By a dam site - a photo on Flickriver

By a dam site

            Here I am tracking the James Creek diversion at South St. Vrain and scratching my noggin. Could this have been the first dam scratched into the bank. It sits next to the newer cement diversion and is a possibility as the original. Boy, does the early light suck down in this hole. I knew we were way too early. Oh well, I was there right then and it looked interesting even if it is a questionable shot. It could be a pile of rubble. I just as well add remaining interesting shots to the series from there. Maybe I could find them a beaver to help work for Ni-Wot. 

Here we now at the "headwaters" of James Creek on that dandy autumn day. Al and I trekked up to the meadow - really the original source of James. In fact, we are now above the original source of the James. It surely looks like an irrigation ditch diversion in the mountains. Who dug this ditch and why? 

Could the beavers alone, the best engineers at preserving Rockies watered riparian habitat, have accomplished this much pretty easily? That would assume beavers wanted a dam right here. 

Maintenance was required after the big flood that nearly wiped out Jamestown. Boy did the water diversion ever pay Jamestown back bigly during the big flood a few years back! After looking over the ditch I wonder where all the rest of the flood waters came from. 

Al claimed that he intended to do an article for the Longmont Observer about the James Creek water diversion that figured mightily into Western, Colorado and regional water law. Phil and I knew that his all had to do with the diversion at the top of James Creek a spot we visited previously and knew well. The story is well woven into our history. We have a bit of a trek before I can reveal the geography behind the story. 

Here's another colorful shot up the James that fall. The trail was a mix of foliage in fallage lush color. This screams high Rockies palette while deep in shade. It needed extra layers because of the range.

Taken on: August 14, 2019

Tags:

By a Dam Site

Ditch

Dam

Colorado

View

Fall

Foliage

Aspen

James Creek

Trail

South

St.

Vrain

Mountains

Peak to Peak Highway

Rockies

Boulder

County

RockyPix

Rocky

Mountain

Pix

W. Michel Kiteley

f11

1/100th/sec

26mm

24 - 70mm f/2.8G

Nikkor

Normal-Zoom

Monopod « less

Groups appears in: • Colorado! • Nikon Digital more » • Nikon • RUSTY and CRUSTY • Rocky Mountains • Forgotten • The American Southwest • Nikkor • HDR • Rural American West • Highpoints • Flickr Nature • FlickrToday (only 1 pic per day) • Colorado Images • Rural America - (Opted out of 30/60) • Nikon DSLR Users • Colorado Scenery • Nikon DSLR 中文版 • Nikon D40/xD70/sD80/D90/D200/D300/D700/ D3/s/X • A River Runs Through It • Nature and Landscapes • Landscapes 101 (Unlimited) • Colorado...Colorful...Cosmopolitan • Rural View (Nature, People, Places) • Colorado - through the lens • Country Magazine • Coloroddities • Nikon Full Frame Cameras. • HDR-Imaging • Colorado Historical Group • Nikon D700 • Colorado Photography Pool • Lightroom Showcase • Front Range Colorado Nature & Trail • Real West • Centennial State Photography • Colorado Official • Un-enhanced American West • HDR One Magazine • Jamestown, Colorado « less

Camera: Nikon D700, f/11.0, 0.01 sec (1/100) sec (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Nikon D700
Aperture:	f/11.0
Exposure Time:	0.01 sec (1/100)
Show full info

Stats: 1,787 views / 4 comments

go back

Link to this photo view:
Link to this photo large view: