26 What the NATIONAL FORESTS Mean to the WATER USER 



flow, with frequent destructive floods, while no harmful effects of this 



sort are noticeable on streams whose headwaters are well timbered. Wild 



Cherry Creek, for example, after being almost completely burnt over, 



was subject to spring floods and to damage from erosion. During July 



it would dry up at a distance of not over 2 miles from the mouth of the 



canyon. As the watershed has become reforested these conditions have 



changed gradually until to-day the stream is not subject to floods and 



erosion and is more regular in its flow. During the summer it now reaches 



a point 4 miles below the mouth of the canyon and is used early in the fall 



for irrigation. Apache Creek, which formerly flowed the full length of its 



course all summer, since the destruction of the timber at its headwaters 



disappears only 2 or 3 miles from its head; and its only value for irrigation 



purposes after the middle of June lies in its flood waters, which are very 



uncertain. Hardscrabble and Medano Creeks have suffered similar results, 



and the list might be extended almost indefinitely. 



On the North Fork of the Gunnison River, in western Colorado, mucn 



flood damage has occurred as a result of the extensive fires which burned 



„ over its upper watersheds in the late seventies and 



Gunnison . . 



early eighties. Previous to that time the creek channels 



v were narrow and rocky, beavers were abundant, and the 



bottom lands showed little erosion. In 1884 a heavy snowfall was followed 

 by a flood which is estimated to have ruined at least 2,000 acres of good 

 ranch land. Since then destructive floods have occurred even- few years. 

 In 191 2 irrigated land and other property was damaged to the extent of 

 some S2o,ooo, a S,5,ooo bridge was washed out, and S8,ooo was expended 

 in preventing the destruction of two other bridges. In spite of this com- 

 paratively recent damage it is generally believed that floods are becoming 

 less frequent and less destructive as adequate fire protection on the Gunni- 

 son Forest is gradually restoring a forest cover on the burned-over areas. 

 Thirty years ago a big fire burned over the watershed of Gypsum Creek, 



^ which is located in central Colorado in what is now the 



Gypsum 



Holy Cross National Forest. Two years after this fire 

 CyccI? 



the low water flow of the creek was so reduced that the 



use of water for irrigation from it was restricted to the first 47 decrees. 

 Since then the flow had gradually increased with the establishment of a 



