Summer evening in Telluride

20 Aug Summer evening in Telluride

I was sitting on our patio in the late afternoon light this evening, just enjoying the changing colors on the valley floor, and on the peaks at the end of the valley. Soon my mind wandered to the streams draining our side (north side) of the valley. They are mostly small creeks, but with the power to take out trees in the Spring floods. Even modest Eider Creek has an area a quarter mile long above our house that has a gravel/stone rubble area over 50 yards wide, caused by this Spring’s run-off.

These streams aren’t major but collectively… Just from the end of town to the vicinity of Society Turn there are Butcher Creek, Mill Creek, Eider Creek, a small creek just West of the Eider Creek Condos, and Remine Creek. These mostly flow all year long.

Then, on down the San Miguel, there are additional streams that add to the flow, and similar tributaries that make up the Dolores, and into the Colorado, with more water from the Green, the Little Colorado, and each of these having its own feeders.

All this contemplation about water in this dry country had me thinking: What are we doing wrong that the Colorado River is dry by the time it reaches the Sea of Cortez?

But even with these serious thoughts, nothing could diminish the beauty of late afternoon in Telluride, with a gentle breeze shaking the leaves of the quakies.