Roaring Fork River is a tributary of the Colorado River

Colorado River

The Colorado River , is a river in the Southwestern United States and northwestern Mexico, approximately long, draining a part of the arid regions on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains. The watershed of the Colorado River covers in parts of seven U.S. states and two Mexican states...

, approximately 70 miles (112.7 km) long, in west central Colorado

Colorado

Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. The river drains a populated and economically vital area of the Colorado Western Slope

Colorado Western Slope

The Western Slope of Colorado refers to a region of the U.S. state of Colorado incorporating everything in the state west of the Continental Divide. The Colorado River and its tributaries divide the region into north and south at Grand Junction, Colorado...

 called the Roaring Fork Valley

Roaring Fork Valley

The Roaring Fork Valley is a geographical region in western Colorado in the United States. The Roaring Fork Valley is one of the most affluent regions in Colorado as well as one of the most populous and economically vital areas of the Colorado Western Slope. The Valley is defined by the valley of...

 or Roaring Fork Watershed, which includes the resort city of Aspen

Aspen, Colorado

The City of Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the city population was 5,804 in 2005...

 and the resorts of Aspen/Snowmass

Aspen/Snowmass

Aspen/Snowmass is an expansive winter resort complex located in Pitkin County in western Colorado in the United States. Owned and operated by the Aspen Skiing Company it comprises four skiing/snowboarding areas on four adjacent mountains in the vicinity of the towns of Aspen and Snowmass Village...

.

It rises in the Sawatch Range

Sawatch Range

The Sawatch Range is a mountain range in central Colorado which includes eight of the twenty highest peaks in the Rocky Mountains, including Mount Elbert, at elevation, the highest peak in the Rockies....

 in eastern Pitkin County

Pitkin County, Colorado

Pitkin County is one of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county is named in honor of the late Colorado Governor Frederick Walker Pitkin. The county population was 14,872 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is Aspen...

, on the west side of Independence Pass

Independence Pass (Colorado)

Independence Pass, elevation , is a high mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of central Colorado in the United States.The pass crosses the ridge of the Sawatch Range between Aspen and Leadville, on the border between Pitkin and Lake counties, and is within the White River National Forest...

 on the continental divide

Continental divide

A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not connected to the open sea...

. It flows northwest past Aspen, Woody Creek

Woody Creek, Colorado

Woody Creek is a census-designated place and a U.S. Post Office located in Pitkin County, Colorado, United States part of the Roaring Fork Valley...

, and Snowmass

Snowmass, Colorado

Snowmass is an unincorporated town and a U.S. Post Office located in Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. It is situated in the valley of the Roaring Fork River, near the mouth of Snowmass Creek along State Highway 82 between Aspen and Basalt...

. It receives the Fryingpan River

Fryingpan River

The Fryingpan River is a tributary of the Roaring Fork River, approximately long, in west central Colorado in the United States.It rises in northeastern Pitkin County, in the White River National Forest in the Sawatch Mountains along the western side of the continental divide. It flows westward...

 at Basalt

Basalt, Colorado

Basalt is a Statutory Town in Eagle and Pitkin counties in the U.S. state of Colorado. The population was 2,681 at the 2000 census.-Geography:...

. 1.5 miles (2 km) below Carbondale

Carbondale, Colorado

Carbondale is a Home Rule Municipality in Garfield County, Colorado, United States. The population was 5,196 at the 2000 census. The town is located in the mid valley of the Roaring Fork River, downstream from Aspen and upstream from the mouth of the Roaring Fork at Glenwood Springs. The town...

, it receives the Crystal River

Crystal River (Colorado)

The Crystal River is a tributary of the Roaring Fork River, approximately 40 mi long, in western Colorado in the United States. It drains a glacial valley, called the Valley of the Coal Miners, south of Carbondale which was historically known as a center of coal mining in southwestern Colorado...

 from the south. It joins the Colorado in Glenwood Springs

Glenwood Springs, Colorado

The City of Glenwood Springs is a Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous city of Garfield County, Colorado, United States. The United States Census Bureau estimated that the city population was 8,564 in 2005...

. The entire area that drains into the Roaring Fork River is known as the Roaring Fork Watershed. This area is 1451 square miles (3,758.1 km²) and about the same size as the state of Rhode Island. The river flows through canyon

Canyon

A canyon or gorge is a deep ravine between cliffs often carved from the landscape by a river. Rivers have a natural tendency to reach a baseline elevation, which is the same elevation as the body of water it will eventually drain into. This forms a canyon. Most canyons were formed by a process of...

s along most of its route and is a popular destination for recreation whitewater rafting. The river supplies water through the Sawatch Range to the Twin Lakes Reservoir via the Twin Lakes Tunnel. Roaring Fork Conservancy

Roaring Fork Conservancy

Roaring Fork Conservancy is the watershed conservation organization for the Roaring Fork Watershed in west central Colorado, which operates to raise public awareness of the protection of the Roaring Fork Watershed...

is the watershed conservation organization for the Roaring Fork River and its tributaries.

The Roaring Fork is a swift, deep, powerful river with very clear water. It is navigable by small craft from above Basalt to its confluence with the Colorado. The mean annual flow is 2170 cuft/s.

External links

Roaring Fork Watershed: http://www.roaringfork.org/watershed
Roaring Fork Conservancy: http://www.roaringfork.org
Lodge on the Roaring Fork: http://www.lodgeontheroaringfork.com
Roaring Fork Anglers: http://www.roaringforkanglers.com/