 |
| OutThere Colorado posted A massive stretch of highway headed into town is closed due to debris. This is likely to be an extended closure, per CDOT. https://www.denvergazette.com/.../disaster-emergency.../ "Flood waters near the Pagosa Springs Visitor Center (Town of Pagosa Springs)" |
That visitor center and parking lot is on a rather high river bank. It is hard to capture in a single street view, but if you "cruise" around the area you can see that it is normally well above the river.
 |
| Street View, Nov 2018 |
The town has zoned a flood plain, but it was not sufficient for this rain. Note that 7th and Florida Streets are closed.
 |
| Satellite |
As Denver Gazette article says, US-160 is closed east of town. The popups say it is closed until Oct 26. That article also says that US-160 is closed west of town and that US-84 is the only access to the town. But I could not find any closures on US-160 west of town when I looked on Oct 24.
 |
| Satellite |
I'm impressed not only by the intensity of the rain storm, but how widespread the storm was. I saw Facebook posts that show that Durango and the Animas River were also stressed.
 |
| All Things Pagosa posted Highway road closures in our area. There are additional non-highway closures in lots of other areas. |
According to some comments on other posts, the damaged road is in Red Mountain Pass. And it is open with traffic lights allowing alternate usage of one lane.
 |
| DenverGazzette (source) |
I saw a video that showed that all of these pools were under the river's water.
I found that video. I presume the flooded area is designed to be power washed after a flood.
 |
| Justin Porterfield, Nov 2015 |
I found that video. I presume the flooded area is designed to be power washed after a flood.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
This is another view of some of the flooded pools.
 |
| 1 of 4 photos posted by Meteorologist Eric Graves Pagosa Springs, CO today. This was worse than last year's historic flooding. 📷 Richie Rich [Does that mean they have had two 100-year floods in two years?] |
I don't know if they were 100-year floods, but they did have two floods in two years.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
Some of the roads are closed because trees were pushed onto them. Others are closed because of washouts. Those are going to take longer to open.
Moose Adventures posted two photos with the comment:
We are safe!! Evacuations are in order in Pagosa Springs for those along the rivers and streams. I think every campsite here has standing water which has never happened before!!But wait….there’s more…. It’s not supposed to stop raining until Sunday afternoon!! 😳These are pictures of N. Pagosa Blvd. We’ve had over 4” in 24 hrs at camp!!!Please keep those evacuated in your thoughts. Praying that Piedre Rd. Doesn’t wash out again like last year. As of this afternoon it was passable.
Moose Adventures: Piedre Rd is now closed as well as wolf creek pass:(
 |
| 1 |
 |
| 2 |
Back to the flooding of the hot springs resort.
 |
| abesh mubaraki, Jun 2020 |
 |
| Facebook Reel |
Look at the debris. Those umbrella tables are strong.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
An upstream view. Is the river even closer to the umbrellas?
 |
| Facebook Reel |
I could not get the unmute button to work properly, so I don't know if there was any narration.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
The above view on a normal day. Not only is the flood plain covered in the video, the river is flowing fast.
 |
| Street View, Jun 2025 |
Backcountry Outfitters - Pagosa Springs, CO posted three photos with the comment:
Our little corner of Colorado is facing some tough conditions right now with the flooding. We're keeping our community, our neighbors, and everyone affected in our thoughts.Please stay safe, look out for one another and take care of your people.
 |
| 1 |
 |
| 2 [The floodplain is doing its job.] |
 |
| 3 [I had to look closer to see that the road is under water.] |
Downstream of Pagosa Springs:
 |
| Facebook Reel |
On the upstream side of Pagosa Springs.
 |
| Riff Raff Brewing Company posted Riff Raff will be closed Friday [Oct 23]. Currently the East end does not have power due to a down power line. We will update when we are able to open. |
"Five minutes" upstream from Pagosa Springs.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
The San Juan River is part of the Colorado River watershed north of Lake Powell. But this water probably won't make it to the Colorado River because the Navajo Dam catches it for irrigation.
 |
| WakeSurf Cali posted GREAT NEWS FOR LAKE POWELL!!! Huge inflows from Navajo Lake that leads to Lake Powell. From the marina staff: Temporary Marina closures at Navajo Lake Marina & Sims Marina. Due to water levels rising at unprecedented rates the marinas are unable to maintain walkway access to the facilities. The lake climbed nearly 10 feet in a 24-hour period and the inflows are just now cresting. Staff hopes to have access restored Saturday, October 24th but it is a fluid situation. Dave Archuleta: two day no three, and it has fill gone up over 10 feet in the last few weeks and 10 ft just yesterday [Oct 23, 2026] in a 24 hr period. The lake was below 50% after the nonexistent spring runoff. I just looked its at 56% now |
 |
| Facebook Reel |
CR 337 is along the Blanco Rio. The brown building on the left side of this view behind the camper is the building in the above reel. I hope everyone got out of the RV Park before the flood came.
 |
| Street View, Jun 2025 |
This may be another view of the flooding along CR 337.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
Now I'm confused, Farmington and Bloomfield are just downstream of the Navajo Dam. I thought the dam caught the flood waters.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
This is evidently Farmington or Bloomfield. The report says that they had to rescue people from rooftops and that the river has yet to crest.
Sewage has entered the river so the water is hazardous. Evidently, the drinking water supply is well water because it is still safe to drink. [post and another post said the wastewater treatment plant has been breached.]
 |
| KOB (source) |
 |
| abqjournal (source) "An aerial photo taken on Friday shows extensive flooding along the San Juan River near Farmington following heavy rain on Thursday. The nearby Animas River has also flooded in some areas, contributing to an emergency that prompted home evacuations and rescues across northwestern New Mexico. Source: San Juan County Sheriff's Office" |
I think the red areas indicate mandatory evacuation.
 |
| PerimeterMap |
The Navajo Dam did catch some of the water. But the Animas River joins the San Juan River in Farminton.
 |
| KOAT posted The San Juan River is expected to reach a record level of 14.5 feet near Farmington. https://www.koat.com/article/san-juan-river-levels-flood-new-mexico/74234979 |
 |
| Facebook Reel |
Actually, it is thrLos Pinos River downstream of the Vallecito Dam; upstream of the reservoir it is called Vallecito Creek. But I still could not find this bridge. I saw videos of the bank being eroded. The bank was at the abutment. During the video, you could watch the dirt fall off the bank.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
 |
| Facebook Reel |
Some of the water did make it to Lake Powell, but it is just a drop in the bucket.
 |
| Chase Thomason posted Lake Powell has risen nearly 3 FEET in just TWO DAYS! That’s an incredible response to one October storm. 👀 All that rain across Utah is making a difference, with runoff from the watershed helping push the lake level higher. But here’s the reality: Lake Powell is still about 176 feet below full pool and needs roughly 18 million more acre-feet of water to fill. This recent rise is encouraging, but we’re still a long way from recovery. Years of drought and below-average inflows have left a significant deficit, and one storm can’t make up for that. The big factor now will be this winter’s snowpack and how much water makes it into the Colorado River during spring runoff. We need sustained, above-average inflows to make a meaningful dent in the deficit. Every bit helps, but we still have a long way to go. 💧 Mark Burin: Everyone forgets the lake is lake a giant funnel. The very bottom is easy to fill up the last 30 feet hold over a 1.5 trillion gallons 20% of the lake capacity and its 540 feet deep. Mike Pfirrman: And people eating beef and dairy will just drain it all again. 70% of the water in the Colorado River Basin goes toward agriculture, with nearly 90% of that or more being toward growing alfalfa for cattle feed, either for slaughter or dairy. Until that is ended and farmers/ranchers transition to other crops - there are rotational crops that use half as much water, but the infrastructure needs money. Perhaps if Trump didn't start a war and do tariffs again, farmers could have gotten the help they needed to switch crops instead of having to give them welfare checks. Again. |
I think the minimum level is when they can't run the hydroplant.
 |
| David Clawson commented on Chase's post I put together this little chart that shows the level for the past ~25 years that might help with some context. |
 |
| San Juan County Sheriff's Office, NM posted ❗️DO NOT FLY DRONES NEAR FLOODED AREAS. ❗️ . Drones being flown are hindering emergency response in areas that need it most. Keep drones grounded in San Juan County so our helicopter teams can respond quickly. |
 |
| San Juan County Sheriff's Office, NM commented on their post This is the official no fly zone. |
 |
| La Plata County Sheriff's Office posted With the ongoing weather conditions expecting to last through Sunday- Please be mindful of Closures! Sheriff's Deputies are also assisting with rescues in Archuleta County. We are monitoring water levels in multiple locations, here in our own jurisdiction. KC Lights: Punishable by $100 dollar fine. For anyone curious. [There were some comments about a nanny government. From what I saw, they did not close the river until a kayak would not fit under some bridges.] |
The yellow kayak has been rolling in the churn for a while. The blue kayak demonstrates how to get across the "hole" in the water without flipping over.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
He makes it straight through, but he had to paddle hard. Earlier in the reel he was paddling sideways to aim for this spot. That is, he avoided the wall of water in the middle of this view.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
And Facebook offered another kayak video. This guy got caught and did not make it through with his kayak. At the end it shows him floating downstream.
 |
| Facebook Reel |
A RV camp is a popular way to use a floodplain, but that works only if the camp gets cleared out before the flood. This rainstorm probably came up from the Pacific Ocean near Mexico, so why couldn't they predict this flood in time for an evacuation of the RVs? Note that, even though this town is fairly close to Pagosa Springs, it is on the Rio Grande and this water is headed towards the Gulf of Mexico. Although some comments indicate that the water won't make it that far.
 |
| South Fork Fire Rescue posted Morning Flood Update South Fork, Colorado Friday, October 23, 2026 The National Weather Service has confirmed that the South Fork of the Rio Grande has crested. A FLOOD WARNING REMAINS IN EFFECT. MANDATORY EVACUATIONS REMAIN IN EFFECT Evacuations remain in place for the following areas: - South Fork of the Rio Grande: From the Wolf Creek Tunnel to Fun Valley and from County Road 20 to the confluence with the Rio Grande River. - Rio Grande River: From the confluence at the River Green subdivision to the Shaw Creek Rest Area. Do not return home until the mandatory evacuation orders have been lifted. Although the river has crested, dangerous conditions remain. Floodwaters may still be present, roads may be damaged, riverbanks may be unstable, and other hazards may exist. CURRENT ROAD CLOSURES: - Highway 160 over Wolf Creek Pass. - Rio Grande County Road 18 Bridge to County Road 15. Do not drive around barricades or attempt to cross flooded roadways. EVACUEE INFORMATION: Evacuees can go to the South Fork Community Building STAY INFORMED: Please continue monitoring official updates. Updates will be published as the information is available. Photo: Fun Valley 10/23/26 3:01 am |
 |
| Yard Limit Productions Railroad Photography posted via Dennis DeBruler Animas River Bridge in Durango. Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad shared [They closed the river to kayaking because they would not be able to fit under this, and some other, bridges. Also, there is a lot of debris in the river. See Animas River Bridge for some videos of the flood water under the bridge.] |
This is another view of the Animas River flooding in Durango.
 |
| White Rabbit Books & Curiosities posted via Dennis DeBruler We’ve been closed for the past couple of days, waiting for this storm to wear itself out, and will remain closed likely through Sunday, as we get everything resituated and put the shop back to rights. The Animas River is reminding us just how feisty she can be, leaping past 10,000 CFS, up from the sad little trickle she was just a couple weeks ago- the majority of that in the last two days. She’s made her way up onto the trail by the next building north of us, and is lapping at the concrete near us, too, but so far, so good for the bookshop.Oh, the humbling power of fast-moving water! It’s a great reminder that Mother Nature is very much calling the shots, and we’re all just along for the ride. A million thanks to the three fine gents who helped me batten down the hatches and who have been keeping watch over the place while (being the commuter that I am,) I can only keep an eye on things from afar. You guys are the best. So, hooray for some much-needed moisture, a deep bow to the mighty Animas, and a gentle reminder that impermanence is the way of things. Sometimes the best we can do is prepare, let go, and ride out the storm. We’ll be back before long, with books to browse, curiosities to discover, and plenty of stories waiting to be found. Until then, stay safe, stay dry, and stay in utter awe of it all, friends. We'll be back soon! |
No comments:
Post a Comment