Rio Grande River

The Rio Grande is the fourth-longest river on our list. The word itself means "huge river," so it's no wonder that it's one of the country's largest rivers. The river's sources are in the San Juan Mountains of the Colorado Rockies, and it runs through New Mexico before forming the Texas-Mexico boundary.

The river drains into the Gulf of Mexico at its mouth. Because the river passes through desert and drought-prone terrain, there are periods when it goes dry. The river drains into the Gulf of Mexico at its mouth. Because the river passes through desert and drought-prone terrain, there are periods when it goes dry. In fact, the river failed to reach the Gulf in 2001 and 2002 and dried up altogether before it could travel the entire length of its route. Nonetheless, the river's primary and continuous route is around 2,830 kilometers long.

Irrigation has been employed in the Rio Grande basin from prehistoric times, most notably by the ancestors of New Mexico's Pueblo Indians. The water treaties between the United States and Mexico, as well as the Rio Grande Compact (1939) among Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas, concerning shared use of the upper Rio Grande subbasin, and the Pecos River Compact (1948) between New Mexico and Texas, concerning the Pecos above Girvin, Texas, were all necessary due to population and water use increases.

Length: 2,830 Km