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Colorado, CO

The State of Colorado is a state located in the
Rocky Mountain region of the United States of America.
Colorado may also be considered to be a part of the Western
and Southwestern regions of the United States.
The United States Census Bureau estimates that
the state population was 4,753,377 in 2006, a 10.49% increase
since U.S. Census 2000. Denver is the capital as well as the
most populous city of Colorado. Citizens of Colorado are known
as Coloradans.
Geography
The State of Colorado is defined as the
geoellipsoidal rectangle that stretches from 37°N to 41°N
latitude and from 102°03'W to 109°03'W longitude (25°W to 32°W
from the Washington Meridian). Colorado is one of only three
U.S. states (with Wyoming and Utah) that have only lines of
latitude and longitude for boundaries.
The summit of Mount Elbert at 4,401.2 meters
(14,440 ft) elevation in Lake County is the state's highest
point and the highest point in the entire Rocky Mountains.
Colorado has more than 500 mountain peaks that
exceed 4,000 meters (13,123 ft) elevation. Colorado is the
only U.S. state that lies entirely above 1,000 meters (3,281
ft) elevation. The state's lowest elevation is 1,010 meters
(3,314 ft) at the point on the eastern boundary of Yuma County
where the Arikaree River flows into the State of Kansas.
East of the Southern Rocky Mountains are the
Colorado Eastern Plains of the High Plains, the section of the
Great Plains within Colorado at elevations ranging from 3314
to 6562 feet (1010 to 2000 m).
The states of Kansas and Nebraska border
Colorado to the east. The plains are sparsely settled with
most population along the South Platte and the Arkansas
rivers. Precipitation is meager, averaging from 12 to 18
inches (300 to 450 mm) annually.
There is some irrigated farming, but much of
the land is used for dryland farming or ranching. Winter wheat
is a typical crop and most small towns in the region boast
both a water tower and a grain elevator. The bulk of
Colorado's population lives along the eastern edge of the
Rocky Mountains in the Front Range Urban Corridor.
This region is partially protected from
prevailing storms by the high mountains to the west. To the
west lies the eastern slope of the Rocky Mountains with
notable peaks such as Longs Peak, Mount Evans, Pikes Peak, and
the Spanish Peaks near Walsenburg in the south.
This area drains to the east, is forested, and
partially urbanized. During the drought of 2002 devastating
forest fires swept this area.
The Continental Divide stretches across the
crest of the Rocky Mountains. To the west of the Continental
Divide is the Western Slope. Water west of the Continental
Divide drains west into the Sea of Cortez via the Colorado
River. Within the interior of the Rocky Mountains are several
large parks or high broad basins. In the north, on the east
side of the Continental Divide is North Park.
North Park is drained by the North Platte
River, which flows north into Wyoming. Just south but on the
west side of the Continental Divide is Middle Park, drained by
the Colorado River. South Park is the headwaters of the South
Platte River.
To the south lies the San Luis Valley, the
headwaters of the Rio Grande, which drains into New Mexico.
Across the Sangre de Cristo Range to the east of the San Luis
Valley lies the Wet Mountain Valley. These basins,
particularly the San Luis Valley, lie along the Rio Grande
Rift, a major geological formation, and its branches.
The Rocky Mountains within Colorado contain 51
peaks that are 14,000 feet (4,267 m) or higher elevation,
known as fourteeners. The mountains are timbered with conifers
and aspen to the tree line, at an elevation of about 12,140
feet (3,700 m) in southern Colorado to about 10,500 feet
(3,200 m) in northern Colorado; above this only alpine
vegetation grows.
The Colorado Rockies are snow-covered only in
the winter; most snow melts by mid-August with the exception
of a few small glaciers. The Colorado Mineral Belt, stretching
from the San Juan Mountains in the southwest to Boulder and
Central City on the front range, contains most of the historic
gold- and silver-mining districts of Colorado.
The Western Slope is generally drained by the
Colorado River and its tributaries. Notable to the south are
the San Juan Mountains, an extremely rugged mountain range,
and to the west of the San Juans, the Colorado Plateau, a high
desert bordering Southern Utah. Grand Junction is the largest
city on the Western Slope. Grand Junction is served by
Interstate Highway I-70. To the southeast of Grand Junction is
Grand Mesa, the worlds largest flat-topped mountain.
Further east are the ski resorts of Aspen,
Vail, Crested Butte, and Steamboat Springs. The northwestern
corner of Colorado bordering Northern Utah and Western Wyoming
is mostly sparsely populated rangeland.
The famous Pikes Peak is just west of Colorado
Springs. Its lone peak is visible from near the Kansas border
on clear days.
This article is licensed under
the
GNU Free Documentation License.
It uses material from the
Wikipedia
article "Colorado".
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