THE NATIONAL FORESTS OF COLORADO 



15 



North, Middle, and South Parks are large, high, open, level moun- 

 tain valleys lying in a north and south series between the main divide 

 and parallel lateral ranges. They have no forest growth and are 

 suited to agriculture and stock raising. North and South Parks, 

 both on the east side of the main range, drain, respectively, into the 

 North and South Platte Kivers and, ultimately, into the Gulf of 

 Mexico; Middle Park, caught in a loop of the Continental Divide, 

 which bounds it in a general way on the north, east, and south, is 

 drained by the headwaters of the Colorado River, flowing southwest 

 into the Gulf of California. The actual headwaters of all these 

 streams lie within the boundaries of the national forests. 



Scattered through the timber surrounding these large parks are 

 many other similar valleys, large and small. The boundaries of the 

 national forests are drawn so as to leave the larger ones out entirely, 

 among them the San Luis, Yampa, White, Gunnison, Uncompah- 



-IIP 







Fig. 10. — Railroad ties decked for hauling in lodgepole pine timber, Colorado National 



Forest 



gre, and San Juan River Valleys, and the valley of the Rio Grande. 

 The smaller creek valleys are included within the exterior boundaries 

 of the forest, but all agricultural land in them has been classified and 

 listed as available for homestead entry. Many such "lists" have 

 been homesteaded. 



The southern division of the Arapaho is crossed by the Berthoud 

 Pass highway, a main east and west artery through Colorado, and 

 the northern division is similarly served by the Willow Pass road, a 

 lesser highway connecting North and Middle Parks across the Conti- 

 nental Divide. Other roads, such as Williams Fork, lead well into 

 the forest, giving access to the resources there and greatly facilitat- 

 ing fire protection. 



The Colorado and Arapaho forests are now connected by the 

 Moffatt Railroad tunnel extending for 6 miles through the Conti- 

 nental Divide between Tolland on the Colorado and West Portal on 



90758°— 28 3 



