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" ~.. t'~ . o;vu . BASALT PROJECT GENERAL DISCUSSIONS miles of its mouth and Thompson Creek entering Crystal River about 6 miles above its junction with Roaring Fork River. Streams and ,mtersheds Cattle Creek and Landis Creek,which flow westward to Roaring Fork River, and Coulter and Mesa Creeks. that are tributary to Cattle Creek. provide the present irrigation supplies for the Cattle Creek area. These streams head near Cottonwood Pass on the southern slopes of a low divide between the Colorado and Hoaring Fork Rivers. The runoff is relatively light and occurs early in the season because of the low elevation and southern exposure of the watershed. Fryingpan River and Sopris Creek which enter the Roaring Fork River from opposite sides near Basalt now provide water for lands in the Sopris area. while Prince and Thomas Creeks which flow northwest to Crystal River serve the Carbondale area. Fryingpan River drains a portion of the west- ern slope of the Continental Divide. Sopris. Prince. and Thomas Creeks originate on the northern slopes of Ht. Sopris. Climate . The climate of the general region is semiarid and is generally sat- isfactory for diversified agriculture. The frost-free period at Glenwood Springs, the nearest climatological station, averages 142 days extending. on an average. from May 12 to October 2. The frost-free period in the project area which is at a higher elevation than Glenwood Springs is estimated at 128 days. Except for dryland wheat which is sometimes grown successfully on portions of the project area, crops cannot be matured unless precipItation during the frost-free period. which averages only about 6.90 inches. is supplemented by irrigation. Summarized below are the mean precipitation and temperature data collected at the Glenwood Springs station. . 7