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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />nr,,:,'" "5 <br />l)-.I\..>..)U <br /> <br />CHAPl'ER I <br /> <br />GENERAL DISCUSSIONS <br /> <br />Physical Geography <br /> <br />Location and Physical Features <br /> <br />The O'Neal Park project area is located in Archuleta, Hinsdale, <br />and Mineral Counties in southwestern Colorado. The project area is b <br />part of the large San Juan River Basin, in turn a part of the Upper <br />Colorado River Basin. The project lands lie in a rather unusual rolling <br />park area that extends some 15 miles to the northwest from the town of <br />Pagosa Springs, Colo., the only town near the project. Lands in the <br />extreme northern portion of the area drain into Piedra River through <br />O'Neal Creek and its tributaries. The remainder of the lands drain <br />into Piedra River primarily through Stollste1mer Creek and its tribu- <br />taries. <br /> <br />Piedra River, the principal source of water for the O'Neal Park <br />project, originates in tbe San Juan Mountains, approximately 21 miles <br />north of Pagosa Springs. These lIIOuntains reacb elevations well over <br />12,000 feet. The river nows in a general southwesterly direction <br />some 65 airline miles to empty into San Juan River at Arboles, Colo. <br />It is deeply entrenched in a narrow, steep-sided canyon from its <br />heading to a point approximately , miles upstream from the point <br />where it is crossed by U. S. Highway 160, well below the potential <br />project area. It then nows about 10 miles through a narrow valley <br />rilllllled by high rll8Sed hills to its connuence with the San Juan River. <br />The river is fed primarily from melting snow. The Piedra River drain- <br />age area includes about 650 square miles. <br /> <br />The O'Neal Park project area consists of bottom lands along <br />various creeks and draws and the adjacent benches and plateaus. Most <br />of the lands are undulating and steeply rolling hills. The arable <br />land areas are somewhat scattered and are separated by and interspersed <br />with high hills and steep draws. The project area is bounded on the <br />north by Piedra River, on the east by the San Juan Mountains, on the <br />south by San Juan River and Stoll steimer Creek, and on the west by high <br />rugged bills separating the area from the main stem of the Piedra River. <br />The arable lands in the project area range in elevation from 7,500 to <br />8,100 feet above sea level. <br /> <br />Climate <br /> <br />The O'Neal Park project area, at an average elevation of about <br />7,700 feet, bas a semiarid climate witb relatively cool summers and <br />cold winters. The mean annual temperature is about 430 F., with extreme <br />