DOLORES RIVER

 The Dolores River flows for more than 200 miles through south-western Colorado, starting high in the San Juan Mountains and descending to its confluence with the Colorado River near the Colorado-Utah border.Dolores River was named “El Rio de Nuestra Senora de Dolores” when a Spanish trader encountered the river in 1765. But in many ways, the only sorrowful thing about the Dolores River is that like so many rivers in the West, it is, perhaps, too well loved. With headwaters at 14,000 feet and a nearly 230-mile run, the Dolores is a gateway to truly world-class scenery.

The autumn blaze of gamble oaks and narrow leaf cottonwoods bring glorious color to the banks of the Dolores River in San Juan National Forest

 

The San Juan National Forest encompasses about 1.8 million acres in the south-western corner of Colorado.  Terrain ranges from high-desert mesas to alpine peaks, with thousands of miles of back roads and hundreds of miles of trails to explore. Visitors can enjoy a variety of outdoor activities including hiking, mountain biking, hunting, fishing, alpine and nordic skiing, horseback riding, and camping.

Received from my penpal Diane in California