The Rocky Mountains are a broad mountain range that forms the backbone of the western part of the North American continent. It is often known as the "Rockies". Generally, the ranges included in the Rockies stretch from northern Alberta and British Columbia southward to the Rio Grande in New Mexico, a distance of some 3,000 miles (4800km). They can also be described as running from Alaska to Mexico, but usually, those mountains are considered to be part of the entire American cordillera, rather than part of the Rockies. The Rocky Mountains are bordered by the Great Plains on the east; and by the Canadian Coast Mountains, the Interior Plateau, the Columbia Plateau, and the Basin and Range Province of the United States on the west.
Did you know that all the rivers on the west side of the Rocky Mountains flow to the Pacific Ocean while all the rivers on the east side of the Rocky Mountains flow into the Atlantic Ocean? This is because the Rocky Mountains literally divide North America, earning them the name of the Continental Divide.
The highest peak is Mount Elbert, in Colorado, which is 14,440 feet (4,401 meters) above sea level. Mount Robson in British Columbia, at 12,972 feet (3,954 meters) is the highest peak in the Canadian Rockies.
The mountain range passes through the following
US states
Canadian Provinces
The Rocky Mountains include at least 100 separate ranges, which are generally divided into 4 broad groupings:
Water in its many forms sculpted the present Rocky Mountain landscape. Runoff and snow melt from the peaks feed Rocky Mountain rivers and lakes with the water supply for one-quarter of the United States. The rivers that flow from the Rocky Mountains eventually drain into three of the world's 5 oceans: the Atlantic Ocean, the Pacific Ocean, and the Arctic Ocean.
The Rocky Mountains have a cold steppe climate with everlasting snow in the higher areas. During the winter precipitation mainly falls in the form of snow. The area is too large to give it one type of climate. The northern part of the Rockies is much colder in general. The windward side gets more rain than the leeward side. The higher areas are colder than the lower areas.
All of the glaciers at Rocky Mountain National Park are cirque glaciers. A cirque glacier is a small glacier that occupies a bowl-shaped basin at the head of a mountain valley. Cirque glaciers are usually the remnants of much larger valley glaciers. Valley glaciers are glaciers confined to a valley. There are no valley glaciers in Rocky Mountains National Park today.
One can see the following features in the glaciers in Rocky Mountain National Park:
The Rocky Mountains have varied and abundant economic resources.
Mining, agriculture, forestry, and recreation are the major industries in the regions.
There are significant deposits of copper, gold, lead, silver, tungsten, and zinc. For example, the Climax mine, in Colorado produces molybdenum which is used in heat-resistant steel for making cars and planes; the Coeur mine of northern Idaho produces silver, lead, and zinc; and large coal mines in British Columbia and Alberta. The Wyoming Basin and several smaller areas contain significant reserves of coal, natural gas, oil and petroleum. Mining is polluting the rivers and banks in the Rocky mountains landscape. This is degrading the water quality, especially in the state of Colorado.
Other major industries are agriculture and forestry. Agriculture includes dryland and irrigated farming and livestock grazing. Livestock are frequently moved between high-elevation summer pastures and low-elevation winter pastures, a practice known as transhumance.
The scenic areas and recreational opportunities make the Rocky Mountains an attractive tourist destination. The availability of modern highways adds to its attraction. Major activities include camping, hiking, winter sports like skiing, and sightseeing.
Some major national parks are:
Like most mountain ranges, the Rocky Mountains have also been affected by severe erosion which has caused the development of deep river canyons as well as intermountain basins such as the Wyoming Basin.
The air in the mountain range is stripped of moisture. As the air continues over the Rocky Mountains, it absorbs moisture from the landscape, leaving the region more arid.
There are three main levels of vegetation in the Rocky Mountains: Montane, Subalpine, and Alpine.
MONTANE (5600 - 9500 feet)
A. South-facing slopes get the most sunlight and are able to support the most vegetation. The most common vegetation is Ponderosa pines which love space and spread out extensively, becoming giants with broad root systems able to withstand drought conditions.
B. North-facing slopes do not get strong, drying sunlight, and therefore, the soils contain more available water. The availability of water but competition for sunlight has resulted in trees tall, slender trees that grow closely together.
SUBALPINE (9,000-11,000 feet)
ALPINE (Above 11,000 feet)
The Rocky Mountains are also home to some of the most interesting animals in North America. One can see bighorn sheep, grizzly bear, moose, varieties of deer, elk, and mountain cougar in the mountain range. The forests also include many bird species like owls, eagles, and hawks, as well as animals like bobcats, rabbits, marmots, lynx, foxes, and badgers.
The human presence in the Rocky Mountains has been dated to between 10,000 and 8,000 BCE. Native American Indian people inhabited the northern mountains, and then incursion of European settlements began in the southwest in the 16th century. There are still many indigenous people living in the Rocky Mountains. You will find reserves for the Bannock, Sioux, Blackfoot, Cow People, Apache, Kutenai, and many more. Although human settlement is now widespread throughout most of the Rockies, it is not very dense and is largely concentrated in urban areas generally located at the base of mountains, along railways, or in river valleys.
Various activities like timber harvesting, grazing, oil exploration, mining, and reservoir operations in the Rockies have caused serious environmental problems. Logging and oil exploration resulted in accelerated slope erosion. As the thin soil cover strips away, it gets deposited in streams. Mining operations released trace quantities of harmful metals into streams and groundwater. Reservoir operations altered the temperature and flow patterns of streams, thus causing disruption of fisheries. Agricultural activities and livestock grazing results in the loss of wildlife habitat.
Some interesting facts about the Rocky Mountains:
