Rito Seco
{{Use American English|date=February 2025}}
{{Infobox river
| name = Rito Seco
| name_other =
| name_etymology =
| nickname =
| image = Rito Seco Park hiking trail bridge.JPG
| image_size = 250px
| image_caption = A hiking trail bridge over the creek in Rito Seco Park
| image_alt =
| map =
| map_size =
| map_caption =
| map_alt =
| pushpin_map = USA Colorado
| pushpin_map_size = 250
| pushpin_map_caption= Location of the creek's mouth in Colorado
| pushpin_map_alt =
| subdivision_type1 = Country
| subdivision_name1 = United States
| subdivision_type2 = State
| subdivision_name2 = Colorado
| subdivision_type3 =
| subdivision_name3 =
| subdivision_type4 = County
| subdivision_name4 = Costilla County
| length =
| discharge1_location= Culebra Creek
| source1 =
| source1_location = Culebra Range
| source1_coordinates= {{Coord|37|16|36.05|N|105|14|29.05|W}}{{cite gnis |id=192929 |name=Rito Seco |date=October 13, 1978 |access-date=August 4, 2023}}
| source1_elevation =
| mouth = Confluence with Culebra Creek
| mouth_location = San Luis, Colorado
| mouth_coordinates = {{Coord|37|12|14.05|N|105|25|1.04|W|display=inline,title}}
| mouth_elevation = {{convert|8002|ft|m|abbr=off|sp=us}}
| progression = Culebra Creek — Rio Grande
| basin_landmarks =
| tributaries_left =
| tributaries_right =
}}
Rito Seco is a tributary of Culebra Creek in Costilla County, Colorado. The name means dry creek in the dialect of Spanish spoken in southern Colorado and New Mexico.{{cite book |last=Bright |first=William |title=Colorado place names |year=2004 |edition=3rd |publication-place=Boulder |publisher=Johnson Books |page=150}}{{cite book |last=Cobos |first=Rubén |title=A dictionary of New Mexico and southern Colorado Spanish |year=1983 |publication-place=Santa Fe |publisher= Museum of New Mexico Press |page=150}}
Course
The creek rises northeast of San Luis, Colorado in the Culebra Range, a subrange of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. It flows through Rito Seco Park then flows southwest along Rito Seco Road in an arc towards San Luis. In San Luis, its flow reduced by ditch diversions, Rito Seco goes under Main Street (Colorado State Highway 159) and through the Rito Seco Creek Culvert, which carries the creek under Colorado State Highway 142. From here it continues south a few blocks to its mouth at Culebra Creek.{{cite web |url=https://trails.colorado.gov/places/na~840719 |title=Rito Seco |author= |date=n.d. |website=Colorado Trail Explorer |publisher= |access-date=August 4, 2023 |quote=}}
Rito Seco Park
The creek gives its name to Rito Seco Park, a high mountain park and camping area, elevation about {{convert|10000|ft|abbr=off|sp=us}}, in the Culebra Range. Although the camping area was first opened in the 1970s, it lacked hiking trails. Over a period of twelve years ending in 2022, Costilla County and an organization called San Luis Valley Great Outdoors worked to get grants to construct trails in the park.{{Cite web |last=Boster |first=Seth |date=2023-03-24 |title=Open space growing near new trails in Colorado's San Luis Valley |url=https://gazette.com/life/outdoors/open-space-growing-near-new-trails-in-colorados-san-luis-valley/article_3d74d888-c7f9-11ed-84ec-137b808fde2f.html |access-date=2023-08-10 |website=Colorado Springs Gazette |language=en}}{{Cite web |title=Colorado Open Lands awarded $825K grant to conserve 398 acres in the southern San Luis Valley |url=https://alamosanews.com/article/colorado-open-lands-awarded-825k-grant-to-conserve-398-acres-in-the-southern-san-luis-valley |access-date=2023-08-10 |website=Alamosa News}} The four trails include several newly built wooden bridges over Rito Seco, and one of the trails is a single track mountain bike trail. The park is important because almost all of Costilla County is private land, and there is no government-owned open space, apart from the park.{{cite news |last=Woods |first=Owen |date=July 17, 2022 |title=Rito Seco Trail opens in Costilla County
|url=https://www.alamosacitizen.com/rito-seco-trail-opens-in-costilla-county/ |url-status=live |work=Alamosa Citizen |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221204145750/https://www.alamosacitizen.com/rito-seco-trail-opens-in-costilla-county/ |archive-date=December 4, 2022 |access-date=August 4, 2023 |quote=}}{{cite news |last=Boster |first=Seth |date=August 8, 2022 |title=Near Colorado's oldest town, new trails represent bigger dream
|url=https://gazette.com/life/outdoors/near-colorados-oldest-town-new-trails-represent-bigger-dream/article_e4db0d1a-135c-11ed-8492-13bbaf6a384e.html |url-status=live |work=The Colorado Springs Gazette |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230324161202/https://gazette.com/life/outdoors/near-colorados-oldest-town-new-trails-represent-bigger-dream/article_e4db0d1a-135c-11ed-8492-13bbaf6a384e.html |archive-date=March 24, 2023 |access-date=August 4, 2023 |quote=}}
Rito Seco Creek Culvert
Built in 1936, the Works Project Administration-built Rito Seco Creek Culvert is essentially a bridge that carries Colorado State Highway 142 over the creek. Made of volcanic stone, the structure is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.{{cite web |url=https://www.historycolorado.org/location/rito-seco-creek-culvert |title= Rito Seco Creek Culvert |author=History Colorado |date=2023 |access-date=August 4, 2023 |quote=}}
See also
References
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