La Plata River
Streamflow, conditions and background by watershed segment. Data through November 1, 2026.
Minor flood on the La Plata River
Readings through Nov 4, 10:45 PM Mountain time
2 Weather Service gauges on this river reached flood stage in the last 3 days. The map marks each with a diamond; one that pulses was in flood at its last reading, and a dashed ring means the gauge has stopped reporting.
La Plata River at Hesperus, CO
Minor floodPeak 5.8 ft on Nov 1, 11:15 PM. Minor flood starts at 5.5 ft. Last reading Nov 4, 10:30 PM: 4.5 ft, below flood stage. Weather Service gauge page
La Plata River at State Line, CO
Minor floodPeak 10.1 ft on Nov 2, 7:45 AM. Minor flood starts at 9.0 ft. Last reading Nov 4, 10:30 PM: 5.9 ft, below flood stage. Weather Service gauge page
Not a warning. This page is rebuilt at least once a day, and again when a river's flood status changes, so it can be hours out of date. For what is happening now, see the Weather Service's current river levels and its flood safety advice.
Where it is
Segments are the HUC8 watersheds the gauges sit in, numbered upstream to downstream. Use the buttons to switch between the state and the river.
- 1Middle San Juan
- river and reservoirs
- gauge
- minor flood
About the La Plata River
This report follows 66 miles (107 km) of the La Plata River, all within the Middle San Juan watershed segment. At the lower end of the report the river drains about 580 square miles. Downstream of the mapped reach it flows into the San Juan River. Named tributaries joining it here include the Connor Arroyo, McDermott Arroyo, Cherry Creek and Barker Arroyo. 7 gauges with at least 26 weeks of daily flow cover 1917 to 2026.
From the archive: NHDPlus river network, WBD watersheds, NHD waterbodies, TIGER urban areas and the report's gauges.
From the headwaters down
Each watershed segment in order, with last week's flow rated against the same week in 1991–2020.
Segment 1: Middle San Juan
156 cfs last week much above normal, 165 dry days this year.
Median conductance 1,453 µS/cm in the 2020s. Rain over the last 3 months: 239% of normal.
Reservoirs
No reservoir with 500 acre-feet or more of storage on this river in the National Inventory of Dams.
Water users
Surface water withdrawn, 2020
In the counties this river crosses (San Juan): 412,312 acre-feet. County totals include other streams.
| Use | Share (bar) | Share | Acre-ft |
|---|---|---|---|
| Irrigated agriculture | 80% | 330,370 | |
| Power | 8% | 32,474 | |
| Reservoir evaporation | 7% | 27,174 | |
| Public water supply | 5% | 21,357 | |
| Commercial | 0% | 913 |
State Engineer, New Mexico Water Use by Categories 2020.
Irrigation districts and acequias
- La Plata Conservancy District (23,166 acres mapped)
State Engineer's irrigation districts and acequia layers.
Public water systems beside the river
Farmington Water System, Upper La Plata Water Users Association
State Engineer's public water systems layer (service areas within 2 km).
Sources
Numbered sources for the statements above, as they were read when the page was prepared.