Rio Grande County is located in the western San Luis Valley in south-central Colorado. It covers 912 square miles and ranges in elevation from 7,000 feet on the valley floor to over 13,000 feet atop several mountain peaks. Del Norte is the county seat,…

Covering nearly 8,000 square miles in southern Colorado, the San Luis Valley is the largest valley in the state and the largest high-altitude desert in North America. Known as “the Valley” by locals and other Coloradans, the San Luis Valley is bordered…

The West Fork Complex refers to three separate wildfires ignited by lightning strikes in southern Colorado’s San Juan Mountains in June 2013. The West Fork, Windy Pass, and Papoose Fires broke out between June 5 and June 19. By the time they were…