page_title: Del Norte, Colorado
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Del Norte, Colorado / Geography
caption_attribution_description: English: Del Norte Peak towers over low clouds at the western edge of the San Luis Valley in Rio Grande National Forest. This photo was taken looking southwest. Del Norte Peak has an approximate elevation of 12,385 feet above sea level. This photo was taken in November, 2011.
context_page_description: The Town of Del Norte is a Statutory Town that is the county seat of Rio Grande County, Colorado, United States. The town's name is generally pronounced /ˈdɛl nɔɹt/. The town population was 1,686 at the 2010 census.
context_section_description: Del Norte's absolute location is at 37°40′44″N 106°21′11″W (37.679015, -106.352976).  Relatively-speaking, it is located where the Rio Grande leaves the San Juan Mountains and enters the San Luis Valley, near its confluences with Pinos Creek and San Francisco Creek, respectively.  Due to its location on the western edge of the valley, a variety of climates, vegetation regions, and ecosystems transition into each other at or around Del Norte.  Within a twenty mile radius of the town, you can experience anything from alpine tundra, montane forests, to high-altitude desert.  Common vegetation around Del Norte ranges from coniferous pine trees, deciduous aspen trees and cottonwoods, to chico brush and cacti. During the warmer months of the year, hollyhock, cosmos, poppies, and sunflowers are frequently found around the town.  Lookout Mountain (also known to locals as 'D' Mountain) overlooks the town, and is perhaps its most notable landmark.  The classification of 'mountain' has been a misnomer considering that 'D' Mountain has a mild prominence from the rest of the town (approximately 591 feet), and that there is nearby terrain with much greater prominence, however the classification has stuck since early settlement.
  According to the United States Census Bureau, the town has a total area of 0.9 square miles (2.3 km²), all of it land.
caption: Del Norte Peak rises above the town several miles to the west.
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