 State Highway 17 | ||||
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 Map of southern Colorado with SH 17 highlighted in red | ||||
| Route information | ||||
| Maintained byCDOT | ||||
| Length | 88.5 mi[1][a] (142.4 km) | |||
| Major junctions | ||||
| South end |  NM 17 atNew Mexico state line | |||
| Major intersections | ||||
| North end |  US 285 south ofVilla Grove | |||
| Location | ||||
| Country | United States | |||
| State | Colorado | |||
| Counties | Archuleta,Conejos,Alamosa,Saguache | |||
| Highway system | ||||
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State Highway 17 (SH 17) is an 88.5 mi (142.4 km)[a]state highway in southernColorado, United States. SH 17's southern terminus is a continuation asNew Mexico State Road 17 (NM 17) at theNew Mexico state line, and the northern terminus is atU.S. Route 285 (US 285) south ofVilla Grove.
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SH 17 is officially split into two parts by a stretch of concurrence withUS 285. The first part of the route begins in the south at theNew Mexico state line where the road becomesNew Mexico State Road 17. From the state line the road proceeds in a winding, generally easterly path over theSan Juan Mountains viaCumbres Pass andLa Manga Pass, both over 10,000 ft (3,000 m) in elevation. Along this section, the road offers access toRio Grande National Forest and the many recreational activities it offers.
After leaving the national forest, the road continues east for approximately 13 more miles before merging with US 285 atAntonito. From Antonito, SH 17 runs northward concurrent with US 285 for just over thirty miles to the city ofAlamosa. At Alamosa, the second part of SH 17 begins after the road splits from US 285. From there, the road proceeds northward up the middle of theSan Luis Valley between theSangre de Christo Mountains in the east and theSan Juan Mountains to the west. The route passes through the towns ofMosca,Hooper (where the road meets the eastern end ofSH 112) andMoffat before reaching its northern terminus where it again meets US 285 roughly five miles south ofVilla Grove.
When the route was established in the 1920s, the route was broken into two sections. The road began atPagosa Springs and began southeast and disappeared as the route ended at the New Mexico state line. The route then reappeared northeast and terminated at SH 15 (now moved) nearMineral Hot Springs. Within the northeast segment, the route fromAntonito toAlamosa was paved by 1936. The portion of the eastern segment from the New Mexico state line to Antonito was deleted and readded by 1938 and 1946, respectively. The rest of the route, not included the segment from New Mexico to Antonito, was paved by 1954. In 1968, the sections of the highway that were concurrent with other highways were eliminated, leaving the two segments existent now. The route was paved by 1970.[2]
| County | Location | mi | km | Destinations | Notes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archuleta | | 0.000 | 0.000 |  NM 17 south –Chama | Southern terimnus; Continuation intoNew Mexico | ||
| Conejos | Antonito | 39.05 | 62.84 | US 285 south –Santa Fe,Tres Piedras | Southern end of US 285 concurrency | ||
| Gap alongUS 285 | |||||||
| Alamosa | Alamosa | 69.02 | 111.08 |   US 160 (Sixth Street) /US 285 north –Monte Vista | 6th St. is a one-way street, inbound access only; northern end of US 285 concurrency; southern end of US 160 concurrency | ||
| 69.09 | 111.19 |  US 160 west /US 285 north (Main Street west) –Monte Vista | Main St. is a one-way street, outbound access only; no northbound access | ||||
| Rio Grande | 70.00 | 112.65 | Bridge | ||||
| Alamosa East | 70.12 | 112.85 |  US 160 east –Walsenburg | Northern end of US 160 concurrency | |||
| Alamosa–Saguache county line | Hooper | 88.19 | 141.93 |  SH 112 west –Center | Eastern terminus of SH 112 | ||
| Saguache | | 118.86 | 191.29 | US 285 –Saguache,Monte Vista,Poncha Springs,Salida | Northern terminus | ||
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi
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^ a: The section of SH 17 which runs concurrent to US 285 is maintained with federal rather than state funds and is therefore not counted by the Colorado Department of Transportation in the road's official 88.5 mile length; the total end-to-end length including this segment is 118.8 mi (191.2 km).[1]
Media related toColorado State Highway 17 at Wikimedia Commons
