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nnltf3~" .. BIG THOMPSON STUDY NATIONAL PARK SERVICE, STATE OF COLORADO .. I , Study Team Findings The 12;'-mile segment of the Big Thompson was found ineligible for the National System, due to its short length, and a lack of sufficiently outstanding features to justify an exception to the length criterion. , I ,. Costs None Description The Big Thompson is a stream, and not really a river, along the 13.6-mile study segment, which lies entirely within Rocky Mountain National Park. Its corridor traverses an unspoiled portion of Colorado's rugged Front Range. The stream drops in elevation from 11,120 feet (3,389 m) at its source to 7,650 feet (2,331 m) at the Park boundary. Eleven small tributaries flow into the Big Thompson, providing a link to some 26 mountain lakes in the basin. The drainage is approximately 44 square miles in area and varies in width from 2 to 4 miles. ,; The Big Thompson arises in the meadows of the alpine zone. At first confined in a narrow ravine, it gathers tiny unnamed tributaries quickly. By the time it descends to timberline, its volume has increased enough to be a brook. At timberline, still gathering tributaries, it enters the towering spruce-fir stands of the subalpine and Montane life zones -- Forest Canyon. This 9-mile canyon is choked with deadfall and has no trails; to hike through it is a wilderness experience more rigorous than that available in many wilderness areas. The basin supports an abundance and variety of animal species characteriestic of an undisturbed ecosystem. There are 67 mammal species and 200 species of birds. Well represented are big game . animals such as elk, deer, bear, and bighorn sheep. The green- back cutthroat trout is a resident of the upper stream reaches. I I 1 i I n 3