The Wet Mountain Valley is a high elevation mountain valley located in Custer County in south-central Colorado. The towns in the valley are Westcliffe and Silver Cliff, which are at an elevation of just under 8,000 feet. The area is known for its historical ranches and excellent hay production and it is nestled beneath the rugged Sangre de Cristo Mountains that parallel the Wet Mountain Valley on the west and the biologically diverse Wet Mountains on the east. The valley is drained by two major drainages; Grape Creek which begins in the south of Custer County near Music Pass and flows North into Deweese Reservoir from there it enters a narrow gorge before reaching the Arkansas River and Texas Creek which begins northwest of Westcliffe and flows to the northeast meeting the Arkansas River at US Highway 50.
Famous quotes containing the words wet, mountain and/or valley:
“Here in the centre stands the glass. Light
Is the lion that comes down to drink. There
And in that state, the glass is a pool.
Ruddy are his eyes and ruddy are his claws
When light comes down to wet his frothy jaws”
—Wallace Stevens (1879–1955)
“The mountain held the town as in a shadow.”
—Robert Frost (1874–1963)
“Over the mountains of the moon, down the valley of the shadow. Ride, boldly ride, the shade replied, in search of El Dorado.”
—Leigh Brackett (1915–1978)