1966 Map of Irish Canyon

About this map

Cold Spring Mountain and the prominent Limestone Ridge dominate this corner of Moffat County, framing the deep incision of Irish Canyon. Surveyed in the mid-1960s, the landscape reflects a high-desert environment defined more by its relief and drainage patterns than by dense settlement. Vermillion Creek and Dry Creek cut through the terrain, leading toward the southern reaches of the quadrangle where the only named habitation, Ink Springs Ranch, is situated near a seasonal Spring. The map documents a sparsely populated ranching and extraction landscape, evidenced by the presence of a Gravel Pit and the small catchments of the Irish Lakes near Blue Hill. It serves as a detailed record of the northwestern Colorado backcountry during a period of minimal cultural change.