|
<br />7
<br />
<br />8
<br />
<br />STUDY AREA DESCRIPTION
<br />
<br />TABLE 1
<br />DRAINAGE BASIN AREAS
<br />(S~uar" Mi Ie,)
<br />
<br />Drainag"e<1sinCharacteristic,
<br />The RQ~ring Fork River contributes more water to the Colorado River
<br />than ilny other stceam in Colorado except for the GunnTson River. Th"I,500
<br />square mil" basin yields an 'lYerage of almost 1,000,000 'Kre-feet per year.
<br />Qf lhis amount. dbolJt 8 percent is currently being diverted totheca,tern
<br />:; lo~", Major (,ibutd'; eS to the Roaring Fork are the Crysta I and Fryingpan
<br />Rivers, both of which enter the Roaring Fork below the area descri bed in
<br />th;, report, Over 75 percent of the land in (he basin is owned by the
<br />Burc<luof Land Man"g"rroen! or the Foresl Service, Most of the private land
<br />is loc,ned along the major streams where the floodin~ potential i5 the
<br />highest (Reference 10, II).
<br />The headwaters of the Roaring Fork River start IntheSa...atchMGuntain
<br />Ran~e ab,,"e l~ ,000 fecI and about 15 O1i Ie, east of (I,,, Ci ty of Aspen. From
<br />the headwaters the ,t rea", drops ~.500 feet in about 20 'T1; les to the Ci ty
<br />of Aspen, illlOut16percent"flh,'t"till R"aringForkb".in i. located
<br />"bov,' A,pen. Near A'p~n, II1djUr tri butaries join the Roari ng Fork whi ch
<br />includo /I,'Iroon Creek, Castle Creek, and Hemler Creek. (See Plote 1)
<br />Thi, floodp laj n study begins at the Red Butte Ro~d Bri dGc above the
<br />con f I u<.'nee wit h ~\d roon Cree k an d I h e ROJ r i n 9 Fork, Fro" t his po i nt, the
<br />ROdri ng Fork flows at an aVMage 9rdd~ of 1,2 percent for 17 mi ies to
<br />Basalt where thc Fryingpan River enters the Roaring Fork and where the
<br />,tudyends at the Pitkin County line, At this point, 35 perccnt of the
<br />total Roaring Fork b.osin hn, been collected. Table I give. the appro~imHe
<br />b".inarCiI,above the Fryingpan River <;onflucncc. Below the Fryin<jp"n,
<br />the Ronring Fork flows 24 miles to GI~nw,,()d Spring, wherQ it enters the
<br />Co I O",dO Ri 'Ie r. The 00 I y mnj Or tri bU~.lr\' in th i. reach i, the C rys tal
<br />Ri .er whl ch j"in, the ROdri ng F"r~ at th~ i<)Wo "r C~rbonda Ie, (Reference 2,
<br />
<br />Area
<br />{Sq./llle,)
<br />
<br />Reac~
<br />
<br />Fro...
<br />
<br />To
<br />
<br />63
<br />
<br />/la",onCreek
<br />
<br />Above Roaring Fork
<br />AbovcMaroonCreek
<br />
<br />23C
<br />
<br />,
<br />)
<br />,
<br />5
<br />
<br />Belov,Cilstl.,Creek
<br />
<br />Bolow Maroon Creek
<br />
<br />Above Woody Creek
<br />Above Snowmass Creek
<br />Above Fryingpan River
<br />
<br />)Q
<br />'"
<br />90
<br />
<br />BciowWoodyCreek
<br />
<br />BelowSnowrnclss
<br />
<br />In 1965, the Colorado Water Conservation Board estimated thallhere
<br />..clul d be river 800.000 fi ,herrran days 00 the Ro~ri ng Fork In tne year 2,000.
<br />Besides flsMer"~n, bOvt~n vre expected to use the Roaring Fork on an In-
<br />crea,cdfrequen.;;y. (Reference 4)
<br />I' rec i pit a t I 0f1 va r i e" ,",' i dc 1 Y t h ro ughou t ~ he Ro a r i n 9 Fo rk ba sin a bo.e
<br />Basill t. On th~. Cont i"ent.,1 Di vi de, near Independence Pass, tbe average
<br />~nnucll prccip i tat ion is 26.3 i nche, '" it h I 7.5 i nC he S occu r ring
<br />during the winter rr<>nths (November. Arri I). ~"dr Bd,a It, the ,we rage
<br />d''''u"ll'recipildtion iSclpproximalely 1(,,5 inche, with 7.3 Irtche,,,<;curring
<br />dur, ~g tho '...1 "tee moc,tt':, (Refcrcl"cc 7), Cat.. on p.-,,~i v. tati ur> f,.{)<;, tl.~
<br />fhtion<ll O~e,'nic .,nd Atrno'rheric Adn,ini,tr"tion indicate, that in the
<br />A,pen area, the 100+ye~r 2~-hour 'torm wuuld produce 2.(, inch~s.
<br />T~fllp~r"ture and precipitation varie, gre~tly from loc~tio" te lo'~tjon
<br />.1ndseasor. tn'e.lSDnwithin the drainage basin ,1nd are irnportantvariable,
<br />I" f iOCldi ~g ~ondi t iuns. I,bove-nor"'al 'pr ing t~mperature', Can c~u.e early
<br />and Meavy flood i n9 on th.. ~o",r i ng Fork. T"" A'p~n weathe r "~at i on is the
<br />o'\ly offiddl weather station in the study b.1Sin, Il.ecords frorn the Aspen
<br />we~ ~hcr , (d l i <.>n i nd i c,;le th...t the mean month I y M i qh occurs in ju I y and is
<br />61.8 degrees Fnll'enh,'it, Themcclnn\Onthlylowof20.1 deg,'ee,Fahrenhcit
<br />occu", in J~nudry (Rdeeence 7).
<br />
<br />4}.
<br />
<br />3cs ide, be ing important ~e"gr.;pr.i C feiltur", of t<1e Criunty, ,(rCdroo and
<br />"ve", "'" I",port~nt ta the bn,lc eco""my af Pi t~i ~ Coun tv. The ",a.iori ty
<br />of the re, ident, in Pi tk i n County live wi thi n ~ f~,",' t,~ouSdnd feet of major
<br />
<br />st'.~d"" .
<br />
<br />C..."Illalive
<br />Area
<br />
<br />'3'
<br />300
<br />"'0
<br />510
<br />
|