| Mill Creek | |
|---|---|
 Looking upstream from Light Plant Road | |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Colorado |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | San Juan National Forest |
| ⁃ location | East of Pagosa Springs, Colorado |
| ⁃ coordinates | 37°19′08″N106°49′40″W / 37.31889°N 106.82778°W [1] |
| Mouth | San Juan River (Colorado River tributary) |
⁃ location | South of Pagosa Springs |
⁃ coordinates | 37°14′35″N107°00′38″W / 37.24306°N 107.01056°W Coordinates: 37°14′35″N107°00′38″W / 37.24306°N 107.01056°W [1] |
⁃ elevation | 6,988 ft (2,130 m) |
Mill Creek is a stream in the San Juan National Forest in Archuleta County, Colorado, and a minor left tributary of San Juan River. It flows in a generally southwesterly direction [1] from Mill Creek Canyon, east of Pagosa Springs between Coal Creek and Rio Blanco, to join the San Juan River just sound of Pagosa Springs.
The San Juan National Forest is a U.S. National Forest covering over 1,878,846 acres in western Colorado. The forest occupies land in Archuleta, Conejos, Dolores, Hinsdale, La Plata, Mineral, Montezuma, Rio Grande, San Miguel and San Juan Counties. It borders the Uncompahgre National Forest to the north and the Rio Grande National Forest to the east. The forest covers most of the southern portion of the San Juan Mountains west of the Continental Divide. The forest contains two alpine wilderness areas; the Weminuche and South San Juan, as well as the Piedra Area. The Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad passes through the National Forest.
Archuleta County is one of the 64 counties in the U.S. state of Colorado. As of the 2010 census, the population was 12,084. The county seat and the only incorporated municipality in the county is Pagosa Springs.
The San Juan River is a major tributary of the Colorado River in the Southwestern United States, providing the chief drainage for the Four Corners region of Colorado, New Mexico, Utah and Arizona. Originating as snowmelt in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado, it flows 383 miles (616 km) through the deserts of northern New Mexico and southeastern Utah to join the Colorado River at Glen Canyon. The river drains a high, arid region of the Colorado Plateau and along its length it is often the only significant source of fresh water for many miles. The San Juan is also one of the muddiest rivers in North America, carrying an average of 25 million US tons of silt and sediment each year.
