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- San Miguel The San Miguel River lies in the heart of a southwestern Colorado watershed that includes some of the nation's highest, most beautiful and most biologically valuable landscapes, The river begins high in the San Juan Mountains and descends 7,000 feet over 72 miles from high alpine meadows and waterfalls above Telluride to a deep, narrow, red sandstone canyon confluence with the Dolores River. Over 60 % of the one million acre watershed is on federal public lands, and over 90% of the river and its major tributaries are open to the public. The San Miguel is considered one of Colorado's last free flowing rivers and its riparian corridor is lush, harboring many globally rare plant communities. However, even this gem suffers from a lack of water and is under increasing pressure from water development, A number of diversion structures alter flows, and in dry years have the capacity to dry up entire stretches of the river, The CC irrigation ditch, aka the Highline Canal, one of the main diversions, can take up to 145 cfs during the irrigation season. Because the San Miguel is commonly flowing at that level or less by August, it can lead to a dry river during the late summer, as is illustrated in the bottom photo. The little water' remaining is I.eakage from the diversion and canal. Two other major diversions also "call"the river in dry years, leaving over 15 miles of the San Miguel with little water for up to a month, As more people move in to the Telluride area and plans for f!..ltl~-re water development take shape, the unique character of the San Miguel will be lost forever without legal protection, '~Pz~Saf[Miiuetif!~%['iif;We'-Flg#if~~RiE~g?),.b- 'c .ofdi.ve.~ion, flows in the dztc~r~S}f._Zf!!!gjZ'F~::;" '~i'drYnverbed.< ....A0~;"~~:.;~}0:0:t~~~~ir~~i.~~T _:_~~'~~~~~.'~<~ ". :<_. ,':r_~..:~.:_-,:. ,"~~"'::~~f.:~E ~'-:,. . . -, __"1'~ , ::-;":_:.-'/f:~"