been on lakes, rather than rivers. The incidents began in late February with the discovery of the body of a 65-year-old fisherman who had fallen through the ice at Cherry Creek Reservoir. In mid-April, the body of a man who fell from a canoe was recovered from Spinney Reservoir in Park County.
Last month, a fisherman using a bellyboat — a small, inflatable tube — got caught in strong wind gusts at Steamboat Lake State Park and drowned, authorities said. He was not wearing a life jacket. In the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area, a popular rafting and kayaking spot near Buena Vista, a kayaker died after his vessel capsized.
Another four deaths have occurred at Lake Pueblo State Park, including a drowning on Thursday. In most of the Lake Pueblo deaths, the victim did not wear a life jacket.
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“Any water can be deadly if you’re not wearing a life jacket,” Van Hoose said.
Employees at Golden River Sports hand out life jackets and helmets to all customers who rent their tubes. But Jon Baskin, who has worked seasonally at the tube and kayak rental store in downtown Golden for five years and was a raft guide for a decade, sees many on Clear Creek not wearing protective gear.
Lt. Jacob Charney of North Metro Fire Rescue leads an exercise during water rescue training in Clear Creek Canyon in Jefferson County on Thursday, June 18, 2025. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
“I see people without PFDs,” he said, referring to personal flotation devices. “Clear Creek on a weekend day is like a carnival — there are hundreds and hundreds of tubes. But it’s still a wild river, it’s not like the lazy river at Elitch’s.”
Golden has taken measures in recent years to control, and even restrict, the crowds that mob the waterway near downtown Vanover Park on warm, sunny days. The city places daily limits on the number of tubes the two concessionaires in town can rent to the public. It also embeds radio frequency identification tags in tubes to track their usage.
Last year, Golden discussed the introduction of a reservation system, like the timed-entry system used at Rocky Mountain National Park. It has not yet put in place such a system to control access to the creek.
Whether 2025’s less-deadly trend on Colorado’s waters continues into July and beyond, CPW’s Van Hoose said, will ultimately come down to individual behavior and precautions taken.
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“We hope we continue to see good numbers — but it’s up to the people,” she said.
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As prosecutors attempted to paint a Colorado dentist as a calculated killer who poisoned his wife to pursue a new romantic life, the defense took a dramatically different route by portraying his wife of 23 years as emotionally manipulative and mentally unstable.
Dr. James Toliver Craig, 47, is charged with first-degree murder in the March 2023 death of his wife, Angela Craig, a 43-year-old mother of six. Her cause of death was determined to be lethal doses of cyanide and tetrahydrozoline.
In opening statements Tuesday in Colorado, defense attorney Ashley Whitham acknowledged the couple’s rocky 23-year marriage but described Angela not as a victim of betrayal, but as someone who was emotionally broken, deeply private and at times manipulative.
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“You’re going to hear her own daughter describe her that she was also manipulating words,” Whitham revealed to jurors Tuesday. “Again, that if she wanted to try to get something, she would be manipulative.”
COLORADO DENTIST’S ALLEGED INTERNET SEARCH HISTORY TAKES CENTER STAGE AS MURDER TRIAL BEGINS
James Craig tears up during opening arguments in his murder trial in Arapahoe District Court Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Centennial, Colo. Craig is accused of murdering his wife.(Stephen Swofford/Denver Gazette via Pool)
The Colorado couple’s marital strife was laid bare in Tuesday’s opening remarks. Prosecutors pointed to his relationship with a Texas orthodontist, Dr. Karin Cain, as the motivation for the murder. Cain has not returned Fox News Digital’s requests for comment. The defense said the 47-year-old husband had extramarital affairs throughout the couple’s marriage.
“Karin Cain was just like the others. This wasn’t some new obsession,” Whitham said.
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Along with a series of affairs, Craig also allegedly used the website Seeking.com, advertising himself as “Jim and Waffles” and claiming a net worth of $10 million in search of “sugar babies.”
Whitham described Angela as an “extremely private” stay-at-home mom of six who, due to her deeply held Mormon faith, was reluctant to share the couple’s marital issues. She claimed Angela was isolated and someone who was “not about to tell people about her marital struggles” and who was “broken.”
Defense attorney Kelly Hyman delved into the dueling strategies as the high-stakes murder trial kicks off. She noted that the defense’s strategy to cast Angela as manipulative and unstable plays into their aims to create reasonable doubt and reframe the context.
“By doing so, the defendant implies that [he] wasn’t responsible,” she explained to Fox News Digital. “That could go to the heaty of the defense that Angela killed herself and that it was suicide.”
Ryan Brackley, a lawyer for the prosecution, delivers his opening arguments during the murder trial of James Craig in Arapahoe District Court Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Centennial, Colo.(Stephen Swofford/Denver Gazette via Pool)
Ashley Whitham, a lawyer for the defense, delivers her opening arguments during a murder trial for James Craig in Arapahoe District Court Tuesday, July 15, 2025, in Centennial, Colo.(Stephen Swofford/Denver Gazette via Pool)
While prosecutors argued Tuesday that Craig’s alleged Google searches, chemical orders and romantic messages to his alleged mistress amount to premeditation, Hyman warned that speculative interpretation of digital evidence isn’t always a slam dunk.
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“A way to do this is to challenge admissibility and the reliability of the digital evidence. This can be done on cross-examination or through a defense witness to counter the digital forensic and timeline reconstruction,” she said.
The defense argued Tuesday that investigators operated with “tunnel vision” and failed to investigate other leads. The defense said Angela’s personal laptop was never seized or searched despite prosecutors showing images of her using it from her hospital bed to research symptoms.
SMALL-TOWN DENTIST FACING TRIAL FOR ALLEGEDLY POISONING WIFE’S PROTEIN SHAKE AMID SECRET AFFAIR
“The defense could argue that the unexamined laptop may contain information supporting an alternative theory of events or potentially pointing to another person and/or a different timeline,” Hyman said. “This omission may suggest an incomplete and/or biased investigation.”
Hyman also noted that the absence of direct physical evidence, such as cyanide residue on containers or packaging, could work to the defense’s advantage.
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“The absence of direct physical evidence like poison residue on the protein shake containers or the victim’s body presents a key argument for the defense to use,” she said.
Colorado dentist James Craig is accused of fatally poisoning his wife and the mother of his six kids, Angela Craig.(Facebook)
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Investigators alleged in court documents obtained by Fox News Digital that, in the weeks before his wife’s hospitalization and death, Craig used a dental office computer to search for “undetectable poisons” and how to obtain them, later purchasing arsenic and cyanide by mail, “how many grams of pure arsenic will kill a human” and “is arsenic detectable in an autopsy?”
Alongside these online searches, investigators alleged Craig made YouTube queries such as “how to make poison” and “Top 5 Undetectable Poisons That Show No Signs of Foul Play.”
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Fox News Digital has reached out to James Craig’s lead attorney, Lisa Fine Moses, for comment.
Sarah Rumpf-Whitten is a U.S. Writer at Fox News Digital.
BOTTOM LINE: A game after shutting out the Vancouver Whitecaps 3-0, the Colorado Rapids play the Seattle Sounders.
The Sounders are 9-6-4 in conference matchups. The Sounders rank fifth in the Western Conference with 98 shots on goal, averaging 4.7 per game.
The Rapids are 7-8-4 against Western Conference opponents. The Rapids rank 10th in the league drawing 108 corner kicks, averaging 4.7 per game.
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Wednesday’s game is the second time these teams meet this season. The last meeting ended tied 1-1.
TOP PERFORMERS: Albert Rusnak has eight goals and four assists for the Sounders. Jesus Ferreira has scored three goals over the past 10 games.
Rafael Navarro has scored eight goals with one assist for the Rapids. Djordje Mihailovic has three goals and three assists over the last 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Sounders: 5-3-2, averaging 1.4 goals, 3.6 shots on goal and 4.5 corner kicks per game while allowing 1.5 goals per game.
Rapids: 4-5-1, averaging 1.2 goals, 3.4 shots on goal and 4.8 corner kicks per game while allowing 1.3 goals per game.
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NOT EXPECTED TO PLAY: Sounders: Stuart Russell Hawkins (injured), Yeimar Gomez Andrade (injured), Kim Kee-Hee (injured), Joao Paulo (injured), Paul Arriola (injured), Stefan Frei (injured).
Rapids: Alex Harris (injured), Wayne Frederick (injured).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
From fresh water to hot pavement, here are a few things to keep in mind when it comes to dogs, heat and summer.
Five dog-friendly trails in or near Fort Collins, Colorado, offer various hiking experiences.
Options range from short loops to longer trails, some with water access for dogs.
The only thing better than hiking the many Fort Collins-area trails is doing it with your dog.
Here are five favorite dog-friendly trails in or near Fort Collins to check out.
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Dogs must be on a leash and though rare, rattlesnakes can be found on all of these trails, so stay on the trail and be vigilant. These are all multiuse trails, so make sure to have control of your dog.
Horsetooth Falls Loop
Where: Horsetooth Mountain Open Space. West of Horsetooth Reservoir
The hike: You have options. It’s an easy 1.1 miles one way on a nonpaved trail to the falls, which you and your dog will find refreshing after the sunny hike. Either head back the way you came or do the moderate 3.1-mile loop via the Spring Creek, Horsetooth Rock and South Ridge trails back to the parking lot. The trail to the falls can be crowded.
Fee: $10 for county resident daily permit.
Information: Visit the Larimer County website.
Want a preview? Check out this video from 2021:
See why Horsetooth Falls hike is the best in years
Abundant spring rain has the falls flowing, vistas vibrant green and the wildflowers blooming.
Miles Blumhardt, Fort Collins Coloradoan
Pineridge Natural Area
Where: On the western edge of Fort Collins. The main parking lot is on Larimer County Road 42C (approximate address is 2750 County Road 42C).
The hike: Your dog will enjoy splashing in Dixon Reservoir and its 1.8-mile, nonpaved loop. If you wish to venture farther, there are more soft surface trails found on the 9.6-mile Foothills Trail that connects Pineridge, Maxwell and Reservoir Ridge natural areas. There is little shade on this hike, so mornings and evenings are better options.
Fee: Free.
Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Information: Visit the Fort Collins Natural Areas web page for Pineridge Natural Area.
Lory State Park East/West Valley trails
Where: Just west of Horsetooth Reservoir, 708 Lodgepole Drive.
The hike: The easy, 2.2-mile East Valley Trail takes you on a nonpaved trail to the shores of Horsetooth Reservoir, where your dog can enjoy the water (but not at designated human swimming areas). You can either head back the same way or add the 2.3-mile, nonpaved West Valley Loop back for a more difficult route. No shade, so enjoy the water.
Fee: $10 daily vehicle pass.
Hours: 5 a.m. to sunset.
Information: Visit the Colorado Parks and Wildlife web page for Lory State Park.
Reservoir Ridge Natural Area
Where: Parking lots on Centennial Drive/Larimer County Road 23, the west end of Michaud Lane and off Overland Trail Road (at approximately 1425 Overland Trail Road).
The hike: About 5 miles of nonpaved trail takes you along the foothills with great views of Fort Collins. There is no water and little shade on this hike, so early morning and late evening are best. This trail connects to the 9.6-mile Foothills Trail.
Fee: Free.
Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Information: Visit the Fort Collins Natural Areas web page for Reservoir Ridge Natural Area.
Arapaho Bend Natural Area
Where: East side of Fort Collins near Interstate 25. Parking lots at the east end of Horsetooth Road, Strauss Cabin Road between Horsetooth Road and Harmony Road, and one at the Harmony Transfer Center.
The hike: If pressed for time, this is a good go-to. It includes a mix of 4 miles of paved and nonpaved trails that wind among ponds, Rigden Reservoir and the Poudre River, with some shade provided by large cottonwood trees.
Fee: Free.
Hours: 5 a.m. to 11 p.m.
Information: Visit the Fort Collins Natural Areas web page for Arapaho Bend Natural Area.
