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7 LOCATION AND DESCRIPTION OF STUDY AREA GUNNISON RIVER DRAINAGE BASIN The Gunnison River is a major tributary to the upper Colorado River in southwestern Colorado. It yields about 2 million acre-f t of water, constituting slightly more than 14 percent of the total runoff of the Colorado River at Lees Ferry. Figure 2 is a map showing about 80 percent of the upper drainage area of the Gunnison River basin, along with its associated human popu- lation, as of 1965. The basin derives its water supply primarily from the large snow packs that accumulate in the high mountains during the win- ter. The many tributaries of the drainage carry this water from their sources in all directions, and discharge it into the main channel of the Gunnison River. The Gunnison River originates at the confluence of the Taylor and East rivers at Almont, Colorado and flows for about 150 mi, primarily in a west-northwest direction, before it empties into the Colorado River at Grand Junction, Colorado. At this source it drains 766 sq mi, and by the time it reaches Gunnison, 10 mi downstream, it drains 1,012 sq mi. Other area values along the river's downstream route are: Blue Mesa Dam--3,426 sq mi; Morrow Point Dam--3,637 sq mi; Upper Black Canyon Monument boundary--3,965 sq mi; below its junction with North Fork of Gunnison--5,241 sq mi; and, finally, at Grand Junction-- 7,928 sq mi. The Gunnison River, like most large mountain rivers, has a highly variable gradient. From Figure 3, it is apparent that two general areas of high gradient exist: the upper reaches below Taylor Park Reservoir in the Taylor River Canyon, and the Black Canyon. Technically, the