It was gold and silver that brought prospectors to the Upper Gunnison Basin in the 1860s, and the rush in the 1880s resulted in the rise and fall of numerous mining towns. After the silver panic of 1893, miners turn primarily to coal and later to uranium. While mining is minimal today, the evidence of past exploits dot the basin. Widespread timber harvest supplied lumber and fuel for the pioneers, and extensive clearing circled each settlement. Cattle were introduced in the 1870s and ranching continues today.
Cattle subsist on range by summer, and the impacts of grazing are widespread.
Riparian habitats of cottonwoods and willows have been greatly altered by the irrigation of hay meadows and cattle usage. Irrigated meadow along Tomichi Creek. At the headwaters of the Colorado River drainage, the Upper Gunnison Basin is the only major watershed not tapped by metropolitan water concerns to the east. As the water flows westward, it is impounded in several reservoirs including Blue Mesa Lake, the largest body of water in Colorado. Blue Mesa Lake was created in 1965 and submerged 20 miles of river.