Ted Williams couldn’t pinpoint the exact spot where it happened on the North Fork of the Big Thompson River, but he’ll never forget the sight of the exploding picnic table.
It was Aug. 1, 1976, and he was a member of Evergreen-based Alpine Rescue Team, which had been deployed to assist people stranded in the Big Thompson Canyon by the previous night’s flash flood.
Just two weeks earlier, Williams had celebrated his 15th birthday, making him the youngest one in the group…