Its head is at 33°34′10″N 107°35′36″W / 33.56944°N 107.59333°W / 33.56944; -107.59333 at an elevation of 7,540 feet (2,300 meters) in the San Mateo Mountains, within the Cibola National Forest, in Socorro County.
One is the upper cañada (valley or glen) that lies between the San Mateo Mountains on the north and east (where it has its head), and the Black Range to the west and the Sierra Cuchillo on the southwest.
The second lower valley is one the original Spanish settlers named, Cañada Alamosa.
[2] That canyon cuts down through and divides the San Mateo Mountains to the northeast from the Sierra Cuchillo on the southwest.
The canyon opens up and fields appear just below where the Cañada Viviancito enters Alamosa Creek.