Kawuneeche Valley

Last updated
Kawuneeche Valley from Trail Ridge Road vicinity Kawuneeche Valley.jpg
Kawuneeche Valley from Trail Ridge Road vicinity

Kawuneeche Valley, [1] [2] [3] also known as Kawuneeche [3] [4] or Coyote Valley, [3] [4] is a marshy valley of the Colorado River near its beginning. It is located on the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park in Colorado. The axis of the valley runs almost directly north to south. [2] Kawuneeche means "valley of the coyote" in Arapaho language and there is a Coyote Valley Trail head by US Route 34 in the western half of the park. [5] [6] Coyotes still live here, as do wapiti (elk), mule deer, moose (reintroduced in 1978 into nearby North Park), and mountain lion. [5] [2]

Contents

Along the main part of valley runs the lower section of the Trail Ridge Road - the highest continuous paved road in the United States. [7] [2]

Wilderness

Rocky Mountain elk in Kawuneeche Valley at dawn Kawuneeche Valley wapiti.jpg
Rocky Mountain elk in Kawuneeche Valley at dawn

The construction of a water diversion canal called Grand Ditch between the 1890s and 1930s reduced the water table and limited the frequency and magnitude of the floods in the Kawuneeche Valley. [2] Grand Ditch collects water from Colorado River's tributaries in the Never Summer Mountains like a rain gutter from the roof and diverts it on the other side of the Continental Divide to the Cache La Poudre River via La Poudre Pass, instead of allowing it to flow down to the valley. [2] In addition, Grand Ditch breached its bank on May 30, 2003, and a resulting debris flow caused extensive injury to the upper Kawuneeche Valley. The Grand Ditch owner - the Water Supply and Storage Company (WSSC) was ordered to pay $9 million settlement to the Rocky Mountain National Park. [2] [8] It was the largest natural resource damages payment in the history of the Park System Resource Protection Act. [2] Grand Ditch exerts also negative aesthetic impact on the Kawuneeche. [2]

Elk (wapiti, Cervus canadensis) were reintroduced to their former habitat in the Colorado River Valley in the mid-1910s. [2]

Moose (Alces alces) was reintroduced by the Colorado Division of Wildlife in the 1970s in North Park, which is just to the northwest of Rocky Mountain National Park, however, significant breeding populations may never have inhabited Colorado. This solitary species wanders alone moving south from Wyoming or east from Utah. And such moose probably account for sightings and kills in Colorado between the 1860s and 1960s. This is an ecological innovation driven largely by state game officials to attract sportsmen and tourists. [2] However, moose are known to undergo dramatic population cycles, which, in combination with European settlement, could account for their scarcity in Colorado before 1978. Populations were known in southern Wyoming's Medicine Bow Mountains.

Colorado River at the Coyote Valley trailhead Colorado River at Coyote Valley Trail head 3.jpg
Colorado River at the Coyote Valley trailhead

In 1978 and 1979, 4 bulls, 13 cows, 4 yearlings, and 3 calves were transferred from the Uinta Mountains (Utah) and Grand Teton (Wyoming) to an area near Rand, west of the Never Summer Mountains (Kawuneeche Valley is located just on the east side of this range). All radio collared, 12 each year. And today Kawuneeche Valley is a prime moose habitat, although sightings frequently occur even further, east of the Continental Divide, and even south to the upper Rio Grande valley. [9]

Large herbivores have become so numerous in the Kawuneeche Valley, that they cause significant harm to the willow (Salix spp.) thickets and other plants, on which many other organisms depend. Elk is overpopulated, but rarer moose more specialized - 91.3% of its summer diets consist of six willow species. [2]

This is accompanied by drought (caused by water diversion by Grand Ditch, lack of beavers, global climatic patterns) and the proliferation of a native fungus spread by a bird called the sapsucker (Sphyrapicus spp.). The primary fungus species is Grosmannia clavigera, but Ophiostoma is also present. The fungi kill the stems above the wells drilled by sapsuckers. [2]

All these factors weaken the ability of the valley's willows to generate new growth, their communities have declined, only few willow plants on the primary winter range produce seed. As a result, fully dependent on twigs and bark on willow stems North American beaver (Castor canadensis), actually living in symbiosis with willow, substantially recovered from fur-trapping by the mid-twentieth century, declined the Kawuneeche. [2]

The most important bark beetle species in the Kawuneeche Valley are mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) and spruce beetle (Dendroctonus rufipennis). [2] In recent years, these species have devastated forests on the western side of Rocky Mountain National Park.

Thanks to the ecologists and fisheries scientists the native Colorado River cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki pleuriticus) is coming back, but introduced brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) and Yellowstone cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki bouvieri) continue to compete with the Kawuneeche's native fish. [2] The Grand Ditch enabled fish to swim between the two basins and to mix previously isolated gene pools of two native trout subspecies — greenback cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarki stomias) from the eastern slope of the Rockies, and Colorado River cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii pleuriticus) from the west. [2]

Historical places

There are a few historical places located in the valley or its vicinity, like:

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Trout</span> Freshwater fish from subfamily Salmoninae

Trout is a generic common name for numerous species of carnivorous freshwater ray-finned fishes belonging to the genera Oncorhynchus, Salmo and Salvelinus, all of which are members of the subfamily Salmoninae in the family Salmonidae. The word trout is also used for some similar-shaped but non-salmonid fish, such as the spotted seatrout/speckled trout.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rocky Mountain National Park</span> National park in Colorado, United States

Rocky Mountain National Park is an American national park located approximately 55 mi (89 km) northwest of Denver in north-central Colorado, within the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The park is situated between the towns of Estes Park to the east and Grand Lake to the west. The eastern and western slopes of the Continental Divide run directly through the center of the park with the headwaters of the Colorado River located in the park's northwestern region. The main features of the park include mountains, alpine lakes and a wide variety of wildlife within various climates and environments, from wooded forests to mountain tundra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cutthroat trout</span> Species of fish

The cutthroat trout(Oncorhynchus clarkii) is a fish species of the family Salmonidae native to cold-water tributaries of the Pacific Ocean, Rocky Mountains, and Great Basin in North America. As a member of the genus Oncorhynchus, it is one of the Pacific trout, a group that includes the widely distributed rainbow trout. Cutthroat trout are popular gamefish, especially among anglers who enjoy fly fishing. The common name "cutthroat" refers to the distinctive red coloration on the underside of the lower jaw. The specific name clarkii was given to honor explorer William Clark, coleader of the Lewis and Clark Expedition.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Never Summer Mountains</span> Mountain range in Colorado, US

The Never Summer Mountains are a mountain range in the Rocky Mountains in north central Colorado in the United States consisting of seventeen named peaks. The range is located along the northwest border of Rocky Mountain National Park, forming the continental divide between the headwaters of the Colorado River in Rocky Mountain National Park to the local-east and the upper basin of the North Platte River to the local-west; the continental divide makes a loop in these mountains. The range is small and tall, covering only 25 sq mi (65 km2) with a north-south length of 10 mi (16 km) while rising to over 12,000 ft (3,700 m) at over ten distinct peaks. The range straddles the Jackson-Grand county line for most of its length, and stretches into Jackson and Larimer county at its northern end. A panoramic view of the range is available from sections of Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park. One of the northernmost peaks, Nokhu Crags, is prominently visible from the west side of Cameron Pass.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bitterroot River</span> River in Montana, United States

The Bitterroot River is a northward flowing 84-mile (135 km) river running through the Bitterroot Valley, from the confluence of its West and East forks near Conner in southern Ravalli County to its confluence with the Clark Fork River near Missoula in Missoula County, in western Montana. The Clark Fork River is tributary to the Columbia River and ultimately, the Pacific Ocean. The Bitterroot River is a Blue Ribbon trout fishery with a healthy population of native westslope cutthroat trout and bull trout. It is the third most fly fished river in Montana behind the Madison and Big Horn Rivers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colorado River cutthroat trout</span> Subspecies of fish

The Colorado River cutthroat trout is a subspecies of cutthroat trout native only to the Green and Colorado River basins, which are west of the Continental Divide. Cutthroat trout found in other river basins belong to other subspecies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greenback cutthroat trout</span> Subspecies of fish

The greenback cutthroat trout is the easternmost subspecies of cutthroat trout. The greenback cutthroat, once widespread in the Arkansas and South Platte River drainages of Eastern Colorado and Southeast Wyoming, today occupies less than 1% of its historical range. It is currently listed as threatened under the Endangered Species Act. It was adopted as the state fish of Colorado on March 15, 1994 replacing the unofficial rainbow trout.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Westslope cutthroat trout</span> Subspecies of fish

The westslope cutthroat trout, also known as the black-spotted trout, common cutthroat trout and red-throated trout is a subspecies of the cutthroat trout and is a freshwater fish in the salmon family of order Salmoniformes. The cutthroat is the Montana state fish. This subspecies is a species of concern in its Montana and British Columbia ranges and is considered threatened in its native range in Alberta.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coastal cutthroat trout</span> Subspecies of fish

The coastal cutthroat trout, also known as the sea-run cutthroat trout, blue-back trout or harvest trout, is one of the several subspecies of cutthroat trout found in Western North America. The coastal cutthroat trout occurs in four distinct forms. A semi-anadromous or sea-run form is the most well known. Freshwater forms occur in both large and small rivers and streams and lake environments. The native range of the coastal cutthroat trout extends south from the southern coastline of the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska to the Eel River in Northern California. Coastal cutthroat trout are resident in tributary streams and rivers of the Pacific basin and are rarely found more than 100 miles (160 km) from the ocean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rio Grande cutthroat trout</span> Subspecies of fish

The Rio Grande cutthroat trout, a member of the family Salmonidae, is found in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado in tributaries of the Rio Grande.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Martis Creek</span> River in California, United States

Martis Creek is a northward-flowing stream originating on Sawtooth Ridge, west of the peak of Mount Pluto in Placer County, California, United States. After crossing into Nevada County, California, it is tributary to the Truckee River on the eastern side of Truckee.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ecology of the Rocky Mountains</span> Ecology of the Rocky Mountain range in North America

The ecology of the Rocky Mountains is diverse due to the effects of a variety of environmental factors. The Rocky Mountains are the major mountain range in western North America, running from the far north of British Columbia in Canada to New Mexico in the southwestern United States, climbing from the Great Plains at or below 1,800 feet (550 m) to peaks of over 14,000 feet (4,300 m). Temperature and rainfall varies greatly also and thus the Rockies are home to a mixture of habitats including the alpine, subalpine and boreal habitats of the Northern Rocky Mountains in British Columbia and Alberta, the coniferous forests of Montana and Idaho, the wetlands and prairie where the Rockies meet the plains, a different mix of conifers on the Yellowstone Plateau in Wyoming and in the high Rockies of Colorado and New Mexico, and finally the alpine tundra of the highest elevations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Holzwarth Historic District</span> Historic district in Colorado, United States

The Holzwarth Historic District comprises a series of cabins built by the Holzwarth family as a guest ranch inholding within the boundaries Rocky Mountain National Park, at Grand Lake, Colorado. The Holzwarths made their homestead in the Kawuneeche Valley in 1917, two years after the establishment of the park, and received a patent on the homestead in 1923. Guest ranch use began in 1919 and continued until the ranch was purchased by The Nature Conservancy in 1974. The property was transferred to the National Park Service in 1975 for incorporation into the park. The district comprises a number of rustic cabins on the Colorado River. Operations existed on both sides of the river, first known as the Holzwarth Trout Ranch and later as the Never Summer Ranch. All but Joe Fleshut's cabin have been removed from the east side of the river.

The Humboldt cutthroat trout is a subspecies of cutthroat trout, a North American fish in the family Salmonidae. It is one of the several subspecies of cutthroat trout. It was formally scientifically named in 2008 by Trotter and Behnke, who stated its distribution is in the basins of the upper Humboldt River of northern Nevada, the Upper Quinn River, as well as the Whitehorse (Coyote) basin (Oregon). The Nevada and Oregon Fish and Wildlife authorities still consider these populations belonging to the subspecies O. c. henshawi.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert J. Behnke</span>

Dr. Robert J. Behnke was an American fisheries biologist and conservationist who was recognized as a world authority on the classification of salmonid fishes. He was popularly known as "Dr. Trout" or "The Trout Doctor". His seminal work, Trout and Salmon of North America, was published in 2002. He wrote a regular column for Trout Magazine, the quarterly publication of Trout Unlimited. He was a fisheries biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in the Colorado Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit and a professor at Colorado State University in the 1970s. He became a Professor Emeritus at the Department of Fishery and Wildlife Biology at Colorado State University.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bluerock Wildland Provincial Park</span> Protected area in southwestern Alberta, Canada

Bluerock Wildland Provincial Park is a wildland provincial park located in Kananaskis Improvement District, Alberta, Canada. It was established on 24 July 2001 and has an area of 12,719.59 hectares. The park was named for the Bluerock Creek that flows through and forms part of the western boundary of the park and Bluerock Mountain which is the creek's source. The park is included in the South Saskatchewan Region land use framework and administered by the South Saskatchewan Regional Plan. Sheep River Provincial Park and Bluerock Wildland Provincial Park are managed under the same Management Plan.

Fishing in Colorado has brought in a large amount of revenue for the state. In 2019 Colorado Parks and Wildlife estimated outdoor recreation contributed roughly 62 billion dollars to the state economy. Fishing was reported to be the 5th most popular outdoor activity and 110, 511 fishing and hunting combination licenses were sold. Ice fishing makes up part of this total fishing revenue and is a common annual sport for Colorado residents and out-of-state visitors. There is no legal definition of ice fishing season. Rather, people begin to ice fish once the lakes freeze over with thick enough ice. Colorado Parks and Wildlife also recommend that people always ice-fish with another person. Typically, this starts in December and ends in April for Colorado. Lakes size, depth, elevation, and seasonal weather can cause variance to the season. Once the lakes freeze over with thick enough ice, anglers go out onto the ice, drill holes through the ice, and fish for a variety of species.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White River (Price River tributary)</span> River in Utah, United States

The White River is a 8-mile-long (13 km) southeastward flowing river in Wasatch and Utah Counties in eastern Utah. The White River is tributary to the Price River, which is, in turn, tributary to the Green River, and then to the Colorado River.

References

  1. Rocky Mountain; Kawuneeche Valley Trail Guide. National Park Service U.S., Department of the Interior; Rocky Mountain National Park.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Andrews T. G. (2011). An Environmental History of the Kawuneeche Valley and the Headwaters of the Colorado River, Rocky Mountain National Park (PDF). University of Colorado at Boulder. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 25, 2014. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
  3. 1 2 3 Andrews, Thomas G. (2015). Coyote Valley: Deep History in the High Rockies. Cambridge, Massachusetts and London, England: Harvard University Press. ISBN   978-0-674-08857-3 . Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  4. 1 2 Robertson, Jan. "Coyote Valley: Deep History in the High Rockies, by Thomas G. Andrews; Book Review". Arctic, Antarctic, and Alpine Research. 48 (1): 221–223. doi: 10.1657/AAAR0048-1-book . Retrieved March 5, 2017.
  5. 1 2 Gaug, Maryann (2011). Hiking Colorado, 3rd: A Guide to the State's Greatest Hiking Adventures (3rd ed.). Globe Pequot. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
  6. Doe, John (2007). "My Favorite Things, Part II" (PDF). Bromsgrove, Worcestershire, UK: itforit.com. Archived from the original (PDF) on April 11, 2013. Retrieved August 15, 2012.
  7. 1 2 3 Quin, Richard (August 1993). Trail Ridge Road, Rocky Mountain National Park, HAER No. CO-31 (PDF). Historic American Engineering Record. Washington D.C.: National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2013-07-29.
  8. McLaughlin, Paul; Bobowski, Ben; VanMouwerik, Mark (2010). "Restoration of the Upper Kawuneeche Valley in Rocky Mountain National Park". In Weber, Samantha (ed.). Rethinking Protected Areas in a Changing World: Proceedings of the 2009 GWS Biennial Conference on Parks, Protected Areas, and Cultural Sites (PDF). Hancock, Michigan: The George Wright Society. pp. 171–174. Retrieved December 7, 2012.
  9. "The Moose" (PDF). Heart of the Rockies. Informational and Educational Handouts PDF. Rocky Mountain National Park. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-04-08. Retrieved 2014-04-07.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010. Retrieved September 29, 2013.
  11. "List of Classified Structures". National Park Service. Retrieved August 6, 2013.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Kawuneeche Valley at Wikimedia Commons

40°21′23″N105°51′32″W / 40.356292°N 105.858752°W / 40.356292; -105.858752