1.
Maroon Bells
–
The Maroon Bells are two peaks in the Elk Mountains, Maroon Peak and North Maroon Peak, separated by about a third of a mile. The mountains are on the border between Pitkin County and Gunnison County, Colorado, United States, about 12 miles southwest of Aspen, Maroon Peak, at 14,163 feet, is the 27th highest peak in Colorado. North Maroon Peak, at 14,019 feet, is the 50th highest, the view of the Maroon Bells to the southwest from the Maroon Creek valley is commonly photographed. The peaks are located in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness of White River National Forest, a US Forest Service sign on the access trail refers to these mountains as The Deadly Bells and warns would-be climbers of downsloping, loose, rotten and unstable rock that kills without warning. Unlike other mountains in the Rockies that are composed of granite and limestone, mudstone is weak and fractures readily, giving rise to dangerously loose rock along almost any route. The mudstone is responsible for the Bells distinctive maroon color, the Bells got their deadly name in 1965 when eight people died in five separate accidents. Maroon Lake occupies a basin that was sculpted by Ice-Age glaciers and later dammed by landslide, the Maroon Bells are an increasingly popular destination for day and overnight visitors, over 300,000 people visit the Bells every season. Due to the volume of people, a bus service runs everyday from 8am-5pm from mid-June through the first weekend in October, during these times, and with just a few exceptions, personal vehicle access is limited to those with handicap placards or disability license plates. The bus runs from Aspen Highlands to Maroon Lake every 20 minutes, the Maroon Bells scenic area features several hiking trails ranging from short hikes near Maroon Lake to longer hikes into the Maroon-Snowmass Wilderness. Because the Maroon Bells area receives high levels of visitor use. Colorado portal Mountains portal List of Colorado fourteeners Guide to Maroon Bells Colorado Maroon Bells on 14ers. com Maroon Bells on Distantpeak. com Maroon Bells Scenic Area on USFS
Maroon Bells
–
Maroon Bells With Aspen, September 2003
Maroon Bells
–
Maroon Lake and Maroon Bells, pre-dawn photo, 19 September 2012.
2.
Castle Peak (Colorado)
–
Castle Peak is the ninth highest summit of the Rocky Mountains of North America and the U. S. state of Colorado. The prominent 14, 279-foot fourteener is the highest summit of the Elk Mountains, the summit of Castle Peak is the highest point of both counties. Castle Peak takes its name from its castellated summit, the best climbing months are June, July, August, September through the Montezuma Glacier, a permanent snowfield between Castle and Conundrum Peaks. There are two routes for ascent. The Northwest Ridge features a moderate snow climb followed by an easy ridge scramble and it should not be attempted late in the summer when the 200 feet of loose dirt and scree meet the climber near the top of the Castle-Conundrum saddle. The Northeast Ridge features an easy climb, but slightly harder scrambling and route-finding once on the ridge. Conundrum Peak is a subsummit of Castle Peak. It has two closely spaced summits, the northern is higher, with elevation of 14, 040+ feet and it is 0.4 miles north of Castle Peak, and has 200 feet of clean topographic prominence. This does not meet the usual 300-foot prominence criterion for a separate peak, however
Castle Peak (Colorado)
–
View from NNE above Montezuma Basin
3.
Summit
–
A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically, a summit is a maximum in elevation. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak, and zenith are synonymous, the UIAA definition is that a summit is independent if it has a prominence of 30 metres or more, it is a mountain if it has a prominence of at least 300 metres. This can be summarised as follows, A pyramidal peak is an exaggerated form produced by ice erosion of a mountain top, Summit may also refer to the highest point along a line, trail, or route. In many parts of the western United States, the term refers to the highest point along a road, highway. For example, the highest point along Interstate 80 in California is referred to as Donner Summit while the highest point on Interstate 5 is Siskiyou Mountain Summit, geoid Hill List of highest mountains Maxima and minima Nadir Summit accordance Peak finder
Summit
–
The highest elevation summit, Mount Everest, shown with a climber at the summit wearing an oxygen mask. The summit is 8850 m (29,035 ft) elevation. (While the cruising altitude of jetliners is roughly 10,000 m (32,808 feet), they are pressurized.)
Summit
–
View from the summit of Switzerland's highest,
Monte Rosa
Summit
–
The summit of
Mount Damavand,
Iran, in winter
Summit
–
Jeff Davis Peak, one of the highest peaks entirely within
Nevada
4.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
Geographic coordinate system
–
Longitude lines are perpendicular and latitude lines are parallel to the equator.
5.
County (United States)
–
In the United States, an administrative or political sub-division of a state is a county, which is a region having specific boundaries and usually some level of governmental authority. The term county is used in 48 U. S. states, while Louisiana and Alaska have functionally equivalent subdivisions called parishes, most counties have subdivisions which may include municipalities and unincorporated areas. Others have no divisions, or may serve as a singular consolidated city-county. Some municipalities are in multiple counties, New York City is uniquely partitioned into multiple counties/boroughs, the U. S. federal government uses the term county equivalent to describe non-county administrative or statistical areas that are comparable to counties. Alaskas Unorganized Borough is divided into 11 census areas that are equivalent to counties. As of 2013, the United States has 3,007 counties and 137 county equivalents for a total of 3,144 counties, the number of counties per state ranges from the 3 counties of Delaware to the 254 counties of Texas. Counties have significant governmental functions in all states except Rhode Island and Connecticut, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has removed most government functions from eight of its 14 counties. The county with the largest population, Los Angeles County, counties were among the earliest units of local government established in the Thirteen Colonies that would become the United States. Virginia created the first counties in order to ease the workload in Jamestown. Americas oldest intact county court records can be found at Eastville, Virginia, in Northampton County, maryland established its first county, St. Marys, in 1637, and Massachusetts followed in 1643. When independence came, the framers of the Constitution did not provide for local governments, rather, they left the matter to the states. Subsequently, early state constitutions generally conceptualized county government as an arm of the state, in some states, these powers are partly or mostly devolved to the counties smaller divisions usually called townships, though in New York, New England and Wisconsin they are called towns. The county may or may not be able to override its townships on certain matters, the newest county in the United States is the city and county of Broomfield, Colorado, established in 2001 as a consolidated city-county. The newest county-equivalents are the Alaskan boroughs of Skagway established in 2007, Wrangell established in 2008, there are 40 consolidated city-counties in the U. S. Similarly, some of Alaskas boroughs have merged with their principal cities creating unified city-boroughs. Some such consolidations and mergers have created cities that rank among the geographically largest cities in the world, see also, #County names, regarding Louisiana. Independent cities, These are cities that legally belong to no county, Washington, D. C. outside the jurisdiction of any state, has a special status. The city of Washington comprises the entirety of the District of Columbia, when founded in 1801, the District consisted of two counties and three cities. In 1846, Alexandria County – including the then–City of Alexandria – was given back to Virginia, in 1871, the three remaining entities – the City of Washington, Georgetown City, and Washington County – were merged into a consolidated government by an act of Congress
County (United States)
–
A highway sign designating the border between
Nicholas and
Greenbrier counties in
West Virginia along a secondary road.
County (United States)
–
County
6.
Pitkin County, Colorado
–
Pitkin County is one of the 64 counties in the U. S. state of Colorado. As of the 2010 census, the population was 17,148, the county is named in honor of the late Colorado Governor Frederick Walker Pitkin. Pitkin County has the seventh-highest per capita income of any county in the United States, Pitkin County is included in the Glenwood Springs, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area, which is also included in the Edwards-Glenwood Springs, CO Combined Statistical Area. According to the U. S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 973 square miles. The high point of the county is Castle Peak, a fourteener with a height of 14,265 feet and it is located 20 miles south of Aspen on the Gunnison County border. The population density was 15 people per square mile, there were 10,096 housing units at an average density of 10 per square mile. The racial makeup of the county was 94. 33% White,0. 53% Black or African American,0. 27% Native American,1. 12% Asian,0. 04% Pacific Islander,2. 37% from other races, and 1. 34% from two or more races. Of the population,6. 54% were Hispanic or Latino of any race, of all households,35. 80% were made up of individuals and 3. 50% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.14 and the family size was 2.77. In the county, the population was out with 16. 70% under the age of 18,7. 70% from 18 to 24,38. 30% from 25 to 44,30. 50% from 45 to 64. The median age was 38 years, for every 100 females there were 115.10 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 117.40 males, the median income for a household in the county was $59,375, and the median income for a family was $75,048. Males had an income of $40,672 versus $33,896 for females. The per capita income for the county was $40,811, about 3. 00% of families and 6. 20% of the population were below the poverty line, including 4. 40% of those under age 18 and 5. 60% of those age 65 or over
Pitkin County, Colorado
–
Pitkin County Courthouse
7.
Gunnison County, Colorado
–
Gunnison County is the fifth-most extensive of the 64 counties in the U. S. state of Colorado. As of the 2010 census, the population was 15,324, the county was named for John W. Gunnison, a United States Army officer and captain in the Army Topographical Engineers, who surveyed for the transcontinental railroad in 1853. Thornton, the Republican governor of Colorado from 1951 to 1955, the city of Thornton, Colorado, north of Denver, is named in his honor. Archeological studies have dated the Ute peoples appearance in the Uncompahgre region of Colorado as early as 1150 A. D, possibilities exist that they are descendants of an earlier people living in the area as far back as 1500 B. C. They were a race of dark skin moving about the Western Slope of Colorado in the various parts of the year. The first recorded expedition of Western Colorado wilderness was led by Don Juan Rivera in 1765, in 1776, two Spanish priests, Fathers Escalante and Dominguez, led a party into the area around Montrose and Paonia. The 1830s brought the mountainmen into the area to trap beaver, John W. Gunnison surveyed the area for the transcontinental railroad route. In 1858 gold was discovered near Denver bringing the man across the divide into the western slope in search of the precious metal. In 1859 a party settled on Texas Gulch in Union Park, placer gold was found at Washington Gulch in 1861 as part of the Colorado Gold Rush. In 1861 the Territory of Colorado was organized, the territorial governor was made ex officio Superintentant of Indian Affairs. A conference on October 1,1863 established a line for a reservation. This treaty averted a possible dangerous situation by giving the Utes some cattle and sheep, the government failed to fulfill any these obligations straining the relations further. The treaty of 1868 recognized Chief Ouray as the spokesman for seven tribes of the Ute People. He held this power over his people through diplomacy and understanding, the Los Pinos Agency was developed through the Treaties of 1868 and 1873. The first agent was 2nd Lieutenant Calvin T. Speer, in 1871 a cow camp was started near the present site of Gunnison with James P. Kelley in charge. In this year, Jabez Nelson Trask, a Harvard grad, in 1872 Trask was replaced by Charles Adams. In 1875 orders from Washington to move the agency to the Uncomphgre Valley were completed in November, in 1876 Colorado entered the Union and Gunnison County was formed. 1879 was a year of expansion due to the miners, speculators and adventurers seeking wealth, the cattle industry was established by 1880
Gunnison County, Colorado
–
The historic
Crystal Mill, built in 1893.
Gunnison County, Colorado
–
Location in the state of
Colorado
Gunnison County, Colorado
–
Lizard Lake, in the
White River National Forest east of
Marble, Colorado.
Gunnison County, Colorado
–
Tincup general store, 2008
8.
Eagle County, Colorado
–
Eagle County is one of the 64 counties of the U. S. state of Colorado. As of the 2010 census, the population was 52,197, the county seat is the Town of Eagle. The county is named for the Eagle River, Eagle County comprises the Edwards, CO Micropolitan Statistical Area. Eagle County was created by the Colorado legislature on February 11,1883 and it was named after the Eagle River, which runs through the county. The county seat was set in Red Cliff, Colorado. The Ground Hog Mine, near Red Cliff, produced gold, one vein, or chimney, contained gold in crystalline form, cemented by iron, while the other contained wire gold in the form of rams horns. One of these horns is now on display in the Harvard Mineralogical Museum. According to the U. S. Census Bureau, the county has an area of 1,692 square miles. Much of the county is taken up by White River National Forest, interstate 70 crosses the county from east to west. The Eagle River rises in the part of the county. It receives Gore Creek at Dowds Junction, and joins the Colorado River in the west, fryingpan River and the Roaring Fork River intersect the southwest corner of the county. The population density was 25 people per square mile, there were 22,111 housing units at an average density of 13 per square mile. 23. 24% of the population were Hispanic or Latino of any race,20. 90% of all households were made up of individuals and 1. 90% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.73 and the family size was 3.17. In the county, the population was out with 23. 50% under the age of 18,11. 40% from 18 to 24,42. 10% from 25 to 44,20. 00% from 45 to 64. The median age was 31 years, for every 100 females there were 121.00 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 125.80 males, the median income for a household in the county was $62,682, and the median income for a family was $68,226. Males had an income of $37,603 versus $30,579 for females
Eagle County, Colorado
–
Location in the state of
Colorado
9.
Mountain range
–
A mountain range is a geographic area containing numerous geologically related mountains. A mountain system or system of ranges, sometimes is used to combine several geological features that are geographically related. Mountain ranges are usually segmented by highlands or mountain passes and valleys, individual mountains within the same mountain range do not necessarily have the same geologic structure or petrology. They may be a mix of different orogenic expressions and terranes, for example thrust sheets, uplifted blocks, fold mountains, most geologically young mountain ranges on the Earths land surface are associated with either the Pacific Ring of Fire or the Alpide Belt. The Andes is 7,000 kilometres long and is considered the worlds longest mountain system. The Alpide belt includes Indonesia and southeast Asia, through the Himalaya, the belt also includes other European and Asian mountain ranges. The Himalayas contain the highest mountains in the world, including Mount Everest, mountain ranges outside of these two systems include the Arctic Cordillera, the Urals, the Appalachians, the Scandinavian Mountains, the Altai Mountains and the Hijaz Mountains. If the definition of a range is stretched to include underwater mountains. The mountain systems of the earth are characterized by a tree structure, the sub-range relationship is often expressed as a parent-child relationship. For example, the White Mountains of New Hampshire and the Blue Ridge Mountains are sub-ranges of the Appalachian Mountains, equivalently, the Appalachians are the parent of the White Mountains and Blue Ridge Mountains, and the White Mountains and the Blue Ridge Mountains are children of the Appalachians. The position of mountains influences climate, such as rain or snow, when air masses move up and over mountains, the air cools producing orographic precipitation. As the air descends on the side, it warms again and is drier. Often, a shadow will affect the leeward side of a range. Mountain ranges are constantly subjected to forces which work to tear them down. Erosion is at work while the mountains are being uplifted and long after until the mountains are reduced to low hills, rivers are traditionally believed to be the principle erosive factor on mountain ranges, with their ability of bedrock incision and sediment transport. The rugged topography of a range is the product of erosion. The basins adjacent to a mountain range are filled with sediments which are buried and turned into sedimentary rock. The early Cenozoic uplift of the Rocky Mountains of Colorado provides an example and this mass of rock was removed as the range was actively undergoing uplift
Mountain range
–
The
Himalayas, the highest mountain range on Earth, seen from space
Mountain range
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Mountain range of
High Tatras in
Slovakia in 1865
Mountain range
–
The
Andes, the world's longest mountain range on the surface of a continent, seen from the air
Mountain range
–
Hillary and Norgay Montes on Pluto (14 July 2015)
10.
Rocky Mountains
–
The Rocky Mountains, commonly known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch more than 3,000 miles from the northernmost part of British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico, in the Southwestern United States. Within the North American Cordillera, the Rockies are somewhat distinct from the Pacific Coast Ranges, the Rocky Mountains were initially formed from 80 million to 55 million years ago during the Laramide orogeny, in which a number of plates began to slide underneath the North American plate. The angle of subduction was shallow, resulting in a belt of mountains running down western North America. Since then, further tectonic activity and erosion by glaciers have sculpted the Rockies into dramatic peaks, at the end of the last ice age, humans started to inhabit the mountain range. The first mention of their present name by a European was in the journal of Jacques Legardeur de Saint-Pierre in 1752, the Rocky Mountains are commonly defined as stretching from the Liard River in British Columbia south to the Rio Grande in New Mexico. The United States definition of the Rockies includes the Cabinet and Salish Mountains of Idaho and their counterparts north of the Kootenai River, the Columbia Mountains, are considered a separate system in Canada, lying to the west of the huge Rocky Mountain Trench. This runs the length of British Columbia from its beginnings in the middle Flathead River valley in western Montana to the bank of the Liard River. The Rockies vary in width from 70 to 300 miles, also west of the Rocky Mountain Trench, farther north and facing the Muskwa Range across the trench, are the Stikine Ranges and Omineca Mountains of the Interior Mountains system of British Columbia. A small area east of Prince George, British Columbia on the side of the Trench. In Canada geographers define three main groups of ranges, the Continental Ranges, Hart Ranges and Muskwa Ranges, the Muskwa and Hart Ranges together comprise what is known as the Northern Rockies. The western edge of the Rockies includes ranges such as the Wasatch near Salt Lake City, the Great Basin and Columbia River Plateau separate these sub-ranges from distinct ranges further to the west, most prominent among which are the Sierra Nevada, Cascade Range and Coast Mountains. The Rocky Mountain System within the United States is a United States physiographic region, the Rocky Mountains are notable for containing the highest peaks in central North America. The ranges highest peak is Mount Elbert located in Colorado at 14,440 feet above sea level, Mount Robson in British Columbia, at 12,972 feet, is the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies. The Continental Divide of the Americas is located in the Rocky Mountains, triple Divide Peak in Glacier National Park is so named because water that falls on the mountain reaches not only the Atlantic and Pacific, but Hudson Bay as well. Farther north in Alberta, the Athabasca and other rivers feed the basin of the Mackenzie River, see Rivers of the Rocky Mountains for a list of rivers. Human population is not very dense in the Rocky Mountains, with an average of four people per square kilometer, however, the human population grew rapidly in the Rocky Mountain states between 1950 and 1990. The 40-year statewide increases in range from 35% in Montana to about 150% in Utah
Rocky Mountains
–
Moraine Lake, and the
Valley of the Ten Peaks,
Banff National Park,
Alberta,
Canada
Rocky Mountains
–
The Front Range of the Rocky Mountains near
Denver, Colorado
Rocky Mountains
–
The
Tetons are a rugged subrange in Wyoming
Rocky Mountains
–
Mount Robson in
British Columbia.
11.
Colorado
–
Colorado is a state in the United States encompassing most of the Southern Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains. Colorado is part of the Western United States, the Southwestern United States, Colorado is the 8th most extensive and the 21st most populous of the 50 United States. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the population of Colorado was 5,540,545 on July 1,2016, the state was named for the Colorado River, which Spanish travelers named the Río Colorado for the ruddy silt the river carried from the mountains. The Territory of Colorado was organized on February 28,1861, Colorado is nicknamed the Centennial State because it became a state in the same year as the centennial of the United States Declaration of Independence. Colorado is noted for its landscape of mountains, forests, high plains, mesas, canyons, plateaus, rivers. Denver is the capital and the most populous city of Colorado, residents of the state are properly known as Coloradans, although the term Coloradoan has been used archaically and lives on in the title of Fort Collins newspaper, the Coloradoan. Colorado, Wyoming and Utah are the states which have boundaries defined solely by lines of latitude and longitude. The summit of Mount Elbert at 14,440 feet elevation in Lake County is the highest point in Colorado, Colorado is the only U. S. state that lies entirely above 1,000 meters elevation. The point where the Arikaree River flows out of Yuma County, Colorado and this point, which holds the distinction of being the highest low elevation point of any state, is higher than the high elevation points of 18 states and the District of Columbia. A little less than one half of the area of Colorado is flat, East of the Rocky Mountains are the Colorado Eastern Plains of the High Plains, the section of the Great Plains within Nebraska at elevations ranging from roughly 3,350 to 7,500 feet. The Colorado plains were mostly prairies, but they have many patches of forests, buttes. Eastern Colorado is presently covered in farmland and rangeland, along with small farming villages. Precipitation is fair, averaging from 15 to 25 inches annually, corn, wheat, hay, soybeans, and oats are all typical crops, and most of the villages and towns in this region boast both a water tower and a grain elevator. Irrigation water is available from the South Platte, the Arkansas River, and a few other streams, however, heavy use of ground water from wells for irrigation has caused underground water reserves to decline. As well as agriculture, eastern Colorado hosts considerable livestock, such as cattle ranches. Roughly 70% of Colorados population resides along the edge of the Rocky Mountains in the Front Range Urban Corridor between Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Pueblo, Colorado. This region is protected from prevailing storms that blow in from the Pacific Ocean region by the high Rockies in the middle of Colorado. The Front Range includes Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins, Loveland, Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Greeley and other townships, on the other side of the Rockies, the significant population centers in Western Colorado are the cities of Grand Junction, Durango, and Montrose
Colorado
–
The
Elk Mountains near
Aspen, Colorado
Colorado
–
Flag
Colorado
–
Mountains and lakes near
Breckenridge, Colorado
Colorado
–
A view of the arid high plains in Southeastern Colorado
12.
United States
–
Forty-eight of the fifty states and the federal district are contiguous and located in North America between Canada and Mexico. The state of Alaska is in the northwest corner of North America, bordered by Canada to the east, the state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific Ocean. The U. S. territories are scattered about the Pacific Ocean, the geography, climate and wildlife of the country are extremely diverse. At 3.8 million square miles and with over 324 million people, the United States is the worlds third- or fourth-largest country by area, third-largest by land area. It is one of the worlds most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, paleo-Indians migrated from Asia to the North American mainland at least 15,000 years ago. European colonization began in the 16th century, the United States emerged from 13 British colonies along the East Coast. Numerous disputes between Great Britain and the following the Seven Years War led to the American Revolution. On July 4,1776, during the course of the American Revolutionary War, the war ended in 1783 with recognition of the independence of the United States by Great Britain, representing the first successful war of independence against a European power. The current constitution was adopted in 1788, after the Articles of Confederation, the first ten amendments, collectively named the Bill of Rights, were ratified in 1791 and designed to guarantee many fundamental civil liberties. During the second half of the 19th century, the American Civil War led to the end of slavery in the country. By the end of century, the United States extended into the Pacific Ocean. The Spanish–American War and World War I confirmed the status as a global military power. The end of the Cold War and the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 left the United States as the sole superpower. The U. S. is a member of the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund, Organization of American States. The United States is a developed country, with the worlds largest economy by nominal GDP. It ranks highly in several measures of performance, including average wage, human development, per capita GDP. While the U. S. economy is considered post-industrial, characterized by the dominance of services and knowledge economy, the United States is a prominent political and cultural force internationally, and a leader in scientific research and technological innovations. In 1507, the German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller produced a map on which he named the lands of the Western Hemisphere America after the Italian explorer and cartographer Amerigo Vespucci
United States
–
Native Americans meeting with Europeans, 1764
United States
–
Flag
United States
–
The signing of the
Mayflower Compact, 1620.
United States
–
The
Declaration of Independence: the
Committee of Five presenting their draft to the
Second Continental Congress in 1776
13.
Continental Divide
–
The endpoints where a continental divide meets the coast are not always definite, because the exact border between adjacent bodies of water is usually not clearly defined. The International Hydrographic Organizations publication Limits of Oceans and Seas defines exact boundaries of oceans, where a continental divide meets an endorheic basin, such as the Great Divide Basin of Wyoming, the continental divide splits and encircles the basin. In Africa, the most significant continental divide is the Congo-Nile Divide between the watersheds of the Nile and the Congo, passing through the area of the African Great Lakes. Between the Congo and the Sahara, a vast area drains into the endorheic Lake Chad, the interior of Antarctica receives very little precipitation, and that in the form of snow, and the continent is surrounded by the Southern Ocean. Therefore, Antarctica is not generally considered to have a continental divide, however, Australia has fewer distinct ocean boundaries and fewer prominent mountain ranges, which makes it hard to clearly and precisely define any one divide. Much of the interior of the continent drains into the endorheic Lake Eyre Basin, eurasia has various divides, depending on the definition of ocean. It was of significance in Canadian history because it marked the boundary of Ruperts Land. The Continental Divide of the Americas, also called the Great Divide, from there, it follows the crest of Mexicos Sierra Madre Occidental and extends to the tip of South America. It is crossed by the Panama Canal and by the two outlets of Isa Lake in Yellowstone National Park, the Eastern Continental Divide separates the watershed of the Gulf of Mexico from the Atlantic Ocean. It runs from the Twin Tiers of New York and Pennsylvania along the Appalachian Mountains to the tip of Florida, the city of Atlanta sits atop this divide. The Northern Divide, or Laurentian Divide, separates the watershed of the Atlantic Ocean from that of Hudson Bay, the divide traverses very flat terrain, especially in North Dakota, causing many travelers to believe the sign marking the divide is a joke. The Saint Lawrence River Divide separates the Great Lakes Basin from the rest of the Atlantic Ocean watershed, two canals cross the divide, The Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal crosses the Chicago Portage and connects Lake Michigan to the Mississippi River watershed. The Erie Canal connects Lake Erie to the Hudson River watershed, historically there were additional canals, e. g. the Ohio and Erie Canal, but most of these are no longer in operation. These lakes in Patagonia are moraine-dammed streams that used to drain to the Atlantic rather than the Pacific before the Pleistocene glaciations, borders of the continents Boundary Treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina nationalatlas. gov Continental Divides in North Dakota and North America by Mark A. Gonzalez. Excellent article on Americas other continental divides, map of drainage basins in Canada
Continental Divide
–
Principal
hydrological divides of
North America.
14.
Aspen, Colorado
–
Aspen is the Home Rule Municipality that is the county seat and the most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. Its population was 6,658 at the 2010 United States Census, founded as a mining camp during the Colorado Silver Boom and later named Aspen because of the abundance of aspen trees in the area, the city boomed during the 1880s, its first decade of existence. In the late 20th century, the city became a retreat for celebrities. Gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson worked out of a downtown hotel, singer John Denver wrote two songs about Aspen after settling there. Today the musicians and movie stars have been joined by corporate executives, as a result of this influx of wealth, Aspen boasts some of the most expensive real estate prices in the United States and many middle-class residents can no longer afford to live there. It remains a popular tourist destination, with outdoor recreation in the surrounding White River National Forest serving as a complement to the four ski areas in the vicinity. Production expanded due to the passage of the Sherman Silver Purchase Act of 1890, by 1893, Aspen had banks, a hospital, a police department, two theaters, an opera house and electric lights. Economic collapse came with the Panic of 1893, when President Cleveland called a session of Congress. Within weeks, many of the Aspen mines were closed and thousands of miners were put out of work, eventually, after wage cuts, mining revived somewhat, but production declined and by the 1930 census only 705 residents remained. Remaining, however, were fine stocks of old buildings and residences. Aspens development as a ski resort first flickered in the 1930s when investors conceived of a ski area, friedl Pfeifer, a member of the 10th Mountain Division who had trained in the area, returned to the area and linked up with industrialist Walter Paepcke and his wife Elizabeth. The Aspen Skiing Corporation was founded in 1946 and the city became a well-known resort. Paepcke also played an important role in bringing the Goethe Bicentennial Convocation to Aspen in 1949, Aspen was now on the path to becoming an internationally known ski resort and cultural center, home of the Aspen Music Festival and School. The area would continue to grow with the development of three ski areas, Buttermilk, Aspen Highlands, and Snowmass. In 1977, notorious serial killer Ted Bundy, while in the Pitkin County Courthouse in Aspen for a hearing, jumped from a second-story window. He remained free for six days, hiding out on Aspen Mountain, in 1977, Aspen was thoroughly photographed for the Aspen Movie Map project funded by the U. S. Department of Defense. The Movie Map is one of the earliest examples of virtual reality software, Aspen is notable as the smallest radio market tracked by Arbitron, ranked at #302. Aspen is a Home Rule Municipality under Colorado law, an elected council of four members and the mayor supervise the citys operations, managed on a day-to-day basis by the city manager, an appointed official who serves at their pleasure
Aspen, Colorado
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View south along Galena Street in downtown Aspen, 2010. The Aspen Mountain ski area is in the background.
Aspen, Colorado
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Silver wire specimens from the historic Mollie Gibson Mine near Aspen
Aspen, Colorado
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Aspen Lumber Company, 1882
Aspen, Colorado
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Aspen in 1962
15.
Roaring Fork River
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Roaring Fork River is a tributary of the Colorado River, approximately 70 miles long, in west central Colorado in the United States. It rises in the Sawatch Range in eastern Pitkin County, on the west side of Independence Pass on the continental divide and it flows northwest past Aspen, Woody Creek, and Snowmass. It receives the Fryingpan River at Basalt,1.5 miles below Carbondale, it receives the Crystal River from the south. It joins the Colorado in Glenwood Springs, the entire area that drains into the Roaring Fork River is known as the Roaring Fork Watershed. This area is 1,451 square miles and about the size as the state of Rhode Island. The river flows through canyons along most of its route and is a destination for recreation whitewater rafting. The river supplies water through the Sawatch Range to the Twin Lakes Reservoir via the Twin Lakes Tunnel, Roaring Fork Conservancy is the watershed conservation organization for the Roaring Fork River and its tributaries. The Roaring Fork is a swift, deep, powerful river with very clear water and it is navigable by small craft throughout most of its length to its confluence with the Colorado. The mean annual flow is 1,206 cu ft/s, List of rivers of Colorado List of tributaries of the Colorado River Roaring Fork Watershed Roaring Fork Conservancy Lodge on the Roaring Fork Roaring Fork Anglers
Roaring Fork River
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Hardwick Bridge crossing the Roaring Fork River, between Carbondale and Glenwood Springs
Roaring Fork River
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The Roaring Fork in winter as seen from a backyard in
Woody Creek, Colorado.
Roaring Fork River
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Major cities
Roaring Fork River
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Jurisdictions
16.
Crystal River (Colorado)
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The Crystal River is a tributary of the Roaring Fork River, approximately 40 mi long, in western Colorado in the United States. It drains a valley, called the Valley of the Coal Miners. It rises in northern Gunnison County in the Elk Mountains on the side of Schofield Pass, passing through the ghost town of Crystal City. It then flows north past Marble, then into Pitkin County past Redstone and it joins the Roaring Fork below Carbondale. State Highway 133 follows the river much of its route north of Marble. From Crystal City to Marble the river flows through the Crystal River Canyon, a valley with numerous snowslide runs, rockfalls. A four-wheel-drive jeep tour is operated out of Marble, but only operates during the summer when the road is not blocked by snow, mud, List of rivers of Colorado List of tributaries of the Colorado River Neal, Roger
Crystal River (Colorado)
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Crystal River at Redstone, with Chair Mountain in distance
Crystal River (Colorado)
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Major cities
17.
Sawatch Range
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The range is oriented along a northwest-southeast axis, extending approximately 80 miles from 39°37′36″N 106°32′13″W in the north to 38°5′51″N 106°3′48″W in the south. The range contains 15 peaks topping 14,000 feet, also known as 14ers, the range forms a portion of the Continental Divide, and its eastern flanks are drained by the headwaters of the Arkansas River. The western side of the feeds the headwaters of the Roaring Fork River, the Eagle River. The Sawatch mountains in general are high, massive, and relatively gentle in contour, while some peaks are rugged enough to require technical climbing, most can be climbed by a simple, yet arduous hike. Notable summits include Mount Elbert, Mount Massive, La Plata Peak, Mount of the Holy Cross, state Highway 82 traverses the range at Independence Pass. It is also traversed by Cottonwood Pass, which connects the town of Buena Vista with Gunnison County. Both Independence Pass and Cottonwood Pass are over 12,000 feet, hagerman Pass is another pass to the north, connecting the Arkansas Headwaters near Leadville with the upper valley of the Fryingpan River. Hagerman pass is traversable with four-wheel drive vehicles and on foot during summer, the range contains numerous hiking trails within the San Isabel National Forest and White River National Forest. Southern Rocky Mountains Mountain ranges of Colorado Collegiate Peaks Sawatch Range @ Peakbagger Sawatch Range @ 14ers. com Sawatch Range @ summitpost. org Mt. Aetna @ summitpost. org
Sawatch Range
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Sawatch Range seen from
Monarch Pass
Sawatch Range
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Mt. Aetna (13,746 feet (4,190 m)) and Taylor Mtn.
Sawatch Range
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Mount Elbert the highest peak in the Rocky Mountains.
Sawatch Range
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Sawatch Range near
Buena Vista, Colorado.
18.
West Elk Mountains
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The West Elk Mountains are a high mountain range in the west-central part of the U. S. state of Colorado. They lie primarily within the Gunnison National Forest, and part of the range is protected as the West Elk Wilderness, the range is primarily located in Gunnison County, with small parts in eastern Delta and Montrose counties. The West Elks are surrounded by tributaries of the Gunnison River, the range is bounded on the north by the North Fork of the Gunnison and on the east by the East River, another tributary of the Gunnison. On the south and west it is contiguous with Black Mesa and Fruitland Mesa, on the northeast it is contiguous with the Elk Mountains, being separated from them by Anthracite Creek and Coal Creek. Nearby towns include Gunnison, Paonia, and the ski resort of Crested Butte, West Elk Mountains on peakbagger. com Geology of the Elk Mountains U. S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System, West Elk Mountains West Elk Mountains on TopoQuest
West Elk Mountains
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West Elk Mountains from
McClure Pass
19.
White River National Forest
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White River National Forest is a National Forest in northwest Colorado. It is named after the White River that passes through its northern section and it is the most visited National Forest in the United States, primarily from users of the twelve ski areas within its boundaries. In descending order of area it is located in parts of Eagle, Pitkin, Garfield, Summit, Rio Blanco, Mesa, Gunnison, Routt. The forest contains 1,900 mi. of forest system roads,2,500 mi of trails, and the Dillon, Green Mountain, Ruedi, the forest is managed from Forest Service offices in Glenwood Springs. There are local district offices in Aspen, Carbondale, Eagle, Meeker, Minturn, Rifle. Five of them extend into neighboring National Forests, big Game Hunters Guide to Colorado. Second ed. Wilderness Adventures Press,2008, Forest Plan Focus, White River National Forest, August 1997. Graves, Henry S. Vacation days in Colorados national forests
White River National Forest
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The
Maroon Bells in White River National Forest
20.
Gunnison National Forest
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The Gunnison National Forest is a U. S. National Forest covering 1,672,136 acres in Mesa, Gunnison, Hinsdale and Saguache Counties in Western part of the U. S. state of Colorado. It lies in parts of five counties, in descending order of land area within the forest they are Gunnison, Saguache, Hinsdale, Delta, and Montrose counties. It shares the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness with the White River and San Isabel National Forests, the forest was created by Theodore Roosevelt on June 13,1905 as the Cochetopa Forest Reserve, and named after explorer John W. Gunnison. Today it is administered jointly with the Grand Mesa and Uncompahgre National Forests from offices in Delta, there are local ranger district offices located in Gunnison and Paonia. There are seven designated wilderness areas lying within Gunnison National Forest that are part of the National Wilderness Preservation System. Five of them lie partially in neighboring National Forests or on land under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Land Management
Gunnison National Forest
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Copper Lake Trail, near Crested Butte in Gunnison National Forest
21.
Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness
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The Maroon Bells–Snowmass Wilderness is a U. S. Wilderness Area located in the Elk Mountains of central Colorado, the 181, 535-acre wilderness was established in 1980 in the Gunnison and White River national forests. Within its boundaries are 100 miles of trails,6 of Colorados fourteeners and 9 passes over 12,000 feet, the wilderness is named after the two peaks known as the Maroon Bells as well as Snowmass Mountain
Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness
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The
Maroon Bells
22.
Fourteeners
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In the mountaineering parlance of the Western United States, a fourteener is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least 14,000 feet. Colorado has the majority of fourteeners in the contiguous United States, followed by California, climbing all of Colorados fourteeners is a popular pastime among peak baggers, another popular target is climbing all of the fourteeners in the contiguous United States. Various ski mountaineers have completed ski descents of all the Colorado fourteeners, the summit of a mountain or hill may be measured in three principal ways, The topographic elevation of a summit measures the height of the summit above a geodetic sea level. The topographic prominence of a summit is a measure of how high the summit rises above its surroundings, the topographic isolation of a summit measures how far the summit lies from its nearest point of equal elevation. Not all summits over 14,000 feet qualify as fourteeners, summits which qualify are those considered by mountaineers to be independent. Objective standards for independence include topographic prominence and isolation, or a combination of the two, however, fourteener lists do not always consistently use such objective rules. A rule commonly used by mountaineers in the contiguous United States is that a peak must have at least 300 feet of prominence to qualify, by this rule, Colorado has 53 fourteeners, California has 12, and Washington has two. According to the Mountaineering Club of Alaska, it is standard in Alaska to use a 500-foot prominence rule rather than a 300-foot rule, by this rule, Alaska has at least 21 peaks over 14,000 feet and its 12 highest peaks exceed 15,000 feet. The following table lists the 96 mountain peaks of the United States with at least 14,000 feet of topographic elevation, of these 96 fourteeners,53 rise in Colorado,29 in Alaska,12 in California, and two in Washington. The 22 highest fourteeners all rise in Alaska, the table above uses a minimum topographic prominence criterion of 300 feet and includes 97 peaks. The number of peaks included depends upon the minimum topographic prominence criterion, a criterion of 100 meters includes 90 peaks,500 feet includes 77 peaks,1000 feet includes 63 peaks, and 500 meters includes 46 peaks. The following U. S. summits have 14,000 feet of elevation and it is unclear why this became included on some fourteener lists. Prominence = 195–235 feet. com Peakbagger. com Peaklist. org Peakware. com Summitpost. org
Fourteeners
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The
Maroon Bells: Maroon Peak (14,156 feet) and North Maroon Peak (14,014 feet). They are some of the most photographed peaks in Colorado and are among the most difficult "Fourteeners" to summit.
Fourteeners
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Denali (North Peak),
Alaska
Fourteeners
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Mount Saint Elias,
Alaska
Fourteeners
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Mount Foraker,
Alaska
23.
Capitol Peak (Colorado)
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Capitol Peak is a high and prominent mountain summit in the Elk Mountains range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. Capitol Peak lies on the ridge connecting the heart of the Elk Mountains with Mount Sopris to the northwest. Capitol Peak is notable for its impressive vertical relief, rising nearly 9,000 feet above the Roaring Fork Valley, Capitol Peak is one of the most difficult of Colorados fourteeners to climb. The only non-technical route, the Northeast Ridge, requires crossing the famously exposed Knife Edge, fatalities have occurred on this route. Other routes require technical climbing, for example, the Northwest Buttress Route. These routes have significant rockfall danger due to a deal of loose rock, however. A Climbing Guide to Colorados Fourteeners, photo Journal of a trip up Snowmass Mountain and Capitol Peak Capitol Peak. Archived from the original on 2008-05-09
Capitol Peak (Colorado)
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Capitol Peak, from Capitol Lake
Capitol Peak (Colorado)
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Capitol Peak Knife Edge
24.
Snowmass Mountain
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Snowmass Mountain is a fourteen thousand foot mountain in the U. S. state of Colorado and the thirty-fourth highest mountain peak in the state. Snowmass Mountain is named for the large snowfield that lies on its eastern slopes, Hagerman Peak sits between Snowmass Mountain and Snowmass Peak and is also often mistaken for Snowmass Mountain. The route most commonly used to climb Snowmass Mountain is the Snowmass Creek approach, the route to the summit starts at Snowmass Lake, which is itself an 8. 1-mile hike up Snowmass Creek from the parking area. Most people hike to the lake, camp the night and then proceed to the top and this route is recommended in the spring and early summer when the snowfield still covers much of the route, however an ice axe is recommended for travel on the snowfield. Later in the summer there is more travel on talus and more danger from rockfall, an alternative in snow-free conditions is to hike up to the saddle between the peak and Hagerman Peak. From that point there are climbers trails which proceed on the side of the ridge to the summit. A different and much less used route climbs the west side of Snowmass Mountain from Geneva Lake, Snowmass Mountain Snowmass Peak List of mountain peaks of Colorado List of Colorado fourteeners Snowmass Mountain on 14ers. com Snowmass Mountain. Photo Journal from a trip up Snowmass Mountain and on to Capitol Peak Aspen Ski & Snow Report
Snowmass Mountain
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Snowmass Mountain, July 2007
Snowmass Mountain
25.
Pyramid Peak (Colorado)
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Pyramid Peak is a fourteen thousand foot mountain in the U. S. state of Colorado. It is the 47th highest mountain peak in Colorado, and 78th highest peak in the United States and it is located in the Elk Mountains in southeastern Pitkin County, approximately 12 miles southwest of Aspen. The summit somewhat resembles a square pyramid and is visible from the Roaring Fork River valley north of Aspen along the canyon of Maroon Creek. Like many of the peaks in the Elks, Pyramid Peak is quite steep, especially compared to more gentle fourteeners such as Mount Elbert. For example, the summit rises 4,000 feet above Crater Lake to the northwest in only 1.2 miles. The standard climbing routes on Pyramid Peak are the northeast and northwest ridges and these routes involve difficult route finding, high exposure, and a great deal of loose rock. Hence they are two of the most difficult and dangerous of all of the routes on the Colorado fourteeners. List of mountain peaks of Colorado List of Colorado fourteeners Pyramid Peak
Pyramid Peak (Colorado)
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Pyramid Peak as seen from
Maroon Peak in 2009
26.
Alpinism
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The term mountaineering describes the sport of mountain climbing, including ski mountaineering. Hiking in the mountains can also be a form of mountaineering when it involves scrambling, or short stretches of the more basic grades of rock climbing. All require experience, athletic ability, and technical knowledge to maintain safety, mountaineering is often called Alpinism, especially in European languages, which implies climbing with difficulty such high and often snow and ice-covered mountains as the Alps. A mountaineer with such great skill is called an Alpinist, historically, many cultures have harbored superstitions about mountains, which they often regarded as sacred due to their proximity with heaven, such as Mount Olympus for the Ancient Greeks. In 1492 Antoine de Ville, lord of Domjulien and Beaupré, was the first to ascend the Mont Aiguille, in France, with a team, using ladders. It appears to be the first recorded climb of any technical difficulty, in 1573 Francesco De Marchi and Francesco Di Domenico ascended Corno Grande, the highest peak in the Apennine Mountains. During the Enlightenment, as a product of the new spirit of curiosity for the natural world, in 1741 Richard Pococke and William Windham made a historic visit to Chamonix. By the early 19th century many of the peaks were reached, including the Grossglockner in 1800, the Ortler in 1804, the Jungfrau in 1811, the Finsteraarhorn in 1812. In 1808 Marie Paradis became the first female to climb Mont Blanc and this inaugurated what became known as the Golden age of alpinism, with the first mountaineering club - the Alpine Club - being founded in 1857. Well-known guides of the era include Christian Almer, Jakob Anderegg, Melchior Anderegg, J. J. Bennen, Michel Croz, in the early years of the golden age, scientific pursuits were intermixed with the sport, such as by the physicist John Tyndall. In the later years, it shifted to a more competitive orientation as pure sportsmen came to dominate the London-based Alpine Club and this ascent is generally regarded as marking the end of the mountaineering golden age. By this point the sport of mountaineering had largely reached its modern form, with a body of professional guides, equipment, mountaineering in the Americas became popular in the 1800s. In North America, Pikes Peak in the Colorado Rockies was first climbed by Edwin James, though lower than Pikes Peak, the heavily glaciated Fremont Peak in Wyoming was thought to be the tallest mountain in the Rockies when it was first climbed by John C. Frémont and two others in 1842, pico de Orizaba, the tallest peak in Mexico and third tallest in North America, was first climbed by U. S. military personnel which included William F. Raynolds and a half dozen other climbers in 1848. Heavily glaciated and more technical climbs in North American were not achieved until the late 19th, in 1897 Mount Saint Elias on the Alaska-Yukon border was summitted by the Duke of the Abruzzi and party. But it was not until 1913 that Mount Mckinley, the tallest peak in North America was successfully climbed by Hudson Stuck, Mount Logan, the tallest peak in Canada was first summitted by a half dozen climbers in 1925 in an expedition that took more than two months. In 1879-1880 the exploration of the highest Andes in South America began when English mountaineer Edward Whymper climbed Chimborazo, the summit of Aconcagua was finally reached on January 14,1897 by Swiss mountaineer Matthias Zurbriggen during an expedition led by Edward FitzGerald that began in December 1896. The Andes of Bolivia were first explored by Sir William Martin Conway in 1898 and it took until the late 19th century for European explorers to penetrate Africa
Alpinism
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Climber taking the final few steps onto the 6,160 m (20,210 ft) summit of
Imja Tse (Island Peak) in
Nepal, 2004
Alpinism
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An open
crevasse
Alpinism
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Picture of a mountaineer by Josef Feid Anastasius Grün
Alpinism
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1871 climbing expedition, including members of the
Walker family,
Melchior Anderegg and
Adolphus Warburton Moore.
27.
Mount Sopris
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Mount Sopris is a twin-summit mountain in the northwestern Elk Mountains range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. Mount Sopris is located in western Pitkin County, south of Carbondale and southwest of the confluence of the Crystal, Mount Sopris is notable for having two summits, East Sopris and West Sopris, that are one-half mile apart and have the same elevation of 12,965 feet. It is named for Richard Sopris, a mayor of Denver. In 2011 J. P. McDaniels petitioned to rename East Sopris Mount John Denver after the Colorado singer, a local poll in Aspen and Carbondale said 74 percent of the respondents were against the proposal. Mount Sopris is not a volcano, but it is possible that an ancient volcano sat above it, due to subsequent continued erosion, any evidence is now gone. In either case, the rock makes up Sopris never reached the surface, cooling and crystallizing in situ. Nearby prominent peaks Mount Gunnison and Crested Butte are believed to have formed similarly, Mount Sopris dominates the skyline of Carbondale and the lower Roaring Fork Valley, serving as an unofficial symbol of the area. It is prominently visible from State Highway 82 in the vicinity of Carbondale, in terms of local relief, it is one of the largest peaks in the state of Colorado. For example, West Sopris rises 6,400 ft above the valley to the west in only 2.7 mi, in fact a vertical rise of over 6,000 feet in less than 3 miles is rare and impressive anywhere in the contiguous United States. The Mount Sopris Trail ascends to East Sopris via its east ridge and it starts near Dinkle Lake, on the northeast side of the mountain, and passes between the two Thomas Lakes just before reaching timberline. The ascent involves about 4,300 ft of vertical gain and 12 mi of hiking, it is a trail hike. Mount Sopris on Summitpost, an excellent article with many further links Rock Glacier on Mount Sopris at NASA Earth Observatory
Mount Sopris
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Mount Sopris as viewed from
State Highway 82.
Mount Sopris
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Looking North West from Mt. Sopris
28.
Carbondale, Colorado
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The Town of Carbondale is a Home Rule Municipality in Garfield County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 6427 at the 2010 United States Census, the town is located in the Roaring Fork Valley, downstream from Aspen and upstream from the mouth of the Roaring Fork River at Glenwood Springs. The town proper sits on the bank of the river. Carbondales horizon is dominated by the 12,953 ft tall Mount Sopris several miles to the south of town, according to the United States Census Bureau, Carbondale has a total area of 2.0 square miles, all of it land. As of the census of 2000, there were 5,196 people,1,744 households, the population density was 2,583.8 people per square mile. There were 1,821 housing units at a density of 905.5 per square mile. The racial makeup of the town was 84. 28% White,0. 65% African American,0. 54% Native American,0. 69% Asian,0. 02% Pacific Islander,11. 80% from other races, and 2. 02% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 32. 12% of the population,20. 3% of all households were made up of individuals and 3. 4% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.89 and the family size was 3.32. In the town, the population was out with 26. 1% under the age of 18,11. 7% from 18 to 24,37. 4% from 25 to 44,18. 7% from 45 to 64. The median age was 31 years, for every 100 females there were 110.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 107.7 males, the median income for a household in the town was $52,429, and the median income for a family was $55,726. Males had an income of $33,025 versus $24,786 for females. The per capita income for the town was $20,383, about 9. 8% of families and 12. 2% of the population were below the poverty line, including 13. 0% of those under age 18 and 5. 0% of those age 65 or over. Carbondale takes its name from Carbondale, Pennsylvania, hometown of some of Carbondales early settlers, Carbondales economy was initially agriculturally based. Farmers and ranchers capitalized on open lands around Carbondale to supply food for miners in nearby Aspen, then a center of silver mining activity. Early in the 20th century, before the rise of agriculture in Idaho. The legacy lives on in Potato Day, an annual fall parade, despite the non-geologic origins of the towns name, the Carbondale area does in fact possess significant coal resources
Carbondale, Colorado
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Mount Sopris, south of town, as viewed from Red Hill/Mushroom Rock
Carbondale, Colorado
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Major cities
29.
Snowmass Peak
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Snowmass Peak in the U. S. state of Colorado dominates the view from Snowmass Lake. It is often mistaken for Snowmass Mountain, the thirty-fourth highest mountain peak in the state, Snowmass Peak is not really a peak but the lower end of Hagerman Peaks east ridge. Natural forced perspective causes the illusion that Snowmass Peak is higher than Hagerman Peak though it is actually 221 ft shorter than Hagermans summit. This illusion combined with its striking rise behind Snowmass Lake justifies it being a point on USGS topographical maps. It is located in the Elk Mountains, within the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness of the White River National Forest and it lies along the border between Pitkin and Gunnison counties, west of Aspen and southwest of the town of Snowmass Village. The route used to climb Snowmass Peak is the Trail Rider Pass trail to Hagerman Peak and this trail can be accessed by Snowmass Creek approach off Divide Road Snowmass Village or the Geneva Lake trail. It is possible to reach the summit by horse between Hagerman Peak and Snowmass Mountain, but is more difficult
Snowmass Peak
–
Snowmass Peak rises up out of Snowmass Lake
30.
Treasure Mountain (Colorado)
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Treasure Mountain, elevation 13,535 ft, is a summit in the Elk Mountains of western Colorado. The mountain is in the Raggeds Wilderness southeast of Marble, the massif has been the site of marble mining and a legend of lost French gold. Treasure Mountain forms a massif with Treasury Mountain, elevation 13,462 feet. Another Treasure Mountain, el.11,834 feet is located in Mineral County, the Ruby Range extends southward from Treasury Mountain forming the east boundary of the Raggeds Wilderness. The Yule Lakes are a series of lakes situated on the slopes which drain into Yule Creek. The watershed is part of Crystal River basin which drains the slopes of Treasure Mountain and is the northeastern boundary of Raggeds Wilderness. Yule Pass, south of Treasury Mountain separates the Raggeds Wilderness of the Sopris Ranger District from the Gunnison Ranger District, Yule Pass is to the east of the headwaters of Yule Creek. The Colorado Yule marble comes from the Leadville Limestone of Mississippian age quarried near the mountain and it was formed by contact metamorphism in the Tertiary period following the intrusion and uplift of nearby granitic Treasure Mountain dome. Yule marble was used in the building of the Lincoln Memorial, the Yule marble quarry is at an elevation of 9,300 ft on the west side of Treasure Mountain along Yule Creek. The original name of the peak was Citadel Mountain, the current name came from an ill-fated French mining expedition described in folklore documented in the 1930s and 1940s. The folklore states that the expedition was organized in the late 1700s by Napoleon Bonaparte, the expedition was reported to have consisted of 300 men and 450 horses. They left New Orleans and traveled through Leavenworth, Kansas en route to the Rocky Mountains, the folklore claims that a large amount of gold was discovered and amassed by the expedition near Wolf Creek Pass. The local Native Americans were reportedly friendly, but relations deteriorated. In the folklore, the French buried gold and escaped the area, one survivor by the name of Le Blanc made it back to Kansas. He was the historian and was reported to have made two maps of the hidden treasure. A later expedition failed to find the treasure, william Yule, many years later, claimed to possess a copy of the original map and explored the area south and west of the mountain. The mountain was named after the legend of the missing treasure, List of mountain peaks of North America List of mountain peaks of the United States List of mountain peaks of Colorado
Treasure Mountain (Colorado)
–
Treasure Mountain in the background
31.
Crested Butte
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Crested Butte is a prominent mountain summit in the West Elk Mountains range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The 12, 168-foot peak is located in Gunnison National Forest,2.1 miles northeast by east of the Town of Crested Butte in Gunnison County, Colorado, ski lifts and runs of the Crested Butte Mountain Resort occupy the north side of the mountain. The Köppen Climate Classification subtype for Crested Butte is Dfc which is continental subarctic and this climate type is dominated by the winter season with a long, bitterly cold period of minimal daylight hours, heavy snowfall and low humidity. The annual snowfall average is 198.4 inches with January recording the highest average snowfall at 40 inches, july is the warmest month with an average temperature of 57.2 °F while January is the coldest month with an average temperature of 11.8 °F. The average temperature for the year is 34.7 °F
Crested Butte
–
Crested Butte, Colorado. Photo by Chris Segal
32.
Crested Butte, Colorado
–
Crested Butte is a home rule municipality in Gunnison County, Colorado, United States. The town population was 1,487 at the 2010 United States Census, the former coal mining town is now called the last great Colorado ski town. Crested Butte is a destination for skiing, mountain biking, the Colorado General Assembly has designated Crested Butte the Wildflower Capital of Colorado. The East River Valley where Crested Butte is located was used as a summer residence by the Ute people. However, they were displaced when European-Americans first entered the area. The first whites to explore the valley were beaver trappers, shortly followed by surveyors, captain John Gunnison, after who Gunnison County is named, was one of the early explorers to enter the area. In the 1860s and 1870s coal and silver began to open in the surrounding area. However, when mining began to decline, many of these towns failed. Crested Butte, however, was in a position to survive because it served as a supply town to the surrounding area. Another industry that served to support Crested Butte was ranching, when the coal mines closed, the town began to shrink, and eventually the local high school was closed. Students had to travel to Gunnison to go to high school, the town did not revive until a ski area was built on Crested Butte Mountain in the 1960s. From the 1960s to 1990, the Crested Butte public school only facilitated K-5 students, while 6th grade, in 1990 Crested Butte offered middle school in the railroad depot building. In 1992 a new school was completed which allowed the public school to facilitate grades K through 8. Finally in 1997, a new facility for the Crested Butte Community School was completed and this included the addition of a public high school so that the school now serves students in grades K-12. In 1993 the Crested Butte Academy opened in Crested Butte, bringing a high school into town. However, on 9 July 2008, the academy was closed due to financial difficulties that had plagued its entire existence. Since the 1970s, several companies have attempted to mine molybdenum on Mount Emmons near Crested Butte, in 1977 W Mitchell was elected mayor of Crested Butte and led a campaign which stopped AMAX from building a billion-dollar molybdenum mine on Mount Emmons. Because of his battle against the environmental impact, Mitchell is known as the man who saved a mountain
Crested Butte, Colorado
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Old City Hall, built 1883. Photo:
Historic American Buildings Survey
Crested Butte, Colorado
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Surrounding mountains
Crested Butte, Colorado
–
The town of Crested Butte, as viewed from the Silver Queen chairlift at
Crested Butte Mountain Resort.
Crested Butte, Colorado
–
Crested Butte Mountain, behind the town of Crested Butte. To the left is the mountain resort's base area village.
33.
Ski area
–
A ski resort is a resort developed for skiing, snowboarding, and other winter sports. In Europe, most ski resorts are towns or villages in or adjacent to a ski area – a mountainous area with pistes, ski trails, the ski industry has identified advancing generations of ski resorts, First generation Developed around a well-established summer resort or village. Second generation Created from a non-tourist village or pasture, third generation or integrated Designed from scratch on virgin territory to be a purpose-built ski resort, all the amenities and services nearby. Fourth generation or village resorts Created from virgin territory or around an existing village, the term ski station is also used, particularly in Europe, for a skiing facility which is not located in or near a town or village. A ski resort which is open for summer activities is often referred to as a mountain resort. Ski areas have marked paths for skiing known as runs, trails or pistes, Ski areas typically have one or more chairlifts for moving skiers rapidly to the top of hills, and to interconnect the various trails. Rope tows can also be used on short slopes, larger ski areas may use gondolas or aerial trams for transportation across longer distances within the ski area. Ski areas usually have at least a basic first aid facility, the ski patrol is usually responsible for rule enforcement, marking hazards, closing individual runs, and removing dangerous participants from the area. Some ski resorts offer lodging options on the slopes themselves, with ski-in, après-ski is a term for entertainment, nightlife or social events that occur specifically at ski resorts. These add to the enjoyment of resort-goers and provide something to do besides skiing and snowboarding, the culture originated in the Alps, where it is most popular and where skiers often stop at bars on their last run of the day while still wearing all their ski gear. People that browse ski resort & hotel websites will commonly seek mention of the quality of après-ski in the area and it is therefore seen as an important factor for skiers to consider before booking a holiday. The concept is similar to the hole in golf. The process of development have progressed since the birth of the skiing industry. Amenities and infrastructure such as buildings, ski-lifts, gondolas, access roads, parking lots. In recent years, the use of snow cannons have increased due to the fall in the volume of snow, in order to obtain good quality snow, dust or bacteria is mixed with the water in the process of snow making to form better snowflakes. Not only that the manufacture of artificial snow is costly and uses large amounts of water, snow cannons redistributes a large amount of water unnaturally over the land and freezes the ground vegetation late into spring, preventing growth and leaving pistes bare. With enough amount of water, and the likelihood of landslides and avalanches would be drastically higher. The required space for hotels, flats and secondary residences has increased the amount of space occupied by roads, while a large amount of people requires special water, sewage and electricity systems, a great deal of construction work is needed
Ski area
–
Ski resort
Jasná in
Slovakia
Ski area
–
Cerro Catedral Ski Resort,
Argentina
Ski area
–
El Colorado, Chile
Ski area
–
Małe Ciche,
Poland
34.
McClure Pass
–
McClure Pass is a high mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of western Colorado in the United States. The pass is located along the boundary between Pitkin and Gunnison counties, in a gap at the side of the Elk Mountains south of Redstone. It separates the headwaters of the Crystal River with the headwaters of the North Fork Gunnison River, the pass is traversed by State Highway 133 between Carbondale and Paonia, providing the direct route between the Roaring Fork Valley and the North Fork Valley. The pass is not especially high and is open year round. The approaches are fairly steep on each side, with an 8% grade, the approach is smooth on the south side, as the road overlooks Muddy Creek above Paonia State Park. The approach on the side has one large switchback overlooking the valley containing the town of Redstone
McClure Pass
–
View north from the summit of McClure Pass towards the Elk Mountains near Marble
35.
Colorado Silver Boom
–
The Colorado Silver Boom was a dramatic expansionist period of silver mining activity in the U. S. state of Colorado in the late 19th century. The boom started in 1879 with the discovery of silver at Leadville, the boom was largely the consequence of large-scale purchases of silver by the United States Government authorized by Congress in 1878. The boom endured throughout the 1880s, resulting in an increase in both the population and wealth of Colorado, especially in the mountains. It came to an end in 1893 in the wake of the collapse of prices caused by the repeal of Sherman Silver Purchase Act. Silver had been discovered in Colorado in the 1860s, with mining in Clear Creek Canyon at Georgetown in 1864. In the early days, the mineral was overshadowed by gold, however, in 1878, responding to pressure from western interests, the United States Congress passed the Bland–Allison Act authorizing the free coinage of silver. The government demand raised the price of the metal to the point where many additional mines were profitable. The discovery of the Leadville district the following year resulted in a flood of new emigrant prospectors to many of the same mountain gullies that had been the site of the gold rush, the resulting opulence was most lavish in Leadville itself. The repeal of the Sherman Act in 1893 conversely led to a collapse of silver prices, beginning in 1889, Creede, Colorado was the site of another big silver boom. The first discovery was made at the Alpha mine in 1869, the great “Boom Days” started with the discovery of rich minerals in Willow Creek Canyon. The town leapt from a population of 600 in 1889 to more than 10,000 people in December 1891, the mines operated continuously until 1995. Creede was the last silver boom town in Colorado in the 19th century, the boom continued unabated throughout the 1880s and early 90s, years that gave the state many of the historic structures in its cities and towns. The boom also drove many extensions of the network in the mountains, including such lines as the Denver, South Park and Pacific. The government purchases of silver were subsequently nearly doubled by the 1890 Sherman Silver Purchase Act, the repeal of the act in 1893 resulted in a collapse of silver prices, bringing about an end to the boom. After 1893, many mining camps became ghost towns, the working conditions inside the mines were often very dangerous. Silicosis which, at the time, was incurable, ruined miners lungs quickly, apart from the lanterns or tallow candles the miners carried, the mines were otherwise completely dark. Miners at the time were subject to the threat of tunnel collapse, flooding. Often the miners brought caged canaries down with them, when the bird passed out, it indicated that the oxygen levels were dangerously low in the area
Colorado Silver Boom
–
The Matchless Mine in Leadville, originally owned by
Horace Tabor, known as"The Silver King".
Colorado Silver Boom
–
Old mine in Creede, Colorado
36.
Ashcroft, Colorado
–
Ashcroft, originally known as Castle Forks City then Chloride until 1882, was a mining town located ten miles south of Aspen, Colorado, United States. A few buildings standing as a testament to the towns past. In the spring of 1880 two prospectors, Charles B, Coxhead left the mining boomtown of Leadville in search of silver deposits in the Castle Creek Valley. Silver was found and Coxhead promoted their discovery with zeal back in Leadville, when he returned to Castle Forks City, as it had been dubbed, he found that 23 other prospectors had joined Crazy Culver. Together the men formed a Miners Protective Association, built a courthouse, each of their associations members paid $5, or one days work, and $1, to draw for building lots. In all there were 97 members in the Ashcroft Miners Protective Association, the town was renamed Ashcroft in 1882 after a rich ore strike was uncovered in Montezuma and Tam OShanter Mines. The mines were owned by H. A. W. Reportedly, Tabor and his wife visited Ashcroft in 1883 and hosted a grand ball. Tabor also reportedly bought rounds of drinks for everyone in each of the towns 13 saloons, the same year that Tabor visited Ashcroft the town population had risen to around 2,000. Ashcroft was also home to two newspapers, a school, sawmills, a smelter and 20 saloons. At this point in its history the town was larger than Aspen, by 1885 the town was home to about 3,500 people, had six hotels and 20 saloons. As quickly as the town went boom it went bust, the silver deposits that Culver and Coxhead initially discovered produced 14,000 ounces of silver to the ton at their onset. This production, however, was short-lived as the deposits were shallow, though there were promises of a rail line to Crested Butte the promises never materialized and investors and workers were lured away to places such as Aspen. In 1884 another rich strike was discovered, this one, however, was in Aspen and this led to the end of the prosperity in Ashcroft as people began moving to Aspen. By 1885 there were only 100 summer residents and $5.60 in the town coffers, by the turn of the 20th century, only a handful of aging, single men lived in Ashcroft. Though they all owned mining claims they spent most of their fishing and hunting or reading and drinking in a local bar. The men traded stories for drinks and served as an employment agency. Every four years the citizens would hold municipal elections and choose officers from amongst themselves
Ashcroft, Colorado
–
Ashcroft, Colorado
37.
Coal
–
Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock usually occurring in rock strata in layers or veins called coal beds or coal seams. The harder forms, such as coal, can be regarded as metamorphic rock because of later exposure to elevated temperature and pressure. Coal is composed primarily of carbon, along with quantities of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen. A fossil fuel, coal forms when plant matter is converted into peat, which in turn is converted into lignite, then sub-bituminous coal, after that bituminous coal. This involves biological and geological processes that take place over time, throughout history, coal has been used as an energy resource, primarily burned for the production of electricity and heat, and is also used for industrial purposes, such as refining metals. Coal is the largest source of energy for the generation of electricity worldwide, the extraction of coal, its use in energy production and its byproducts are all associated with environmental and health effects including climate change. Coal is extracted from the ground by coal mining, since 1983, the worlds top coal producer has been China. In 2015 China produced 3,747 million tonnes of coal –47. 7% of 7,861 million tonnes world coal production, in 2015 other large producers were United States, India, European Union and Australia. The word originally took the col in Old English, from Proto-Germanic *kula. In Old Turkic languages, kül is ash, cinders, öčür is quench, the compound charcoal in Turkic is öčür kül, literally quenched ashes, cinders, coals with elided anlaut ö- and inflection affixes -ülmüş. At various times in the geologic past, the Earth had dense forests in low-lying wetland areas, due to natural processes such as flooding, these forests were buried underneath soil. As more and more soil deposited over them, they were compressed, the temperature also rose as they sank deeper and deeper. As the process continued the plant matter was protected from biodegradation and oxidation and this trapped the carbon in immense peat bogs that were eventually covered and deeply buried by sediments. Under high pressure and high temperature, dead vegetation was slowly converted to coal, as coal contains mainly carbon, the conversion of dead vegetation into coal is called carbonization. The wide, shallow seas of the Carboniferous Period provided ideal conditions for coal formation, the exception is the coal gap in the Permian–Triassic extinction event, where coal is rare. Coal is known from Precambrian strata, which predate land plants — this coal is presumed to have originated from residues of algae, in its dehydrated form, peat is a highly effective absorbent for fuel and oil spills on land and water. It is also used as a conditioner for soil to make it able to retain. Lignite, or brown coal, is the lowest rank of coal, jet, a compact form of lignite, is sometimes polished and has been used as an ornamental stone since the Upper Palaeolithic
Coal
–
Anthracite coal
Coal
–
Bituminous coal
Coal
–
Coastal exposure of the Point Aconi Seam (Nova Scotia)
Coal
–
Coal miner in Britain, 1942
38.
Skiing
–
Skiing is a mode of transport, recreational activity and competitive winter sport in which the participant uses skis to glide on snow. Many types of skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee. Skiing has a history of almost five millennia, although modern skiing has evolved from beginnings in Scandinavia, it may have been practiced as early as 600 BC in what is now China. The word ski is one of a handful of words Norway has exported to the international community and it comes from the Old Norse word skíð which means split piece of wood or firewood. Asymmetrical skis were used at least in northern Finland and Sweden until the late 19th century, on one leg the skier wore a long straight non-arching ski for sliding, and on the other a shorter ski for kicking. Early skiers used one long pole or spear, the first depiction of a skier with two ski poles dates to 1741. Until the mid-19th century skiing was primarily used for transport, and since then has become a recreation, military ski races were held in Norway during the 18th century, and ski warfare was studied in the late 18th century. As equipment evolved and ski lifts were developed skiing evolved into two main genres during the late 19th and early 20th century, Alpine and Nordic, also called downhill skiing, alpine skiing typically takes place on a piste at a ski resort. It is characterized by fixed-heel bindings that attach at both the toe and the heel of the skiers boot, because alpine equipment is somewhat difficult to walk in, ski lifts, including chairlifts, bring skiers up the slope. Backcountry skiing can be accessed by helicopter, snowcat, hiking, facilities at resorts can include night skiing, après-ski, and glade skiing under the supervision of the ski patrol and the ski school. Alpine skiing branched off from the older Nordic skiing around the 1920s, Alpine equipment specialized to where it can only be used with the help of lifts. The Nordic disciplines include cross-country skiing and ski jumping, which share in common the use of binding that attach at the toes of the skiers boots, cross-country skiing may be practiced on groomed trails or in undeveloped backcountry areas. Ski jumping skiing is practiced at certain areas that are deemed for ski jumping only, Telemark skiing is a ski turning technique and FIS-sanctioned discipline. It is named after the Telemark region of Norway, using equipment similar to nordic skiing, the ski bindings having the ski boot attached only at the toe. This allows the skier to raise his/her heel throughout the turn, the following disciplines are sanctioned by the FIS and USSA. Many have their own cups and are in the Winter Olympic Games. Cross-country, The sport encompasses a variety of formats for cross-country skiing races over courses of varying lengths, such races occur over homologated, groomed courses designed to support classic and free-style events, where the skiers may employ skate skiing. Alpine skiing discliplines include combined, downhill, slalom, giant slalom, Super-G, one run of each even like one run of Super-G and one run of Slalom skiing this is called a Super Combined
Skiing
–
Skier carving a turn on the
Grande Motte,
Tignes,
Savoie,
France
Skiing
–
Spring
ski touring on
Hardangervidda, Norway
Skiing
–
A collection of differing types of alpine skis, with nordic and telemark skis at far left. From right: a group of powder skis, a group of twin-tip skis, a group of carving (parabolic) skis, and then an older-type non-sidecut alpine ski along with the non-alpine skis.
Skiing
–
Giant Slalom Ski Racer
39.
Summit (topography)
–
A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically, a summit is a maximum in elevation. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak, and zenith are synonymous, the UIAA definition is that a summit is independent if it has a prominence of 30 metres or more, it is a mountain if it has a prominence of at least 300 metres. This can be summarised as follows, A pyramidal peak is an exaggerated form produced by ice erosion of a mountain top, Summit may also refer to the highest point along a line, trail, or route. In many parts of the western United States, the term refers to the highest point along a road, highway. For example, the highest point along Interstate 80 in California is referred to as Donner Summit while the highest point on Interstate 5 is Siskiyou Mountain Summit, geoid Hill List of highest mountains Maxima and minima Nadir Summit accordance Peak finder
Summit (topography)
–
The highest elevation summit, Mount Everest, shown with a climber at the summit wearing an oxygen mask. The summit is 8850 m (29,035 ft) elevation. (While the cruising altitude of jetliners is roughly 10,000 m (32,808 feet), they are pressurized.)
Summit (topography)
–
View from the summit of Switzerland's highest,
Monte Rosa
Summit (topography)
–
The summit of
Mount Damavand,
Iran, in winter
Summit (topography)
–
Jeff Davis Peak, one of the highest peaks entirely within
Nevada
40.
Topographic elevation
–
GIS or geographic information system is a computer system that allows for visualizing, manipulating, capturing, and storage of data with associated attributes. GIS offers better understanding of patterns and relationships of the landscape at different scales, tools inside the GIS allow for manipulation of data for spatial analysis or cartography. A topographical map is the type of map used to depict elevation. In a Geographic Information System, digital models are commonly used to represent the surface of a place. Digital terrain models are another way to represent terrain in GIS, USGS is developing a 3D Elevation Program to keep up with growing needs for high quality topographic data. 3DEP is a collection of enhanced elevation data in the form of high quality LiDAR data over the conterminous United States, Hawaii, there are three bare earth DEM layers in 3DEP which are nationally seamless at the resolution of 1/3,1, and 2 arcseconds. This map is derived from GTOPO30 data that describes the elevation of Earths terrain at intervals of 30 arcseconds and it uses color and shading instead of contour lines to indicate elevation. Hypsography is the study of the distribution of elevations on the surface of the Earth, the term originates from the Greek word ὕψος hypsos meaning height. Most often it is used only in reference to elevation of land, related to the term hypsometry, the measurement of these elevations of a planets solid surface are taken relative to mean datum, except for Earth which is taken relative to the sea level. In the troposphere, temperatures decrease with altitude and this lapse rate is approximately 6.5 °C/km. S
Topographic elevation
–
A sign at 8000 feet (2438 meters) in the
San Bernardino Mountains.
Topographic elevation
–
Elevation
histogram of the surface of the Earth – approximately 71% of the Earth's surface is covered with water.
Topographic elevation
Topographic elevation
–
Part of a
topographic map of
Haleakala (
Hawaii), showing elevation.
41.
Topographic prominence
–
It is a measure of the independence of a summit. A peaks key col is a point on this contour line. By convention, the prominence of Mount Everest, the Earths highest mountain, is taken to equal the elevation of its summit above sea level, if the peaks prominence is P metres, to get from the summit to any higher terrain one must descend at least P metres. Together with the convention for Mount Everest, this implies that the prominence of any island or continental highpoint is equal to its elevation above sea level, for every ridge connecting the peak to higher terrain, find the lowest point on the ridge. The key col is defined as the highest of these cols, the prominence is the difference between the elevation of the peak and the elevation of the key col. The following mental exercise may illustrate the meaning of topographic prominence, imagine you are standing at the top of a peak and imagine that an imaginary sea level rises to your feet. Now slowly lower the sea level and an imaginary island appears beneath your feet. Your island will grow and will merge with other islands that emerge, the parent peak may be either close or far from the subject peak. The summit of Mount Everest is the parent peak of Aconcagua at a distance of 17,755 km, the key col may also be close or far from the subject peak. The key col for Aconcagua is the Bering Strait at a distance of 13,655 km, the key col for the South Summit of Mount Everest is about 100 m distant. Prominence is interesting to many mountaineers because it is a measurement that is strongly correlated with the subjective significance of a summit. Peaks with low prominences are either subsidiary tops of some higher summit or relatively insignificant independent summits, peaks with high prominences tend to be the highest points around and are likely to have extraordinary views. Only summits with a sufficient degree of prominence are regarded as independent mountains, for example, the worlds second-highest mountain is K2. While Mount Everests South Summit is taller than K2, it is not considered an independent mountain because it is a subsummit of the main summit, many lists of mountains take topographic prominence as a criterion for inclusion, or cutoff. John and Anne Nuttalls The Mountains of England and Wales uses a cutoff of 15 m, in the contiguous United States, the famous list of fourteeners uses a cutoff of 300 ft /91 m. Also in the U. S.2000 feet of prominence has become a threshold that signifies that a peak has major stature. This generates lists of peaks ranked by prominence, which are different from lists ranked by elevation. Such lists tend to emphasize isolated high peaks, such as range or island high points, one advantage of a prominence-ranked list is that it needs no cutoff, since a peak with high prominence is automatically an independent peak
Topographic prominence
–
Figure 3. Diagram of a mountain range showing peaks and cols, from which mountain parentage and prominences can be determined.
Topographic prominence
–
Topographic prominence of three peaks near Great Pond Mountain, Maine, USA. Red triangles mark the peaks, the lowest contour line encircling each peak are shown in black and the green dots mark the key cols. The prominences are Atkins Hill: 430 – 310 = 120 ft, Cave Hill: 570 - 530 = 40 ft, Mead Mountain: 671 - 530 = 141 ft. The parent peak of each peak is Great Pond Mountain.
42.
Topographic isolation
–
The topographic isolation of a summit is the minimum great-circle distance to a point of equal elevation, representing a radius of dominance in which the peak is the highest point. It can be calculated for small hills and islands as well as for major mountain peaks, the following sortable table lists the Earths 40 most topographically isolated summits. The nearest peak to Germanys highest mountain, the 2, 962-metre-high Zugspitze, the distance between the Zugspitze and this contour is 25.8 km, the Zugspitze is thus the highest peak for a radius of 25.8 km around. Its isolation is thus 25.8 km, because there are no higher mountains than Mount Everest, it has no definitive isolation. Many sources list its isolation as the circumference of the earth over the poles or – questionably, after Mount Everest the Aconcagua, highest mountain of the American continents, has the greatest isolation of all mountains. There is no land for 16,534 kilometres when its height is first exceeded by Tirich Mir in the Hindu Kush. Mont Blanc is the highest mountain of the Alps, the geographically nearest higher mountains are all in the Caucasus. The Kukurtlu, which rises near the Elbrus, is the peak for Mont Blanc. com Canadian Mountain Encyclopedia peakbagger. com peaklist. org peakware. com World Mountain Encyclopedia summitpost. org
Topographic isolation
–
Topographic isolation and prominence
Topographic isolation
–
1.
Mount Everest is the highest mountain peak on Earth.
Topographic isolation
–
2.
Aconcagua is the highest peak in the
Western Hemisphere.
Topographic isolation
–
3.
Mount McKinley, or
Denali, is the highest peak of
North America.
43.
Maroon Peak
–
The Maroon Bells are two peaks in the Elk Mountains, Maroon Peak and North Maroon Peak, separated by about a third of a mile. The mountains are on the border between Pitkin County and Gunnison County, Colorado, United States, about 12 miles southwest of Aspen, Maroon Peak, at 14,163 feet, is the 27th highest peak in Colorado. North Maroon Peak, at 14,019 feet, is the 50th highest, the view of the Maroon Bells to the southwest from the Maroon Creek valley is commonly photographed. The peaks are located in the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness of White River National Forest, a US Forest Service sign on the access trail refers to these mountains as The Deadly Bells and warns would-be climbers of downsloping, loose, rotten and unstable rock that kills without warning. Unlike other mountains in the Rockies that are composed of granite and limestone, mudstone is weak and fractures readily, giving rise to dangerously loose rock along almost any route. The mudstone is responsible for the Bells distinctive maroon color, the Bells got their deadly name in 1965 when eight people died in five separate accidents. Maroon Lake occupies a basin that was sculpted by Ice-Age glaciers and later dammed by landslide, the Maroon Bells are an increasingly popular destination for day and overnight visitors, over 300,000 people visit the Bells every season. Due to the volume of people, a bus service runs everyday from 8am-5pm from mid-June through the first weekend in October, during these times, and with just a few exceptions, personal vehicle access is limited to those with handicap placards or disability license plates. The bus runs from Aspen Highlands to Maroon Lake every 20 minutes, the Maroon Bells scenic area features several hiking trails ranging from short hikes near Maroon Lake to longer hikes into the Maroon-Snowmass Wilderness. Because the Maroon Bells area receives high levels of visitor use. Colorado portal Mountains portal List of Colorado fourteeners Guide to Maroon Bells Colorado Maroon Bells on 14ers. com Maroon Bells on Distantpeak. com Maroon Bells Scenic Area on USFS
Maroon Peak
–
Maroon Bells With Aspen, September 2003
Maroon Peak
–
Maroon Lake and Maroon Bells, pre-dawn photo, 19 September 2012.
44.
National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929
–
The Sea Level Datum of 1929 was the vertical control datum established for vertical control surveying in the United States of America by the General Adjustment of 1929. The datum was used to measure elevation above, and depression below, Mean sea level was measured at 26 tide gauges,21 in the United States and 5 in Canada. The datum was defined by the heights of mean sea level at the 26 tide gauges. The adjustment required a total of 66,315 miles of leveling with 246 closed circuits and 25 circuits at sea level. Since the Sea Level Datum of 1929 was a model, it was not a pure model of mean sea level. Therefore, it was renamed the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 in 1973, altitude Datum Geodesy Mean sea level North American Vertical Datum of 1988 Storm Surge Topographic elevation Topography Reference ellipsoid Geoid United States Geological Survey home page. U. S. National Geodetic Survey home page
National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929
–
Geodesy
45.
North American Vertical Datum of 1988
–
NAVD88 was established in 1991 by the minimum-constraint adjustment of geodetic leveling observations in Canada, the United States, and Mexico. It held fixed the height of the tidal bench mark, referenced to the International Great Lakes Datum of 1985 local mean sea level height value, at Rimouski, Quebec. The definition of NAVD88 uses the Helmert orthometric height, which calculates the location of the geoid from modeled local gravity, the NAVD88 model is based on then-available measurements, and remains fixed despite later improved geoid models. NAVD88 replaced the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929, previously known as the Sea Level Datum of 1929, the elevation difference between points in a local area will show negligible change from one datum to the other, even though the elevation of both does change. NGVD29 used a model of gravity based on latitude to calculate the geoid and did not take into account other variations. Thus, the difference for points across the country does change between datums. Altitude Geodesy Sea Level Datum of 1929 Topographic elevation Topography Reference ellipsoid Geoid United States Geological Survey home page, U. S. National Geodetic Survey home page
North American Vertical Datum of 1988
–
Geodesy
46.
List of mountain peaks of Colorado
–
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaks of the U. S. State of Colorado. The summit of a mountain or hill may be measured in three ways, The topographic elevation of a summit measures the height of the summit above a geodetic sea level. The first table ranks the 55 highest major summits of Colorado by elevation. The topographic prominence of a summit is a measure of how high the summit rises above its surroundings, the second table below ranks the 50 most prominent summits of Colorado. The topographic isolation of a summit measures how far the summit lies from its nearest point of equal elevation, the third table below ranks the 50 most isolated major summits of Colorado. Of the highest major summits of Colorado, the following 55 peaks exceed 4000 meters elevation and 117 peaks exceed 3000 meters elevation, of the most prominent summits of Colorado, only Mount Elbert exceeds 2000 meters of topographic prominence. Three peaks are ultra-prominent summits with more than 1500 meters of prominence and 14 peaks exceed 1000 meters of topographic prominence
List of mountain peaks of Colorado
–
Mount Elbert in the
Sawatch Range is the
highest peak of the
Rocky Mountains and the highest point in the
U.S. State of Colorado.
List of mountain peaks of Colorado
List of mountain peaks of Colorado
–
Mount Massive in the
Sawatch Range is the
second highest peak of the
Rocky Mountains.
List of mountain peaks of Colorado
–
Mount Harvard is the
highest of the
Collegiate Peaks and the third highest peak of the
Rocky Mountains.
47.
Book Cliffs
–
The Book Cliffs are a series of desert mountains and cliffs in western Colorado and eastern Utah, in the western United States. They are so named because the cliffs of Cretaceous sandstone that cap many of the buttes appear similar to a shelf of books. Stretching nearly 200 miles from east to west, the Book Cliffs begin where the Colorado River descends south through De Beque Canyon into the Grand Valley to Price Canyon, the Book Cliffs appear mostly along the southern and western edge of the Tavaputs Plateau. The cliffs are composed of sedimentary materials. The Book Cliffs are within the Colorado Plateau geologic province, in the Colorado stretch of the Book Cliffs, abandoned coal mines are present, as significant coal resources were present in the region. These mines are now generally capped for safety, but several fatalities of recreational hikers have occurred at these mines since 1989. In some places, wild horses can be found in the Book Cliffs, for example, the Book Cliffs are one of the worlds best places to study sequence stratigraphy. In the 1980s, Exxon scientists used the Cretaceous strata of the Book Cliffs to develop the science of sequence stratigraphy. The Book Cliffs have preserved excellent strata of the basin of the ancient Western Interior Seaway that stretched north from the Gulf of Mexico to the Yukon in the Cretaceous time. Components of deltaic and shallow marine reservoirs are very well preserved in the Book Cliffs, large mammals found in the Book Cliffs include coyotes, mountain lions, bobcats, mule deer, pronghorn, American bison as an extension of the Henry Mountains bison herd and bighorn sheep. In January,2009, Utah Division of Wildlife Resources officials transplanted 31 bison from the Henry Mountains bison herd to the Book Cliffs, the new group joined 14 animals previously released in August,2008 from a private herd on the nearby Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation. Since this herd is located approximately 100 miles north of the Henry Mountains, across mostly harsh, desert terrain, it should perhaps be considered as a separate herd, Cretaceous Paleogeography - Showing Western Interior Seaway The Soils of Western Colorado Mesa, Delta and Montrose Counties
Book Cliffs
–
The Spring Canyon sandstones in the Book Cliffs above the town of Helper, Utah. There are several sedimentary cycles visible in the cliffs (perhaps up to seven or eight)
Book Cliffs
–
Book Cliffs and Mt. Garfield (on right, approximate altitude 6,600') in Mesa County, Colorado
Book Cliffs
–
A
flute cast, one of many
sedimentary structures found in the Book Cliffs
