Kannah Creek is a Drainage basin that descends from the top of the Grand Mesa west southwest, where it meets the Gunnison River about 25 miles south of Grand Junction, Colorado.
Recreation
The watershed offers many recreational options. There are four
trails that utilize the valley, formed by the
stream and its
tributaries. The trails offer access to
hiking,
biking,
camping,
fishing, and
pack riding. The Kannah Creek trail is 7.88 miles long from the base of the mesa to the upper rim, ending at Carson Lake.
and
Kayaking are also possible in a few areas in the lower basin of the creek and is rated a class of III-V by American Whitewater.
There is also plenty of
wildlife in the area. In the
pine and
aspen forest on the higher altitude areas of the Grand Mesa,
elk are plentiful,
deer,
and
,
and
,
,
bighorn sheep,
canada lynx,
mountain goats . Fishing offers a bounty of brook, rainbow, and cutthroat
trout. The newly reintroduced
moose is also said to be thriving. The trails start in
juniper and
pinyon pine forest and moves up to pine and aspen forest as elevation is gained.
Human usage
Kannah Creek is derived from snowpack that accumulates all winter and spring and acts as a frozen
reservoir where it slowly melts and runs off all year. The city of Grand Junction has cooperated with many governmental and private property owners to create small
and
reservoirs on top of the Grand Mesa to store water from
snowmelt year round. The water from the reservoirs is partially let to
manumit down the drainage, and then stored again at the base of the mesa in Juniata Reservoir and the other Purdy Mesa Reservoirs. From there the water is taken in and treated at the Kannah Creek Water Plant, in Whitewater, CO. Afterwards gravity is used to channel and divert water to storage points located around the Grand Junction Metropolitan Statistical Area. The creation of this system was initiated by local vote, and a large majority desire for a new, raw, and especially fresh and clean
water source rather than the replaced source which acquired water out of the heavy-flowing,
sediment filled, Gunnison River.
The Creek also provides a source of irrigation for the many
in the lower basin of the creek beneath the mesa. It is a popular fruit growing region.
