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<br />located 32 miles to the northeast. A major ski area, Wolf Creek, is <br />southwest of Monte Vista. The Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad <br />main line passes through the town on its route along the Rio Grande. <br />Traffic on this line is limited to freight and stops are not normally <br />made at Monte Vista. <br /> <br />Monte Vista is an older city with a minimum of recent construction. <br />Commercial development is concentrated along the main street, Highway <br />160 and along Broadway, Highway 285. Residential areas are spread <br />outward from Highway 160. The flood plains of all the flood sources <br />considered in this study are essentially fully developed at present <br />with single family housing the predominant type. Therefore, increased <br />encroachment is not anticipated in the future al though the character <br />of development may change wi th time. <br /> <br />The climate of the study area includes low precipitation, low humid- <br />ity, abundant sunshine, a wide daily temperature range, and generally <br />low winds. The surrounding mountains act as a barrier preventing the <br />northern cold air or eastern storms from penetrating into the San Luis <br />Vall ey. <br /> <br />Summers are cool in the study area with temperatures reaching into the <br />9D's a few times each summer. Temperatures for the summer nights <br />usually drop below 50.F. Winter temperatures, particularly in the <br />daytime, are usually wanner than those found at simi 1 ar or lower <br />elevations. Periods of extreme cold temperatures are of short <br />duration. <br /> <br />The elevation of the Rio Grande at Monte Vista averages about 7,680 <br />feet. The headwaters of the river originate in the San Juan Mountains <br />at the Continental ~ivide among mountain peaks ranging in elevation <br />from 12,000 to 14,000 feet. The Rio Grande main stem flows eastward <br />from the San Juan Mounta i ns to Gerrard, Colorado where it meets the <br />South Fork Rio Grande. The South Fork drains the southern portion of <br />the basi n from the Wol f Creek Pass area. <br /> <br />The upper Rio Grande and South Fork basins comprise the southwestern <br />portion of the Upper Rio Grande Valley in Mineral and Rio Grande <br />counties. The valley occupies a narrow and long trough that was <br />fonned mainly by faulting. The main topographic features of the San <br />Luis Valley are the two great parallel north-south mountain ranges <br />that border the valley, the San Juan and La Garita Mountains in the <br />west and the Sangre De Cristo Range on the east. The Sangre De Cristo <br />Range merges with a low range of hill s along the sDuthern portion of <br />the valley. The larger tributaries of the Rio Grande, originate in <br />the San Juan Mountains. <br /> <br />Vegetation varies considerably according to elevation in the basin. <br />Vegetation below the 8,000 feet elevation consists of semi-arid growth <br />such as pinion pine, juniper, and sage with sparse grass ground cover. <br />Increased preCipitation supports dense pine and aspen forests above <br />thi s el evati on to timberl i ne. Rock outcrops and tundra grasses pre- <br />dominate on the high mountain peaks where cl imatic conditions are too <br />severe for forest growth. <br /> <br />4 <br />