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The Big Thompson River is a tributary of the South Platte, approximately 78 miles (123 km) long, in the U.S. state of Colorado.
It rises in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, in Larimer County, Colorado, in Rocky Mountain National Park on the eastern slope of Longs Peak, near the town of Estes Park. It descends steeply through the mountains in the spectacular 25 mi.(40 km) Big Thompson Canyon, emerging from the foothills west of Loveland.
It flows eastward south of Loveland across the plains into Weld County and joins the South Platte approximately 5 mi (8 km) south of Greeley. It receives the Little Thompson River approximately 4 mi (6 km) upstream from its mouth.
On July 31, 1976, the Big Thompson Canyon was the site of devastating flash floods that swept the down the canyon, claming the lives of 145 people.
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