Towaoc’s weakest subject grade is a D− for incomes. Towaoc’s concentration of trails is 1.5 miles per square mile, above both the Colorado town median (1.3) and the median of U.S. towns (0.4). On the outdoors, just 6 of Colorado’s 218 towns do worse. Towaoc has 1 place on the National Register. Towaoc has fewer than 2,500 residents, so it gets subject grades but no overall grade.

WeakestD⁻Jobs & income D⁻Health DSchools

Small town

1,078 people, and everyone knows the way

In a town this size, neighbors are the best guide. Ask them anything.

Nearby towns

Cortez · 13 mi Dolores · 22 mi

How Towaoc grades

Each subject compared with towns across the country (schools within Colorado), ordered by how far Towaoc is from typical.

How grading works

Jobs & income$23K median household incomeD⁻Open →HealthLess healthy than 96% of U.S. towns; Southwest Memorial Hospital 13.4 miles awayD⁻Open →SchoolsDOpen →Hazard riskavalanches tops the listC⁺Open →Cost of livingTypical home $426K, 6.5 years of the county’s $65K median household incomeC⁺Open →

Character Graded, but not part of the overall grade.

Outdoors6 miles of trailsDOpen →HistoryDOpen →

Described, not graded Taste, not quality: snow or an older crowd is neither good nor bad.

Climate–Open →Who lives hereMedian age 27.6; 15% of adults have a four-year degree–Open →

How TownRatings grades towns →

MancosRiverDeposits, 2003

Towaoc’s story

111 years in pictures

Census counts: 700 in 1990, 1,120 in 2020. The archive holds 6 old photos and papers going back to 2003 and 2 maps from 1966 on.

1915Towaoc is settled

Explore the history →

Nearby attractions

Mesa Verde National Park and 9 more within 40 miles

Museums, parks, gardens and other places to visit around Towaoc. Close and well known come first.

All 15 attractions →

Big draw9 mi National ParkMesa Verde National Park463K visitors a year

14 mi Ancient siteCliff Palace

23 mi LandmarkFour Corners Monument

37 mi MountainShiprock

14 mi National MonumentHovenweep National Monument27K visitors a year

19 mi Park & preserveCanyons of the Ancients National Monument

Sources: National Park Service · ski areas © OpenSkiMap / OpenStreetMap contributors · Wikidata · Wikipedia readership · photos via Wikimedia Commons

Photo credits

Mesa Verde National Park: Elaine from Sheffield, England, CC BY 2.0 · Cliff Palace: W. Bulach, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Four Corners Monument: Christian David, CC BY-SA 4.0 · Shiprock: Bowie Snodgrass, CC BY 2.0 · Hovenweep National Monument: teofilo, CC BY 2.0 · Canyons of the Ancients National Monument: Bureau of Land Management, Public domain

Getting set up

Moving to Towaoc: who provides what

Towaoc is unincorporated, so Montezuma County and regional agencies provide most services.

PowerEmpire Electric Assn15.7¢/kWh · EIA 2025HIFLD · EIA

WaterTowaoc Water System4 health-based violations in 5 years · EPAEPA

Internet4 providers4% of addresses get 100/20 MbpsFCC

Trash & county servicesMontezuma CountyMontezuma County provides services here

SchoolsMontezuma-Cortez School District RE-1Which school depends on your addressNCES

Register to voteOnlineIn Colorado you can register online until 8 days before Election Day, in person up to and including Election Day, or by mail (postmarked 8 days before).vote.gov

Who runs elections hereMontezuma County Clerk and RecorderMontezuma County; contacts on the Handbook page.FVAP, Sep 2025

ZIP code8133481334 100%Census 2020

EPA SDWIS (Oct 9, 2026) · HIFLD + EIA-861 2025 · Census 2020 ZCTAs · NCES 2024–25 · registration: vote.gov, updated Nov 18, 2024.

The data

Ordered by what stands out in Towaoc.

HealthD⁻

Compared with most of Colorado and the rest of the country, more of Towaoc’s adults report frequent physical distress

32% of adults smoke cigarettes in Towaoc, where Colorado’s towns sit at 11% and U.S. towns at 14%. Of the 160 Colorado towns we compare, none has a higher share of adults who say their health is fair or poor than Towaoc. For adults here, the share who get no exercise outside work is 33%. On the CDC’s 26 measures, Towaoc is ahead of Colorado on 2 and behind on 21.

4%healthier than U.S. townsD⁻Health Grade

	Towaoc	Colorado towns	U.S. towns
Fair or poor health (CDC PLACES)	35%	15%	19%
Smoke cigarettes (CDC PLACES)	32%	11%	14%
Diabetes (CDC PLACES)	16%	8.4%	12%
Frequent mental distress (CDC PLACES)	27%	16%	17%

26 measures vs. Colorado

2 better3 too close to call21 worse

What stands out	Towaoc	CO
Fewer adults who have had cancer	5.1%	7.8%
Fewer binge drinkers	15%	19%
More older adults who have lost all their teeth	44.3%	9.2%

Southwest Memorial Hospital

13.4 mi away · emergency room

3 of 3

care shortages: primary care, dental, mental health

Full pageTowaoc’s health reportOpen the page

Everyday habitsMore smokers Hospitals & doctors nearby13.4 miles to an ER · Southwest Memorial Hospital How adults are doingMore adults in fair or poor health Every CDC estimateBetter than CO on 2 of 26

CDC PLACES 2025 · modeled estimates for adults · CMS · HRSA

SchoolsD

Towaoc’s schools rank behind 89% of Colorado districts

Its one school is below. 61 students attend Towaoc’s public school.

11%of CO districts it outscoresDSchool Grade

School	Level	Students	Letter
Kwiyagat Community AcademyLargest public elementary schoolGrades K–4	Grades K–4	61	–

Full pageTowaoc’s schools pageOpen the page

The districtsState Charter School Institute Every school1 school · Kwiyagat Community Academy Questions“Are Towaoc’s schools good?”

NCES · EDFacts · graded within CO on state tests and graduation

Climate

Towaoc: four seasons and hot summers

Its midsummer high stands at 91°F.

33″snow a winter

Typical low → high °F

Winter22–44°

Spring37–65°

Summer57–88°

Fall39–67°

Oct 7

typical first frost

May 12

typical last frost

+1.8°

vs. the 20th-century average

Full pageTowaoc’s climate pageOpen the page

A year of weatherJuly highs 91°, January lows 20°Rain & snow33″ of snow a winter · 12 inches of rain and snow a year Heating & coolingMostly a heating bill Then and now+1.8° vs. the 20th century · Warmer than the 20th-century average

NOAA U.S. Climate Normals, 1991–2020

Work & commuteJobs & income grade D⁻

More of Towaoc’s residents live below the poverty line than in the typical Colorado or U.S. town

Among 160 Colorado towns, just 3 have a lower average commute than Towaoc. 29% of working residents work locally locally. Employers in Towaoc shed 581 jobs between 2013 and 2023, to 449. For half of commuters, work is under 2 miles away.

29%work in town

	Towaoc	Colorado towns	U.S. towns
Average trip to work	12 minutes	25 minutes	25 minutes
Below the poverty line	62%	8.4%	9.6%
Working residents who work in town	29%	7.7%	8%

Where working residents work

In Towaoc29%

Cortez7%

Farmington3%

St. Michaels2%

Durango2%

2 mi

median commute distance

449

jobs based in Towaoc

Balanced

jobs vs. working residents

Full pageTowaoc’s work & commute pageOpen the page

The jobs here449 jobs based here · Balanced Where people work29% work in Towaoc Commute times12 minutes · The average commute How far they goHalf commute less than 2 miles

Census LEHD 2023 · ACS

Natural hazardsHazard risk grade C⁺

Top of a moderate hazard risk in Towaoc: avalanches

Expected damage from storms and floods is higher here than in 54% of U.S. communities. FEMA puts 74% of Towaoc’s expected hazard losses down to avalanches, and 15% to inland flooding.

54risk score of 100

FEMA risk score

AvalanchesInland flooding

Full pageTowaoc’s hazards pageOpen the page

What it facesModerate risk Flood claims0 paid flood claims · No paid flood claims on record Past disasters6 disaster declarations · Declared for the county Get ready0.4 events a year, on average · Ready for avalanches

FEMA National Risk Index · OpenFEMA

OutdoorsD