comanche creek

Comanche Creek is located within the Sangre de Cristo Land Grant in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains of north central New Mexico. Comanche Creek is a tributary to Rio Costilla within the Upper Rio Grande watershed and contributes 27,430 acres or 43 square miles to the Costilla Watershed. The headwaters of Comanche Creek lie at an elevation of roughly 10,400 feet. It flows north for 11.80 miles to empty into the Rio Costilla at an elevation of 8,940 feet.

The entire Comanche Creek watershed lies within the Valle Vidal Management Unit of Carson National Forest. These lands were part of the Pennzoil 1982 donation of 100,000 acres of its Vermejo Park Ranch property to the USDA Forest Service. The area has a long history of grazing, mining, and logging. These activities left the uplands, Comanche Creek, and its tributaries in a highly degraded state.

The goal of this Comanche Creek Habitat Restoration Project is to improve the condition of the Comanche Creek watershed to meet current water quality standards and to restore normal hydrologic function to Comanche Creek and its tributaries while improving habitat for the Rio Grande cutthroat trout (RGCT), other native fish and aquatic species; and for terrestrial wildlife. This goal is being achieved through collaboration, on the ground restoration treatments, education & outreach, and mapping & monitoring.