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Hub AI
Gunnison River AI simulator
(@Gunnison River_simulator)
Hub AI
Gunnison River AI simulator
(@Gunnison River_simulator)
Gunnison River
The Gunnison River is located in western Colorado, United States, and is one of the largest tributaries of the Colorado River.
The 180-mile-long (290 km) river flows east to west and has a drainage area of 7,923 square miles (20,520 km2) according to the USGS. The drainage basin of the Gunnison collects water from different habitats, such as forests and alpine meadows, located along the Continental Divide. As the river flows westward, it carves through the San Juan Mountains. It flows into the Colorado River at Grand Junction.
The Gunnison River Basin is popular for recreational activities such as fishing, rafting, boating, camping, hiking, and rock climbing.
Contamination of the Gunnison River with selenium and mercury results from irrigation of high-selenium soils derived from the Mancos Shale and from mineral mining. The region surrounding the Gunnison River is part of the Colorado Mineral Belt. Contamination of the Gunnison River with selenium and mercury is a conservation concern for the bonytail chub, Colorado pikeminnow, humpback chub, and razorback sucker, whose critical habitat includes the lower Gunnison River.
The Gunnison River is formed by the confluence of the Taylor and East rivers at Almont in eastern Gunnison County, Colorado. Just past the town of Gunnison, the river begins to swell into the expanse of Blue Mesa Reservoir, a 36-mile-long (58 km) reservoir formed by Blue Mesa Dam, where it receives the Lake Fork of the Gunnison. Just downstream, it is dammed again to form Morrow Point Reservoir and then dammed again to form Crystal Reservoir. The reservoirs produce hydroelectric power and supply the surrounding areas with water for both municipal and irrigation use. The reservoirs are located along the upper part of the Gunnison River. Below Crystal Dam, the Gunnison River begins to roar through massive cataracts.
The Gunnison River then flows through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, one of the longest, narrowest, and deepest gorges in the world. At the outlet of the Black Canyon, it receives the North Fork River, and then downstream, near Delta, it is joined by the Uncompahgre River. It then winds through desert canyonlands, where it receives Kannah Creek. It then empties out of the Dominguez Canyon into the Colorado River at Grand Junction, where some years it rivals the Colorado River in volume.
The Gunnison River ranges in width from 100 to 1,000 feet (30 to 305 m) and in depth from 3 to 50 feet (1 to 15 m). The river's powerful current and many rapids make upstream travel nearly impossible. It is navigable by small craft throughout its course and by larger boats below the Black Canyon. Parts of the Black Canyon are non-navigable by any sort of craft because of giant cataracts. Navigation through the entire canyon is dangerous and for experienced boaters only.
The first non-native to see and record information of the Gunnison River was Juan Maria de Rivera, who came to the banks of the river just below its confluence with the Uncompahgre River in 1761 and 1765. It was again seen in 1776 by Silvestre Vélez de Escalante. At the time the Spanish name for the river was Rio de San Javier (Xavier); the Native American name was Tomichi. Escalante noted that Rivera thought it was "the great Rio del Tizon", the long-used Spanish name for the lower Colorado River.
Gunnison River
The Gunnison River is located in western Colorado, United States, and is one of the largest tributaries of the Colorado River.
The 180-mile-long (290 km) river flows east to west and has a drainage area of 7,923 square miles (20,520 km2) according to the USGS. The drainage basin of the Gunnison collects water from different habitats, such as forests and alpine meadows, located along the Continental Divide. As the river flows westward, it carves through the San Juan Mountains. It flows into the Colorado River at Grand Junction.
The Gunnison River Basin is popular for recreational activities such as fishing, rafting, boating, camping, hiking, and rock climbing.
Contamination of the Gunnison River with selenium and mercury results from irrigation of high-selenium soils derived from the Mancos Shale and from mineral mining. The region surrounding the Gunnison River is part of the Colorado Mineral Belt. Contamination of the Gunnison River with selenium and mercury is a conservation concern for the bonytail chub, Colorado pikeminnow, humpback chub, and razorback sucker, whose critical habitat includes the lower Gunnison River.
The Gunnison River is formed by the confluence of the Taylor and East rivers at Almont in eastern Gunnison County, Colorado. Just past the town of Gunnison, the river begins to swell into the expanse of Blue Mesa Reservoir, a 36-mile-long (58 km) reservoir formed by Blue Mesa Dam, where it receives the Lake Fork of the Gunnison. Just downstream, it is dammed again to form Morrow Point Reservoir and then dammed again to form Crystal Reservoir. The reservoirs produce hydroelectric power and supply the surrounding areas with water for both municipal and irrigation use. The reservoirs are located along the upper part of the Gunnison River. Below Crystal Dam, the Gunnison River begins to roar through massive cataracts.
The Gunnison River then flows through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, one of the longest, narrowest, and deepest gorges in the world. At the outlet of the Black Canyon, it receives the North Fork River, and then downstream, near Delta, it is joined by the Uncompahgre River. It then winds through desert canyonlands, where it receives Kannah Creek. It then empties out of the Dominguez Canyon into the Colorado River at Grand Junction, where some years it rivals the Colorado River in volume.
The Gunnison River ranges in width from 100 to 1,000 feet (30 to 305 m) and in depth from 3 to 50 feet (1 to 15 m). The river's powerful current and many rapids make upstream travel nearly impossible. It is navigable by small craft throughout its course and by larger boats below the Black Canyon. Parts of the Black Canyon are non-navigable by any sort of craft because of giant cataracts. Navigation through the entire canyon is dangerous and for experienced boaters only.
The first non-native to see and record information of the Gunnison River was Juan Maria de Rivera, who came to the banks of the river just below its confluence with the Uncompahgre River in 1761 and 1765. It was again seen in 1776 by Silvestre Vélez de Escalante. At the time the Spanish name for the river was Rio de San Javier (Xavier); the Native American name was Tomichi. Escalante noted that Rivera thought it was "the great Rio del Tizon", the long-used Spanish name for the lower Colorado River.
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