Opinion of the Las Animas area

[McGowdog]

Ok. But there is a bunch of irrigation from the Mesa of Pueblo County to Holly, right? Or at least to McClave, Lamar area, Bristol, etc. The Arkansas looks mighty dry after Lamar from what I've seen. In Kansas, they ride their 2,3, and 4 wheelers on the riverbed.

I knew a guy named Claude somethingoranother that works/worked in Wiley and some folks that do both drip (gotta watch out for mold) and sprinkler (more waste) irrigation, corregated pipe, etc. I'm no farmer, but I visit and talk with them.

Dry at the time of photo. When there's water flowin' it looks like a main busted;



this was taken about a month and a half ago


What farmers do when they're not planting


Part of that Ft Lyons Canal



Hard to see... melon or onion harvest between LaJunta and Cheraw


Where they store some of this water... oh, and Queens is bone dry!



Knee high by 4th of July











They do it way different over in Cheyenne Wells. They got some oil over there though.

Oh, whether it's irrigated farming or dry land farming, God does do his bit too;


When I think of the Arkansas River, this comes to mind;












And what I love about pics is that they are so static, truthful and unbiased.

[SonnyDaze]

If you're going to work in Las Animas, you'll most likely want to live in La Junta. Town of about 8,000 20 miles to the west that seems to be holding on okay.

[jazzlover]

Nice photos McGowdog. Something else a little bit deceiving about those irrigated lands in the lower Ark. In many cases, the Front Range cities already own the water rights, but are leasing them back to the farmers until such time as those cities need that water--then it will be gone. Same in the Upper Colorado River area around Granby and Kremmling.

And every time I read a bunch of Josseppie's drivel about those developments around Pueblo, I could just puke. All that means is more water diverted from wetlands and agriculture--diverted from places like the lower Ark. Interesting how we keep promoting population growth in this country (and state)--and our living standards continue to deteriorate. We have "prospered" only by indenturing ourselves through debt to our once-and-soon-again enemies like China. Very soon, we are going to find out what happens to societies that squander their financial and natural resources at the altar of high living, personal greed, and hedonism. I can only hope that the slimeball developers, corrupt executives, unethical politicians, growth-at-all-cost-types, and other greedy b*****ds get thrown under the bus first. We probably can't be that lucky. Until then, places like Las Animas and lower Arkansas River valley will be invited again and again to "take one for the team."

[McGowdog]

I agree with you that the water situation is a mess. I think some farmers got swindled out of their water rights, but then we've got Kansas demanding water/money too.

What I was gonna ask you and/or would like to learn more about is what's your take on farming becoming corporate? What would happen if one big huge entity owned all the land and farmed it that way? What would be the pros and cons of it, including water usage?

In any case, is there not a much more efficient way to farm, harvest, use water, than what we've been doing?

So developers have been exploiting the land and sucking everything they can out of every cash cow that comes along... What can we do about that? Are we not the ones who elect our senators, reps and governor? Aren't they looking out for us?

[la junta econ devel]

Originally Posted by fausfam

Hello..

I am looking at taking a job in Las Animas, as I am not living in Colorado yet I would like to know what everyone thinks of this area..

Cost of Living?
Best town to live in?
School Systems?
Things to do?

Thanks all!

fausfam......

Sorry for not responding right away....and thanks McGowdog for the prod.. I need it sometimes.

I think you will find that in general, the cost of living in all of Eastern Colorado is going to be significantly less than in the rest of the State. It is certainly true in Southeast Colorado.

We all have our opinions about the best towns to live in and I certainly have mine and will be glad to share them in direct mails. All of the towns in the Las Animas area have good school systems, with a huge sense of community pride in their schools...in their academics, athletics, arts and activities. They all offer excellent opportunities and the only limitations to student acheivement are generally within the student, not the system!

"Things to do" is many times a personal thing. This area of the State does not have all of the ready made recreation center type activities, but people here seem to find value in family oriented "things to do". We have many opportunities for family recreation which include...boating; biking; hiking; many historic sites to visit (Bent's Old Fort, Boggsville, Camp Amache, Sand Creek Massacre Site); Jurassic Period Dinosaur tracks; wind farms; world renown cantaloupe and watermelons; community theaters and art groups; wonderful city parks; and golf courses in 8 of the communities where you can play more than 330 days a year!

We can be in Denver in 2.5 hours.....(I don't miss a Bronco game, or tailgate party); Colorado Springs in 2 hours; Pueblo in 1 hour if there are concerts, etc. that one wants to attend.

Historic US Highway 50 runs right through the Arkansas Valley on its way from Ocean City, MD and Washington DC to Sacramento, CA!

Lamar and La Junta are stops on the Amtrak's Southwest Chief from Chicago to Los Angeles. Most of the communities have small airports, and La Junta and Lamar have quite sizeable ones.

In addition to all of this we have quality hospitals; two of the best Junior Colleges in the State in Lamar CC and Otero JC (La Junta); and a variety of the most hands on museums you will find in the State (Rawlings in Las Animas, Big Timbers in Lamar, Otero in La Junta, Koshare in La Junta...to name a few).

Probably more important than all of this is the quality of life and the quality of the people that have CHOSEN to live in this area and call it home. The only way to see this is to visit the area and experience it. For those of you who haven't....its tough to describe what you are missing.

I don't have websites for all of the areas, but for a start you might visit www.lajuntaeconomicdevelopment. You will find links there to other communities and resources in the area.

Whatever you decide....good luck and welcome in advance to the Southeast Colorado and the lower Arkansas Valley.

[Bent County Eco Dev]

Las Animas and southeast Colorado is a great area to live and visit. As others stated, we don't have the mountains but we aren't the dusty, boring place some imagine. There are beautiful trees, rivers, lakes and wide open spaces. In the town of Las Animas, there is a micro brew pub and a coffee shop that have recently opened. What is lacking is the wasted time on the freeway during rush hour! Instead, I can make it to my 80 acre ranch 8 miles from town in less than 10 minutes. There are many oppotunities for all ages. Depending on if you are looking for a great school system for your kids, a place to start a business or to retire, this is a great place to look into. We would love to have you join our community.

[McGowdog]

You have like the best post/rep ratio I've ever seen. Anywho, I wonder what kind of weather you guys are getting in Bent/Prowers County tonight. Any hail? Heavy rain?