The Park Range, elevation approximately , is a

mountain range A mountain range or hill range is a series of mountains or hills arranged in a line and connected by high ground. A mountain system or mountain belt is a group of mountain ranges with similarity in form, structure, and alignment that have aris ...

in the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in great-circle distance, straight-line distance from the northernmost part of Western Can ...

of northwestern

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The range forms a relatively isolated part of the

Continental Divide A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...

, extending north-to-south for approximately along the boundary between

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

(east) and Routt counties. It separates North Park in the upper basin of the

North Platte River The North Platte River is a major tributary of the Platte River and is approximately long, counting its many curves.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 21, 2011 I ...

on the east from the Elk River basin in the watershed of the

Yampa River The Yampa River flows through northwestern Colorado, United States. Rising in the Rocky Mountains, it is a tributary of the Green River and a major part of the Colorado River system. The Yampa is one of the few free-flowing rivers in the weste ...

the west. It rises steeply out of the Yampa River basin, forming a climatic barrier that receives much

snow Snow consists of individual ice crystals that grow while suspended in the atmosphere—usually within clouds—and then fall, accumulating on the ground where they undergo further changes. It consists of frozen crystalline water througho ...

fall in winter. The northern end of the range lies in Wyoming and is known as the Sierra Madre Range. Steamboat Springs, a popular ski resort community, sits on the southwestern flank of the range, at the base of

Mount Werner Mount Werner is a mountain summit in the Park Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The peak is located in Routt National Forest, east-southeast ( bearing 107°) of the City of Steamboat Springs in Routt County, Colorado, United ...

. Much of the range is located within the Routt National Forest, with the summit of the ridge located within the Mount Zirkel Wilderness, named for Mount Zirkel, elevation . The range is prominently visible from both sides and forms a picturesque skyline from much of North Park. It is traversed at its southern end by Rabbit Ears Pass which carries US 40. It is also traversed by Buffalo Pass which carries a gravel road between Steamboat Springs and Walden, and which is traversable by most vehicles in good weather during summer.

References

External links

Park Range @ fs.usda

Park Range @ Peakbagger

Park Range @ summitpost

Park Range @ 100summits
Ranges of the Rocky Mountains Mountain ranges of Colorado Landforms of Routt County, Colorado Landforms of Jackson County, Colorado {{Colorado-geo-stub

See also

References

External links