More water coming this year and early

Higher temperatures and some warm winds have caused faster snow melts and allowed a better supply of water coming down the Rio Grande River this year. The San Luis Valley is part of the Rio Grande Rift system that extends from central Colorado southward through New Mexico and West Texas into northern Mexico and all the residents across those states benefit from the better run off.

"It's good news for everyone, from the guy who needs it for his crops to someone wanting to get some more trout," said John Hilner, a local valley resident.

Plane crash in San Luis Valley, two Canadians died

Sunday, December 28, 2008 -- A plane carrying two people, Gerrit Maureau and Sheila Malm, crashed in the south-central Colorado mountains Saturday evening, and by late Sunday the terrain and weather were so hazardous that rescue crews temporarily halted efforts to reach the wreckage. They are planning to go back to the site when conditions are safe -- more than likely spring time.

A team from El Paso County Search and Rescue led the search for the crash site of a twin-engine Beechcraft airplane in Costilla County south of Culebra Peak, a 14,047 mountain. Other agencies were helping with the effort, including sheriff 's offices and search and rescue crews from Costilla, Custer and Las Animas counties.

Friends and colleagues of Gerrit Maureau and Sheila Malm reacted with shock Monday to confirmation from U.S. authorities that Maureau's 58 Beechcraft Baron had crashed in the mountains of south Colorado.

Maureau and Malm were flying to New Mexico to spend Christmas with friends.

Your land is part of history

If you own land in the San Luis Valley, be proud to know that there's a lot of history on it. On August of 1779, Juan Bautista de Anza, governor and military commander of the Spanish province of New Mexico, led an army of 800 men to protect villagers at Taos, which had been victimized by raids from the Jupe Comanche.

Anza marched north of Taos at night to avoid detection and they went through San Luis Valley to finally find and battle the Comanches. In the fight, they killed the main chief Cuerno Verde ("Green Horn" in English) or Tabivo Naritgant in the native tongue. The death of the chief drastically reduced the raids in the area and the valley was open to settlements.

If you want to own historical San Luis Valley land, click here.

Aspen Pure Bottled Water: Proof of San Luis Valley's Water Supply

Here's some trivia for you...

Aspen Pure bottled water has been gaining popularity throughout the United States. What you probably didn't know is that it comes from the Rocky Mountains, specifically in the San Luis Valley area.

According to two sources, finewaters.com and Aspen Times Weekly, Aspen Pure gets their water from San Luis Valley. Most of the acquifers in the area get water run off from the snow melts from the surrounding mountains.

Ranches in the area are quite familiar with Sangre de Cristo, Mount Blanca, and other ranges that always get snow in the winter, which melts and recharges the acquifers. This is why San Luis Valley is a great place not only for good bottled water, but a place to farm, or just have a great ranch.

Water + views = good living.