This beautiful part of the US is now characterized by the wonderful mountains that dot the region. Lots of lovely lakes, rivers, forests, and desert scenery can be found scattered around its many national parks that include such pearls as Great Sand Dunes, Grand Teton, and of course, Yellowstone. As much of the Rocky Mountain states is made up of wild, rugged, and unforgiving landscapes, it is quite sparsely populated, so lends itself perfectly to all kinds of incredible outdoor activities.
Denver is the only major city of note. The snow-capped Rocky Mountains lie next to rusty red canyons and a patchwork of farms and rural areas, with the sparkling waters of the Colorado River twisting through it all. Colorado is a land of contrasts.
Its fascinating towns and cities also exhibit a wide range of different outlooks and attitudes. The progressive college towns of Boulder and Fort Collins feel a world away from Denver, the lively state capital, and the ski resort towns of Aspen , Breckenridge, and Vail. The remarkable variety in terms of its landscapes and settlements also extends to the plethora of great things that the state has for you to see and do. The inclusion of the Brooks Range in the Rocky Mountains is often debated, however, we have chosen to include it in our information despite it's differences from the other sections of the Rockies.
The tallest peak—Mt Chamberlain—in the Brooks Range is 2, meters above sea-level. The Brooks range creates a sort of border between the arctic region and interior region of Alaska. The Kobuk River runs through part of the Brooks Range for about miles across the mountains and plateuas of the mountain range. Mount Robson is the tallest peak in the Canadian Rocky Mountain system, reaching 3, meters above sea level.
There are several other impressive mountains in this section, like the first glacier-hung peak north of the U. Snow Dome, although it isn't incredibly tall based on Rocky Mountain standards, is really cool. This particular mountain has water flowing in three different directions from it's peak, into the Pacific, Atlantic, and Arctic oceans. Of all the segments of the Rocky Mountains the peaks in the Northern Rockies tend to be shorter; the tallest peaks—Borah Peak 3, meters and Leatherman peak 3, meters —can be found in the Lost River Range.
Interestingly, it is from this segment of the Rocky Mountains that two of the regions most well known trenches originate. The mountains of the Middle Rockies appear quite abruptly in the plateuas of Idaho and Wyoming; there are no foothills to build up to the steep mountain crests.
The highest peak in this section of the Rockies is Colorado's Mt. Ebert, which reaches 4, meters above sea level. Near treeline, zones can consist of white pines such as whitebark pine or bristlecone pine ; or a mixture of white pine, fir, and spruce that appear as shrub-like krummholz. Finally, rivers and canyons can create a unique forest zone in more arid parts of the mountain range.
The Rocky Mountains are an important habitat for a great deal of well-known wildlife, such as elk , moose , mule and white-tailed deer , pronghorn , mountain goats , bighorn sheep , badgers , black bears , grizzly bears , coyotes , lynxes , and wolverines.
For example, North America's largest herds of moose is in the Alberta-British Columbia foothills forests. European-American settlement of the mountains has adversely impacted native species. Examples of some species that have declined include western toads , greenback cutthroat trout , white sturgeon, white-tailed ptarmigan , trumpeter swan , and bighorn sheep. In the United States portion of the mountain range, apex predators such as grizzly bears and gray wolves had been extirpated from their original ranges, but have partially recovered due to conservation measures and reintroduction.
Other recovering species include the bald eagle and the peregrine falcon. Like the modern tribes that followed them, Paleo-Indians probably migrated to the plains in fall and winter for bison and to the mountains in spring and summer for fish , deer , elk , roots , and berries. In Colorado, along the crest of the Continental Divide, rock walls that Native Americans built for driving game date back 5,, years.
A growing body of scientific evidence indicates that Native Americans had significant effects on mammal populations by hunting and on vegetation patterns through deliberate burning. Recent human history of the Rocky Mountains is one of more rapid change.
The introduction of the horse, metal tools, rifles, new diseases, and different cultures profoundly changed the Native American cultures. Native American populations were extirpated from most of their historical ranges by disease, warfare, habitat loss eradication of the bison , and continued assaults on their culture.
In , French fur traders Pierre and Paul Mallet, while journeying through the Great Plains , discovered a range of mountains at the headwaters of the Platte River , which local American Indian tribes called the "Rockies", becoming the first Europeans to report on this uncharted mountain range. He found the upper reaches of the Fraser River and reached what is now the Pacific coast of Canada on July 20 of that year, completing the first recorded transcontinental crossing of North America north of Mexico.
The Lewis and Clark Expedition was the first scientific reconnaissance of the Rocky Mountains. Specimens were collected for contemporary botanists, zoologists, and geologists.
The expedition was said to have paved the way to and through the Rocky Mountains for European-Americans from the East, although Lewis and Clark met at least 11 European-American mountain men during their travels. Mountain men, primarily French, Spanish, and British roamed the Rocky Mountains from to seeking mineral deposits and furs. These posts served as bases for most European activity in the Canadian Rockies in the early s, most notably the expeditions of David Thompson explorer , the first European to follow the Columbia River to the Pacific Ocean.
After , American fur traders such as Kit Carson and explorers ushered in the first widespread caucasian presence in the Rockies south of the 49th parallel. Thousands passed through the Rocky Mountains on the Oregon Trail beginning in The Mormons began to settle near the Great Salt Lake in Wyoming Basin Map Lying between the Middle Rockies and the Southern Rockies, the Wyoming Basin is an elevated depression with structural features dating back to the mountain building event that shaped the Rocky Mountains the Laramide Orogeny.
Characteristic features of the Wyoming Basin include hogbacks, cuestas, and numerous basins that are separated by mountains of varying size. Characteristic structures of the Southern Rockies include anticlinal arches and intermontane basins. Geology Teacher Guide to Rocky Mountain National Park This geology teacher guide of Rocky Mountain National Park includes the geologic history and details key geologic events that have shaped the park. This guide includes lessons to be used both in the classroom and on-site at Rocky Mountain National Park.
Discover Grand Teton Explore the geologic history, features, forces, and rocks of the Grand Tetons through this interactive learning website. Landscaping with Wind and Water In this activity , students demonstrate the destructive forces of erosion on small "mountains" and survey an area in the park, such as Lamar Valley, to identify evidence of erosion.
0コメント