Alamosa River

Summary

The Alamosa River is a river in the southern part of the U.S. state of Colorado. It is about 64 miles (103 km) long,[2] flowing roughly east through the San Luis Valley. Its watershed comprises about 148 square miles (380 km2).

Alamosa River
The river at Capulin.
Etymology"of cottonwood"
Location
CountryUnited States
StateColorado
Physical characteristics
Source 
 • coordinates37°21′44″N 106°37′12″W / 37.36222°N 106.62000°W / 37.36222; -106.62000[1]
MouthRio Grande
 • location
arid land south of Alamosa
 • coordinates
37°23′54″N 106°50′20″W / 37.39833°N 106.83889°W / 37.39833; -106.83889[1]
Length64 mi (103 km), west-east
Basin size148 sq mi (380 km2)

The river's name means "shaded with cottonwoods" in Spanish.[3]

The river was affected by the Summitville mine disaster, the worst cyanide spill in United States history.

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ a b U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Alamosa River
  2. ^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map Archived 2012-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, accessed March 31, 2011
  3. ^ Gannett, Henry (1905). The Origin of Certain Place Names in the United States. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 19.

External links edit

  • epa.gov site
  • fws.gov site