Colorado is a state in the western to central part of the United
States of America. As part of the Mountain States of the Rocky
Mountains, Colorado is the highest state in the USA with an
average elevation of 2073 meters.
The "Century State,"
Centennial State, emerged from the Colorado Territory,
established in 1861 at the height of the Gold Rush in the Front
Range, in 1876, exactly 100 years after the United States'
Declaration of Independence. The capital and economic center is
Denver, in the metropolitan area of which more than half of
Colorado's six million inhabitants live. Other important cities
are Colorado Springs and Fort Collins. The state got its name
from the Colorado River, so named by the area's former Spanish
rulers because of the reddish (Spanish: colorado) mud it
carries.
1 Denver - Capital and largest city of the state with rich cultural
offerings (museums and galleries, music, theater)
2 Golden - West
suburb of Denver, at the foot of the foothills, home to one of America's
largest breweries
3 Lakewood - western suburb of Denver
4 Boulder
- Seat of the University of Colorado, almost half of the population are
students or university members, is considered one of the most livable,
most educated, healthiest and most liberal cities in the USA with a
lively art, music and LGBT scene
5 Aspen - ski resort (one of the
most famous ski resorts in the USA), large classical music festival;
Headquarters of the think tank Aspen Institute
6 Colorado Springs –
second largest city in Colorado; Starting point for tours of the Rocky
Mountain Front Range and Garden of Gods, mountain zoo, museums and Air
Force Academy
7 Pueblo
8 Loveland
9 Durango, gateway to Mesa
Verde National Park, departure point of the historic Durango & Silverton
narrow gauge railway, archeological evidence of the "Basket Maker"
culture (early Anasazi period)
Animas Forks Ghost Town is situated 12 miles Northeast of Silverton, San Juan County, Colorado in United States.
Aspen Mountain is situated in Pitkin County in Colorado, United States. It reaches an elevation of 11,212 ft.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is situated in Montrose County, Colorado. This nature reserve covers an area of 30,244 acres.
Great Sand Dunes National Park is a large expanse of sand dunes situated in Alamosa and Saguache counties, Colorado in United States.
Mesa Verde is designated as an UNESCO World Heritage Site for the ruined settlement of the Anasazi tribe.
Mount Elbert in Colorado reaches an elevation of 14,443 feet (4,401 m) and it is the tallest mountain in the lower 48 states.
Nevadaville Ghost Town is an abandoned mining settlement situated in Gilpin County, Colorado. It was originally found in 1859.
Rocky Mountains National Park is situated in Boulder, Grand, Larimer Counties of Colorado. It covers an area of 265,761 acres.
Saint Elmo Ghost Town located in Colorado is one of the best preserved ghost town in United States.
Vail Ski Resort located in Colorado is famous for its 193 runs. The longest measures up to 4 miles (6.4 km).
Weminuche Wilderness Area is situated in the Colorado. This is the largest wilderness area in a state and covers an area of 488,210 acres.
Hiking and climbing in the Rocky Mountains
Aspen is one of
the most famous ski resorts in the USA. Another larger ski area
is at Steamboat Springs in Northwest Colorado. Smaller ski
resorts can be found along the Rocky Mountains throughout the
western half of the state.
By plane
By far the largest airport in the state is Denver
International Airport (IATA: DEN), one of the busiest airports in the
US, accessible both directly from Europe and with United, Southwest or
Frontier Airlines from all parts of the country.
There is another
major airport in Colorado Springs (COS). Smaller scheduled airports
include Grand Junction (GJT) in western Colorado, Aspen Ski Resort
(ASE), Durango (DRO) near Mesa Verde National Park and the Four-State
Corner, and Eagle (EGE).
By train
Two long-distance Amtrak
lines run through Colorado: The California Zephyr (Chicago-Denver-San
Francisco) travels in an east-west direction through the middle of
Colorado and stops in Denver, among other places. in Granby at Rocky
Mountain National Park and Glenwood Springs near Aspen Ski Resort. The
Southwest Chief (Chicago-Kansas City-Los Angeles) runs just a short
distance through southeastern Colorado, stopping in La Junta and
Trinidad.
Colorado has warm, sometimes hot summers and cold, snowy winters
(continental climate). Above all, the difference between day and night
is sometimes extreme. In summer, despite the high daytime temperatures,
it can get very cold at night. Precipitation (approx. 400-500 mm
annually) is distributed throughout the year, with a slight excess in
summer, when the air is usually very dry with 50% humidity.
Hundreds of houses were destroyed in severe forest fires in December
2021. The authorities had previously called on tens of thousands of
people to flee. The cities of Louisville and Superior, 20 miles
northwest of Denver, had to be evacuated. About 34,000 residents were
affected. Driven by winds with peak speeds of up to 169 kilometers per
hour, the flames engulfed parts of the city and destroyed around 580
buildings, a hotel and a shopping center. Scientists attributed the
increasingly unpredictable extreme weather in the USA to man-made
climate change. Both forest fires and storms are increasing in intensity
and causing high levels of damage.
The state of Colorado is located in the central to western part of
the United States and is surrounded by a total of seven states. Its
northern neighbor is Wyoming, to the east Colorado meets the prairie
states of Nebraska and Kansas, and on the southeastern border Colorado
is separated from Texas by the relatively small strip of land of the
Oklahoma Panhandles. While the border with New Mexico runs to the south,
Colorado does not share a border with the state of Arizona in the
southwest, but only meets it at its southwesternmost corner. Together
with New Mexico, Arizona and Utah, the western neighbors, Colorado forms
the so-called "Four Corners States" (Four Corners); this phenomenon,
unique in the United States, was marked with a monument at that
location. Along with Wyoming and
Utah, Colorado is one of the three
states in the USA that have practically no natural state borders, but
are almost exclusively defined along lines of longitude and latitude.
Colorado extends approximately rectangularly from about 37° N to 41° N
and 102° W to 109° W.
Colorado is crossed in the central and
western part of the state by the mountain ranges of the Southern Rocky
Mountains, of which the San Juan Mountains in the southwest, the Sawatch
Range in the center and the two eastern foothills of the Rocky
Mountains, the Front and Sangre de Cristo Ranges, belong to the most
important mountain ranges. The Colorado Rockies include more than 50
peaks with more than 4000 meters in altitude - including Mount Elbert,
the highest mountain in the entire Rocky Mountains at 4401 meters - and
enclose some larger valley basins. The approximately 2800 km ² South
Park Basin is located entirely in Park County and includes a wide
grassland between the Front and Mosquito Ranges. In south-central
Colorado, the San Juan Mountains and Sangre de Cristo Ranges encircle
the San Luis Valley. The largest alpine valley basin in the world is no
longer counted among the Rocky Mountains, but among the Mesa and Plains,
which are predominantly located in New Mexico.
In the west, the
Rocky Mountains mostly end before the state border of Utah and merge
into a plateau that reaches as far as Arizona - the so-called Colorado
Plateau. Within Colorado, this includes the area in the southwest from
the foothills of the San Juan Mountains to the New Mexico border. From
the southwest corner of the state, the plateau extends along the Utah
border to other Rocky Mountain ranges in the east and finally ends in
its northern course at the Uinta Mountains in northwestern Colorado.
Beyond this mountain range is the southern end of the Wyoming Basin -
the steppe landscape that runs through the entire neighboring state of
Wyoming to Montana. Colorado's share is limited to the part in the
northwest lying between the Uinta and Elkhead Mountains and the North
Platte Basin in north-central Colorado, which is surrounded by the Park
Range, Rabbit Ears Range and Medicine Bow Mountains.
East of the
Rocky Mountains begin the Great Plains, a huge steppe landscape that
runs through the entire center of the United States and is referred to
as the High Plains within Colorado because of its high location here.
From the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, they drop continuously from
around 1900 meters and form the lowest point in Colorado at 1021 meters
on the Kansas border - near Arkansas.
East of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado are the Colorado Eastern
Plains, the section of the Great Plains in Colorado, with elevations
ranging from 1,000 to 2,000 m (Nebraska and Kansas border Colorado to
the east).
The plains were settled with very low-density
settlements along the valleys of the South Platte River and the Arkansas
River. Precipitation is scarce, with an average of about 380 mm per
year. There are some irrigated areas, but most of the land is used for
dry farming or ranches. Winter wheat is a typical crop and most small
towns in the region have a water tower and grain elevator.
Most
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 the 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 Spanish
Peak near Walsenburg in the south. This area drains to the East, is
forested, and is partially urbanized. With urbanization, the use of
forests for logging and grazing was in decline, with an accumulation of
dead firewood. During the drought of 2002 this area was devastated by
devastating forest fires.
The continental divide of the Americas
runs along the crest of the Rocky Mountains. To the west of the Divide
is the western slope. The waters that fall west of the continental
divide drain west into the Pacific Ocean, through the Colorado River.
In the interior of the Rocky Mountains there are several large parks
or large upper basins. In the north, on the east side of the Continental
Divide is North Park. The North Park region 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 is the San Luis Valley, the headwaters of the Rio Grande,
which drains into New Mexico. Across the Sangre de Cristo mountain
range, east of the San Luis Valley, is the Montañas Mojadas valley (Wet
Mountain Valley). These basins, particularly the San Luis Valley, lie
along the Rio Grande Rift, an important tectonic feature. (See Rift.)
The Rocky Mountains in Colorado have 54 peaks over 14,000 feet
(4,270 m), known as the fourteeners. The mountains have coniferous and
aspen forests, up to an elevation of about 4000 m in southern Colorado
and about 3200 m in northern Colorado. Above this tree line, only alpine
vegetation occurs. The Rocky Mountains are covered in snow only in.
Grand Junction is the largest city on the Western Slope and is connected
by Interstate I-70. Southeast of Grand Junction is Grand Mesa, a large
plain covered in mountains. Further east are the ski resorts of Aspen,
Vail, Crested Butte, and Steamboat Springs. The northwest corner of
Colorado, bordering northern Utah and western Wyoming, is very sparsely
populated and primarily grassland.
The western slope, in general,
is drained by the Colorado River and its tributaries. The San Juan
Mountains stand out in the south, a very rugged mountain range, and to
the west of San Juan, the Colorado Plateau, a large desert that borders
southern Utah. Grand Junction is the largest city on the Western Slope
and is connected by Interstate I-70. Southeast of Grand Junction is
Grand Mesa, a large plain covered in mountains. Further east are the ski
resorts of Aspen, Vail, Crested Butte, and Steamboat Springs. The
northwest corner of Colorado, bordering northern Utah and western
Wyoming, is very sparsely populated and primarily grassland.
From
west to east, the state consists of desert basins, which become
plateaus, then the alpine mountains, and then the grasslands of the
Great Plains. Mount Elbert is the highest peak in the Rocky Mountains in
the continental United States. The famous Pikes Peak is just west of
Colorado Springs. Its solitary peak is seen from near the Kansas border
on clear days.
About half of Colorado is flat, rolling land. East of the Rocky
Mountains are the Colorado Eastern Plains of the High Plains, the
section of the Great Plains within Colorado at elevations ranging from
approximately 1,020 to 2,290 m (3,350 to 7,500 ft). The Colorado Plains
are primarily grasslands, but also include deciduous forests, hills, and
canyons. The average annual rainfall is 380 to 640 mm (15 to 25 in).
Today, eastern Colorado consists primarily of farmland and
grasslands, along with small agricultural towns and cities. Typical
crops are corn, wheat, hay, soybeans and oats. Most towns and cities in
this region have a water tower and grain elevator. Irrigation water
comes from surface and underground sources. Surface water comes from the
South Platte River, the Arkansas River, and other streams. Groundwater
is usually obtained through artesian wells. The intensive use of these
wells for irrigation purposes has caused the decrease in groundwater
reserves in the region. Eastern Colorado is also home to a considerable
number and variety of livestock, including cattle ranches and hog
farms.
To the west of the Great Plains of Colorado rise the eastern slope of
the Rocky Mountains. Among the most notable peaks in the Rocky Mountains
are Longs Peak, Mount Evans, Pikes Peak, and Spanish Peak, near
Walsenburg, in southern Colorado. This area drains to the east and
southeast, eventually emptying, through the Mississippi River or the Rio
Grande, into the Gulf of Mexico.
The Rocky Mountains in Colorado
contain 53 true peaks with a total of 58 that are 14,000 feet (4,267 m)
or more in elevation above sea level, known as fourteeners. These
mountains are largely covered with trees such as conifers and aspens.
tremors to the tree line, at an elevation of about 12,000 feet (3,658 m)
in southern Colorado to about 10,500 feet (3,200 m) in northern
Colorado. Above this tree line, only alpine vegetation grows. Only a
small part of the Colorado Rocky Mountains is covered in snow
year-round.
Most of the alpine snow melts by mid-August, except
for some snow-capped peaks and small glaciers. The Colorado Mineral
Belt, which extends from the San Juan Mountains in the southwest to
Boulder and Central City in the Front Range, contains most of Colorado's
historic gold and silver mining districts. Mount Elbert is the highest
peak in the Rocky Mountains. The 30 highest peaks in the North American
Rocky Mountains are all located within the state.
The summit of
Mount Elbert, at 14,440 feet (4,401.2 m) in Lake County, is the highest
point in Colorado and the North American Rocky Mountains. Colorado is
the only U.S. state that It is entirely located above 1,000 meters of
altitude. The point where the Arikaree River leaves Yuma County,
Colorado, and enters Cheyenne County, Kansas, is the lowest in Colorado,
at 1,011 m in elevation. This point, which is the highest low elevation
point in any state, is higher than the highest elevation points in 18
states and the District of Columbia.
The continental divide of
the Americas runs along the crest of the Rocky Mountains. The area of
Colorado west of the Continental Divide is called Western Colorado. West
of the Continental Divide, water flows southwest through the Colorado
River and Green River to the Gulf of California in Mexico.
In the
interior of the Rocky Mountains there are several large parks that are
high, wide basins. In the north, on the east side of the Continental
Divide, is Colorado's Northern Park. North Park is drained by the North
Platte River, which flows north to Wyoming and Nebraska. Just south of
North Park, but on the western side of the Continental Divide, is
Colorado's Middle Park, drained by the Colorado River. Colorado Southern
Park is the headwater region of the South Platte River.
Approximately 70% of Colorado's population resides along the eastern
edge of the Rocky Mountains, in the Front Range urban corridor, between
Cheyenne, Wyoming, and Pueblo, Colorado. This region is partially
protected from the dominant storms that blow from the Pacific Ocean
region by the high Rocky Mountains in central Colorado. The "Front
Range" includes Denver, Boulder, Fort Collins, Loveland, Castle Rock,
Colorado Springs, Pueblo, Greeley, and other towns and municipalities in
between. On the other side of the Rockies, the most important population
centers in western Colorado (known as the "Western Slope") are the
cities of Grand Junction, Durango and Montrose.
Colorado's climate is more complex than other states outside the
Mountain States region. Unlike most other states, southern Colorado is
not always warmer than the north. Most of Colorado is made up of
mountains, foothills, high plains, and desert lands. The surrounding
mountains and valleys greatly affect the local climate.
Northeastern, eastern, and southeastern Colorado are primarily high
plains, while northern Colorado is a mix of high plains, foothills, and
mountains. Northwestern and western Colorado are predominantly
mountainous, with some desert lands mixed in. Southwest and southern
Colorado are a complex mix of desert and mountainous areas.
The
climate of the Eastern Plains is semi-arid (Köppen climate
classification: BSk), with low humidity and moderate rainfall, normally
380 to 640 millimeters (15 to 25 in) annually, although many areas near
rivers have a semi-humid climate. The area is known for its abundant
sunshine and cool, clear nights, which give this area a large average
diurnal temperature range.
The difference between the maximums of
the days and the minimums of the nights can be considerable, since heat
is dissipated into space during clear nights, as thermal radiation is
not trapped by the clouds. The Front Range urban corridor, where most of
Colorado's population resides, is in a pronounced precipitation shadow
because it is downwind of the Rocky Mountains.
In summer, this
area can have many days above 35 °C (95 °F) and often 38 °C (100 °F).
In the plains, winter minimums usually range between -4 and -23 °C ( 25
and -10°F). About 75% of rainfall falls during the growing season, from
April to September, but this area is very prone to drought. Most
precipitation comes from storms, which can be strong, and from large
snowstorms that occur in winter and early spring. Otherwise, winters are
usually dry and cold.
In much of the region, March is the
snowiest month. April and May are typically the wettest months, while
April is the wettest month overall. Front Range cities closest to the
mountains tend to be warmer in winter due to Chinook winds, which warm
the area, sometimes reaching temperatures of 70 °F (21 °C) or higher in
winter. The average temperature in July It is 13°C (55°F) in the
morning and 32°C (90°F) in the afternoon. The average temperature in
January is 18°F (-8°C) in the morning and 48°F (9°C) in the afternoon,
although the variation between consecutive days can be 40°F (-40°C) .
West of the plains and in the foothills, there is a wide variety of
climate types. Places located a few kilometers away from each other can
have a totally different climate depending on the topography. Most
valleys have a semi-arid climate, not unlike that of the eastern plains,
which changes to an alpine climate in the higher areas. Microclimates
also exist in local areas that cover almost the entire spectrum of
climates, such as highland subtropical (Cfb/Cwb), humid subtropical
(Cfa), humid continental (Dfa/Dfb), Mediterranean (Csa/Csb) and the
subarctic (Dfc).
Extreme weather changes are common in Colorado, although a
significant portion of them occur in less populated areas of the state.
Thunderstorms are common east of the Continental Divide in spring and
summer, although they are usually brief. Hail is common in the mountains
east of the divide and on the eastern plains, especially in the
northeastern part of the state. Hail is the most commonly reported
severe warm-season weather hazard, occasionally causing human injuries
as well as significant property damage. The Eastern Plains are subject
to some of the largest hail storms in North America. Notable examples
are the severe hail storms that hit Denver on July 11, 1990, and on May
8, 2017, the latter being the costliest ever to occur in the state.
The Eastern Plains are part of the extreme western portion of
Tornado Alley; Some damaging tornadoes in the Eastern Plains include the
1990 Limón F3 tornado and the 2008 Windsor EF3 tornado, which devastated
a small town. Portions of the Eastern Plains see especially frequent
tornadoes, both those generated by mesocyclones in supercellular storms
and by less intense landfall, such as within the Denver Convergence
Vorticity Zone (DCVZ).
The Plains are also susceptible to
occasional flooding and particularly severe flash floods, caused by both
storms and rapid snowmelt in the mountains during hot weather. Some
notable examples are the Denver flood of 1965, the Big Thompson River
flood of 1976, and the Colorado floods of 2013. Heat is common during
summers in Denver. The city's 1901 record for consecutive days above 90
°F (32 °C) was broken during the summer of 2008. The new record of 24
consecutive days surpassed the previous one by almost a week.
Most of Colorado is very dry, with an average annual precipitation of
only 430 millimeters (17 inches) statewide. Lack of precipitation
contributes to the severity of wildfires, such as the Hayman Fire in
2002. Other notable fires include the 2010 Fourmile Canyon Fire, the
Waldo Canyon Fire, the June 2012 High Park Fire, and the Black Forest
Fire of June 2013. Even these fires were surpassed in severity by the
2020 Pine Gulch, Cameron Peak, and East Troublesome fires, all three of
the largest fires in Colorado history.) And the Marshall Fire, which
began on December 30, 2021, although not the largest in the state's
history, was the most destructive in terms of material losses.
However, some of Colorado's mountain regions receive an enormous amount
of moisture from winter snowfalls. The spring melting of these snows
often causes large flows of water in the Yampa River, Colorado River,
Rio Grande River, Arkansas River, North Platte River, and South Platte
River.
The water flowing from the Colorado Rocky Mountains is a
very important source of water for farms, towns and cities in the
southwestern states of New Mexico, Arizona, Utah and Nevada, as well as
the Midwest, such as Nebraska and Kansas, and the southern states of
Oklahoma and Texas. A significant amount of water is also diverted for
use in California; Occasionally (previously naturally and constantly),
the flow of water reaches northern Mexico.
A process of extirpation by trapping and poisoning of Colorado's gray
wolf (Canis lupus) in the 1930s led to the state's last wild wolf being
killed in 1945. A pack of wolves recolonized Moffat County, Colorado, in
the northwest of Colorado in 2019.
Some ranchers have expressed
concern that a returning wolf population could potentially threaten
their herds.32 Coloradans voted to reintroduce gray wolves in 2020, with
the state committing to a plan to have a population in the state by 2022
and allowing non-lethal methods to deter wolves that attack livestock
and pets.
Although there is fossil evidence of the presence of
the Harrington mountain goat in Colorado between at least 800,000 years
ago and its extinction with megafauna approximately 11,000 years ago,
the mountain goat is not native to Colorado, but was introduced to the
state during the interval between 1947 and 1972. Despite being an
artificially introduced species, the state declared the ibex a native
species in 1993. In 2013, 2014 and 2019, an unknown disease killed
almost all ibex offspring, causing which led to an investigation by
Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
The native pronghorn population in
Colorado has fluctuated wildly over the past century, reaching a low of
just 15,000 individuals during the 1960s. However, conservation efforts
brought the stable population back to about 66,000 in 2013. The
population is estimated to have reached 85,000 in 2019 and increasingly
clashed with the increase in suburban housing along the eastern front
range.
State wildlife officials suggested that landowners would
have to modify fencing to allow the greatest number of pronghorns to
move smoothly across the newly developed lands. Pronghorns are most
easily found in the northern and eastern portions. of the state, with
some populations also in the western mountains of San Juan.
Common fauna of the Colorado mountains include the mule deer,
southwestern red squirrel, golden-mantled ground squirrel,
yellow-bellied groundhog, elk, American pika, and red fox, all of which
are in numbers. exceptionally tall, although elk are not native to the
state. Deer, fox squirrel, desert cottontail, mountain cottontail, and
coyote occur in the foothills. The prairies are home to the black-tailed
prairie dog, the endangered swift fox, the American badger, and the
white-tailed jackrabbit
By AD 400, the western reaches of the Fremont Indian culture extended into eastern Colorado. 1000 years before the arrival of the first white people in Colorado, representatives of the Anasazi culture settled in what is now Mesa Verde National Park in the far southwest of the state, and built impressive buildings here, such as the so-called Cliff Palace. Historically, Cheyenne and Ute Indians lived in the region. The Navajo sphere of influence extended into Colorado to the southwest, and the Kiowa to the southeast.
Colorado was probably first explored by the Spanish in the
early 17th century. It is disputed whether the Spaniard Francisco
Vásquez de Coronado on his expedition from Mexico to today's Kansas
(1540-1542) already touched the eastern plains of today's Colorado and
was therefore the first European on the soil of today's state. Also
mentioned in this context is Juan de Oñate, who led an expedition from
New Mexico to Kansas around 1600. However, the southeastern part of
present-day Colorado was not claimed for the Spanish kingdom until 1706
by Juan de Uribarri. The territorial claim collided with the economic
interests of the French, although they primarily promoted colonization
on the Saint Lawrence River (today Canada).
After the defeat in
the French and Indian War (1754-1760) against the British Empire, France
had to cede all areas west of the Mississippi River to Great Britain,
with the exception of New Orleans (which later became the Louisiana
Territory). This caused tensions between Spain and France, which only
ended on October 1, 1800 under pressure from Napoleon I with the Peace
of San Ildefonso and the associated reconquest of the Central American
areas by France. A little later, in 1803, the territory finally fell to
the United States through the so-called Louisiana Purchase.
While
the western part of today's Colorado - the southern Rocky Mountains and
parts of the Colorado Plateau - remained undisputed territory of the
Spaniards (New Spain), the first explorations by the Americans began in
the east in 1806. A first dispatch of American soldiers under the
direction of Zebulon Pike led in the Pike expedition from Fort
Bellefontaine (near Saint Louis) to the eastern foothills of the Rocky
Mountains (Front Range), which were reached by the end of 1806. The
exploration focused on the Arkansas catchment area, which was viewed by
the Americans as the southern border with New Spain, although an
official borderline was never agreed between France and Spain until the
Louisiana Purchase. It was only officially established in 1819 in the
so-called Adams-Onís Treaty, in which the western border was also agreed
upon in addition to Arkansas in the south with the continental divide.
This was followed in 1820 by the second major expedition, led by Stephen
H. Long, which focused on the South Platte River and the region around
present-day Denver.
Although more and more fur trappers made their way into what is now
Colorado after Pike and Long's initial explorations in the years that
followed, larger settlements did not begin until the 1830s with the
construction of Bent's Fort The fort built on the Santa Fe Trail quickly
became an important trading post between white and indigenous people.
Meanwhile, New Mexican settlers settled in the San Luis Valley between
the San Juan Mountains and the Sangre de Cristo Range and made their
living from agriculture. With San Luis they founded on June 21, 1851 the
first permanent settlement in what later became Colorado.
Meanwhile, from 1850 onwards, the political division of the land in the
east acquired in the Louisiana Purchase as well as the newly acquired
areas from the Rocky Mountains to the Pacific coast after the war with
Mexico (1846–1848) began. The so-called Kansas-Nebraska Act established
the boundary between the territories of Nebraska and Kansas. The latter
extended beyond today's western boundary and occupied most of the High
Plains between South Platte and the Arkansas River up to the Front
Range. In the mountains, the Utah Territory, founded in 1850, joined,
while the remaining areas of today's Colorado were parts of Nebraska
(northeast) and New Mexico (south). The Colorado Territory, on the other
hand, was not formed until 1861 with the gold rush in Pikes Peak
Country.
Relations between whites
and Indians in the High Plains region had been mostly friendly until
then, after initial reservations. This changed from the early 1850s,
when reports of gold discoveries in California led to ever-increasing
streams of settlers through the Great Plains and the Rocky Mountains
led. When in June 1858 gold was found for the first time at the
confluence of South Platte and Cherry Creek (today Denver) and
prospectors founded the first larger settlements on the river and in the
surrounding mountains, tensions between the white and indigenous
population increased. In the mountains, the number of mining camps grew
steadily and the region around Black Hawk, Central City, Nevadaville and
Idaho Springs became a center of the gold rush around the year 1860.
However, the greatest growth in the region, which at that time still
belonged to Kansas, was recorded in Denver City, which was founded in
1858 and two years later was incorporated into the neighboring city of
Auraria and now had around 6,000 inhabitants. The rapidly increasing
population spurred plans to establish the region as a separate
territory. This finally happened on February 28, 1861, when US President
James Buchanan signed a corresponding law in the US Congress and
appointed William Gilpin as the first governor. The young Colorado
territory was divided into 17 districts and had around 25,000
inhabitants when it was founded; The capital was initially Colorado
City. However, Denver City, which was only renamed "Denver" in 1865,
remained more important, even though the city had to be rebuilt after a
major fire in 1863. In Golden, which replaced Colorado City as the
territory's capital in 1862, Denver was designated the new capital of
Colorado in 1867. Although, it soon became apparent, Cherry Creek wasn't
the vein of gold it had hoped for, Denver benefited from the wealth of
nearby Front Range towns. At the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, the
capital consolidated its central position with the consistent expansion
of the rail network in the early 1870s. The first milestones were the
connection to the network of the Kansas Pacific Railway, which expanded
its rail network from Kansas City to Denver in 1870, and the
construction of the Denver and Pacific Railroad, which connected to the
Union Pacific Railroad in Cheyenne (Wyoming). Denver's connection to
southwestern Colorado followed in 1871 with the construction of the
Denver & Rio Grande Railway. In 1872, the Colorado Central Railroad
completed the route leading to the neighboring gold rush towns of Black
Hawk and Central City.
In 1879 the silver boom broke out in
Colorado and Leadville and Aspen became the most important mining towns
during this time. Their development was supported by the further
expansion of the Denver & Rio Grande Railway, which continued its
network in the 1870s from Pueblo through the Royal Gorge towards
Leadville and finally reached the city in 1881. By then, the
economically up-and-coming Colorado had long since achieved
independence. While many initially had concerns about higher taxes and
too much interference on the part of Washington, the Colorado Territory
joined the United States on August 1, 1876 as the 38th state while
retaining its previous borders.
The founding of the Colorado Territory in 1861 and the proliferation
of settlement along Cherry Creek was an affront to the Cheyenne and
Arapaho, who had been granted the area around what later became Denver
by the Treaty of Fort Laramie (1851). Their resettlement in the Arkansas
river valleys provoked backlash from Native Americans, ranging from
stagecoach robberies to the murder of isolated settlers. On November 29,
1864, in an unprecedented retaliatory attack, troops of the Colorado
Third Cavalry, commanded by John M. Chivington, broke into an
unfortified Indian village and murdered 133 men, women, and children.
The cruel actions of the US military in that Sand Creek massacre briefly
sensitized the white population to the interests of the Indians, but
also stood in the way of peaceful coexistence. The ensuing military
conflicts lasted about five years and ended after the battles of Beecher
Island (September 1868; near present-day Wray) and Summit Springs (July
1869) with the surrender of the Cheyenne and Arapaho, who recently
formed an alliance with some other Indian tribes against the whites had
formed. As early as 1867, a large-scale resettlement of Indians from the
Colorado Plains to reservations in Oklahoma had begun, which was
considered largely complete by 1874.
The Ute Indians, who live in
the mountains and have not been fundamentally hostile to the US
government to date, also saw themselves exposed to repression after
discovering gold and silver in the 1870s and were transferred to a small
reservation in the Mesa region, im New Mexico border area sent.
Colorado was hit hard by the economic crisis
that began in 1893 (panic of 1893; fall in the value of silver). In
Denver, twelve banks suddenly had to be closed and countless businesses
had to give up. Ambitious plans by the railway companies were stopped
and the closure of many mines caused unemployment to rise rapidly. Many
former mining towns became ghost towns in the 20th century, while better
developed towns found new sources of income in tourism. In particular,
Aspen, Breckenridge and Vail in central Colorado and Telluride in
southwestern Colorado have become popular ski resorts. With the founding
of the Rocky Mountain National Park in 1915, the first major tourist
attraction was also in the Denver catchment area. In the state capital
itself, under Mayor Robert W. Speer, a systematic upgrading of the
cityscape based on the model of the City Beautiful movement began
shortly after the turn of the century. The beautification measures,
which lasted almost 15 years, served not least to raise the morale of
those Denverans who lived in the state capital under really miserable
conditions.
In 1977 the first Special Olympics Winter Games took
place in Steamboat Springs.
On April 20, 1999, the Columbine High
School shooting near Littleton killed 15 and injured 24 others. The act
caused a worldwide sensation, triggered numerous debates about the
possible causes of youth violence and is considered a turning point in
American culture due to its far-reaching consequences. On July 12, 2012,
the city of Aurora made international headlines when 12 people were shot
dead and 58 others injured in the Aurora rampage during a theatrical
screening of The Dark Knight Rises.
In the summer of 2002,
Colorado experienced the most devastating wildfire in state history when
an illegal campfire in Pike National Forest started what is known as the
Hayman Fire. The fire destroyed around 55,000 hectares of forest and was
so threatening in the greater Denver area that individual suburbs had to
be evacuated for a short time. A natural disaster of a completely
different kind finally happened in December 2006, when the state was
caught in a massive blizzard just before the Christmas holidays. The
most important interstate highways had to be closed at times, bringing
public life in the Denver area to a standstill. One of the front range
region's worst snowstorms claimed four lives in Colorado.
Like the federal government and all other U.S. states, the Colorado
state constitution establishes three branches of government: the
legislative, executive, and judicial.
The Governor of Colorado
heads the state's executive branch. The current governor is Jared Polis,
a Democrat. The other elected offices of the state executive are the
Lieutenant Governor of Colorado (elected jointly with the governor), the
Colorado Secretary of State, the Colorado State Treasurer, and the
Colorado Attorney General, all of whom serve four-year terms.
The
Colorado Supreme Court, composed of seven justices, is the highest court
in the state. The Colorado Court of Appeals, with 22 judges, meets in
divisions of three judges each. Colorado is divided into 22 judicial
districts, each of which has a district court and a county court with
limited jurisdiction. The state also has specialized water courts, which
are divided into seven different divisions throughout the state and
which decide on matters related to water rights and the use and
administration of water.
The state legislative body is the
Colorado General Assembly, which consists of two chambers: the House of
Representatives and the Senate. The House has 65 members and the Senate
has 35. In 2021, the Democratic Party had a majority of 20 to 15 in the
Senate and 41 to 24 in the House of Representatives.
The majority
of Colorado residents are natives of other states (nearly 60% according
to the 2000 census), and this is illustrated by the fact that the state
has not had a native-born governor since 1975 (when John David
Vanderhoof left office). position) until 2007, when Bill Ritter took
over; His election the previous year marked the first electoral victory
by a Colorado native in a gubernatorial election since 1958 (Vanderhoof
had risen from the position of lieutenant governor when John Arthur Love
won a position in Richard Nixon's administration in 1973).
The
tax is collected by the Colorado Department of Revenue.
Colorado was once considered a swing state, but has become a
relatively safe blue state in both state and federal elections. In
presidential elections, he had not won by double digits until 2020 since
1984 and has endorsed the winning candidate in 9 of the last 11
elections. Coloradans have elected 17 Democrats and 12 Republicans to
the governorship in the last 100 years.
In presidential politics,
Colorado was considered a reliably Republican state during the
post-World War II era, voting for the Democratic candidate only in 1948,
1964, and 1992. However, it became a competitive swing state in the
1990s. Since the mid-2000s, it has swung strongly toward Democrats,
voting for Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012, Hillary Clinton in 2016, and
Joe Biden in 2020.
Colorado politics has the contrast between
conservative cities like Colorado Springs and Grand Junction and liberal
cities like Boulder and Denver. Democrats are strongest in the Denver
metro area, the college towns of Fort Collins and Boulder, southern
Colorado (including Pueblo), and several western counties with ski
resorts. Republicans are strongest in the eastern plains, Colorado
Springs, Greeley and the western edge of Colorado near Grand Junction.
Adams (Brighton)
Alamosa (Alamosa)
Arapahoe (Littleton)
Archuleta (Pagosa Springs)
Roof Rack (Springfield)
Bent (Las
Animas)
boulder
Broomfield
Chaffee (Exit)
Cheyenne (Cheyenne
Wells)
Clear Creek (Georgetown)
Rabbits (Rabbits)
Rib (San
Luis)
Crowley (Ordway)
Custer (Westcliffe
Delta
Denver
Dolores (Dove Creek)
Douglas (Castle Rock)
Eagle
El Paso
(Colorado Springs)
Elbert (Kiowa)
Fremont (Canyon City)
Garfield (Glenwood Springs)
Gilpin (Central City)
Grand (Hot
Sulfur Springs)
Gunnison
Hinsdale (Lake City)
Orphan
(Walsenburg)
Jackson (Walden)
Jefferson (Golden)
Kiowa (Eads)
Kit Carson (Burlington)
La Plata (Durango)
Lake (Leadville)
Larimer (Fort Collins)
Las Animas (Trinidad)
Lincoln (Hugo)
Logan (Sterling)
Mesa (Grand Junction)
Ore (Creede)
Moffat
(Craig)
Montezuma (Cortez)
Montrose
Morgan (Fort Morgan)
Otero (La Junta)
Ouray
Park (Fairplay)
Phillips (Holyoke)
Pitkin (Aspen)
Prowers (Lamar)
Town (Town)
White River (Meeker)
Rio Grande (Northern)
Routt (Steamboat Springs)
Saguache
(Saguache)
St. John (Silverton)
San Miguel (Telluride)
Sedgwick
(Julesburg)
Summit (Breckenridge)
Teller (Cripple Creek)
Washington (Akron)
Weld (Greeley)
Yuma (Wray)
Colorado has more than 4,000 special districts, most with property
tax authority. These districts may provide schools, law enforcement,
fire protection, water, sewer, drainage, irrigation, transportation,
recreation, infrastructure, cultural facilities, business support,
redevelopment, or other services.
Some of these districts have
the authority to collect sales taxes, as well as property taxes and use
fees. This has led to a hodgepodge of sales and property taxes in
Colorado. There are some street intersections in Colorado with a
different sales tax rate on each corner, sometimes substantially
different.
Some of the most notable districts in Colorado are:
The Regional Transportation District (RTD), which affects Denver,
Boulder, Jefferson counties and parts of Adams, Arapahoe, Broomfield and
Douglas counties.
The Scientific and Cultural Facilities District
(SCFD), a special regional taxing district with physical boundaries
contiguous to those of Adams, Arapahoe, Boulder, Broomfield, Denver,
Douglas, and Jefferson counties.
This is a 0.1% retail sales and use
tax (one cent per $10).
Under Colorado law, the SCFD annually
distributes the money to local organizations. These organizations must
provide the enlightenment and entertainment of the public through the
production, presentation, exhibition, promotion or preservation of art,
music, theater, dance, zoology, botany, natural history or cultural
history.
According to the law, SCFD beneficiary organizations are
currently divided into three "tiers", among which income is distributed
according to a percentage.
Tier I includes regional organizations:
Denver Art Museum, Denver Botanic Gardens, Denver Museum of Nature and
Science, Denver Zoo, and Denver Performing Arts Center. Receives 65.5%.
Level II currently includes 26 regional organizations. Level II receives
21%.
Level III has more than 280 local organizations such as small
theaters, orchestras, arts centers, natural history, cultural history
and community groups. Tier III organizations apply to county cultural
councils for funding through a grant process. This level receives 13.5%.
An 11-member board of directors oversees distributions under Colorado
Revised Statutes. Seven council members are appointed by county
commissioners (in Denver, by the Denver City Council) and four members
are appointed by the governor of Colorado.
The Football Stadium
District (FD or FTBL), approved by voters to pay for and help build the
Denver Broncos' Empower Field at Mile High stadium.
Local Improvement
Districts (LIDs) in designated areas of Jefferson and Broomfield
counties.
The Metropolitan Major League Baseball Stadium District,
approved by voters to pay for and help build the Colorado Rockies' Coors
Field stadium.
Regional Transportation Authority (RTA) with variable
tax rates in Basalt, Carbondale, Glenwood Springs, and Gunnison County.
The state's economy developed from the mid-19th century when
irrigated agriculture was developed and, later, at the end of that
century, livestock farming began to have greater importance. The first
development of the industry was based on the extraction and processing
of minerals and agricultural products. Currently these products are:
cattle, wheat, dairy, corn and hay.
The federal government is one
of the largest economic forces in the state with several important
facilities such as:
Colorado Springs: NORAD and the United States Air
Force Academy.
Boulder: NOAA and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration.
Lakewood: United States Geological Survey Agency and
other federal agencies at the Denver Federal Center.
Denver: The
Denver Mint, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals.
Florence:
Administrative Maximum Security Florence.
There are, of course,
other US government agencies that own land in the state, most notably
the Natural Forest and four National Parks. There are also numerous
private companies that operate in Colorado and do business with
government agencies in the state.
In the second part of the 20th
century, the industrial and service sectors expanded significantly. The
state's economy was notably diversified by the concentration of research
and high-tech industries. Other important industries in Colorado are
food processing, transportation equipment, machinery, chemicals,
minerals such as gold and molybdenum, and tourism. Denver is also an
important financial center of the nation.
The Bureau of Economic
Analysis estimates that the state's total production in 2003 was $87
billion and that per capita income in the same year was $34,561, ranking
Colorado 8th in the nation.
Colorado has significant hydrocarbon resources. According to the
Energy Information Administration, Colorado is home to seven of the
largest natural gas fields in the United States and two of the largest
oil fields. Conventional and unconventional natural gas production from
several Colorado basins typically accounts for more than five percent of
annual U.S. natural gas production. Colorado's oil shale fields are
estimated to contain 1 trillion barrels (160 km3) of oil, almost as much
as the world's proven oil reserves. The state has significant deposits
of bituminous, subbituminous and lignite coal.
Uranium mining in
Colorado dates back to 1872, when pitchblende ore was extracted from
gold mines near Central City, Colorado. Excluding phosphate-derived
uranium, Colorado is considered to have the third-largest uranium
reserves of any U.S. state, behind Wyoming and New Mexico. When Colorado
and Utah dominated radium mining between 1910 and 1922, the byproducts
were uranium and vanadium (after which cities like Uravan, the current
site of the Superfund, are named).
The increase in the price of
uranium between 2001 and 2007 prompted several companies to reactivate
uranium mining in Colorado. During the 1940s, some communities -
including Naturita and Paradox - earned the nickname "yellowcake cities"
for their relationship with uranium mining. The drop in prices and
financing problems at the end of 2008 forced these companies to cancel
or reduce the uranium extraction project. As of 2016, there were no
major uranium mining operations in the state, although there were plans
to resume production.
Sorted by per capita income:
1 Cherry Hills Village $99,996
2
Genesee $79,180
3 Columbine Valley $71,758
4 Castle Pines $70,456
5 Greenwood Village $69,189
6 Bonanza $66,857
7 Bow Mar $53,558
8 Heritage Hills $50,041
9 Perry Park $47,574
10 Lone Tree $46,287
11 Meridian $46,031
12 The Pinery $43,065
13 Eldorado Springs
$42,908
14 Vail $42,390
15 Foxfield $40,970
16 Aspen $40,680
17 Niwot $39,943
18 Mountain Village $39,920
19 Edwards $39,784
20 Pitkins $39,182
21 Telluride $38,832
22 Woodmoor $38,758
23
Castlewood $37,891
24 Vona $37,802
25 Eagle-Vail $37,260
Christianity arrived in Colorado with the Spanish colonizers. Until
Mexican rule, the Catholic Church maintained almost an exclusive
monopoly of the region. With the annexation to the United States,
various Protestant Christian denominations and other non-Christian
religious groups arrived.
The primary religious affiliations of
Coloradans in 2014 were 64% Christian, of whom 44% were Protestants of
various denominations, 16% Catholic, 3% Mormon, and 1% Eastern Orthodox.
Other religious breakdowns according to the Pew Research Center they
were 1% Jewish, 1% Muslim, 1% Buddhist and 4% other. People with no
religious affiliation represented 29% of the population. In 2020,
according to the Public Religion Research Institute, Christianity was
followed by 66% of the population. Judaism also increased in this
separate study, forming 2% of the religious landscape, while the
religiously unaffiliated made up 28% of the population in this separate
study. In 2022, the same organization reported that 61% were Christian (
39% Protestant, 19% Catholic, 2% Mormon, 1% Eastern Orthodox), 2% New
Age, 1% Jewish, 1% Hindu, and 34% religiously unaffiliated.
According to the Association of Religious Data Archives, the largest
Christian denominations by number of faithful in 2010 were the Catholic
Church, with 811,630; multi-denominational evangelical Protestants, with
229,981; and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, with
151,433. In 2020, the Association of Religion Data Archives determined
that the largest Christian denominations were Catholics (873,236),
Protestants of various denominations (406,798), and Mormons ( 150,509).
Among its non-Christian population, there were 12,500 Hindus, 7,101
Hindu yogis and 17,369 Buddhists in the 2020 study.
Our Lady of
Guadalupe Catholic Church was the first permanent Catholic parish in
present-day Colorado and was built by Spanish settlers from New Mexico
in present-day Conejos. Catholics of the Latin Church are served by
three dioceses: the Archdiocese of Denver and the dioceses of Colorado
Springs and Pueblo.
The first permanent settlement of members of
the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Colorado came from
Mississippi and initially camped along the Arkansas River, just east of
the present-day site of Pueblo.
The first institution of higher learning in the Colorado Territory
was the Colorado Seminary, opened on November 16, 1864 by the Methodist
Episcopal Church. The seminary closed in 1867, but reopened in 1880 as
the University of Denver. In 1870, Bishop George Maxwell Randall of the
Colorado and Adjacent Missionary District of the Episcopal Church opened
the first of what would become the Colorado College Schools, which would
include the Territorial School of Mines opened in 1873 and sold to the
Territory of Colorado in 1874. These schools were initially run by the
Episcopal Church. An 1861 land law called for the creation of a public
university in Boulder, although it would not be until 1876 that the
University of Colorado was founded. The 1876 law also changed The name
of the Territorial School of Mines was the Colorado School of Mines. A
territorial law of 1870 created the Colorado Agricultural College, which
opened its doors in 1879. The college was renamed Colorado State College
of Agriculture and Mechanic Arts. Colorado in 1935, and became Colorado
State University in 1957.
The first Catholic college in Colorado
was the Jesuit College of the Sacred Heart, founded in New Mexico in
1877, moved to Morrison in 1884 and Denver in 1887. The college was
renamed Regis College in 1921 and Regis University in 1991. On 1 April
1924, armed students patrolled the campus after a burning cross was
found, the height of tensions between Regis College and the locally-held
Ku Klux Klan.
Following an evaluation in 1950 by the Service
Academies Board, it was determined that it was necessary to supplement
the United States Military and Naval Academies with a third school to
provide commissioned officers for the newly independent Air Force. On
April 1, 1954, President Dwight Eisenhower signed legislation creating
the US Air Force Academy. That same year, Colorado Springs was chosen to
host the new institution. From its inception in 1955, until construction
of the appropriate facility in Colorado Springs was completed and it
opened in 1958, the Army Air Academy operated out of Lowry Air Force
Base in Denver. With the opening of the Colorado Springs facility,
cadets moved to the new campus, although not in the full gear that some
urban and campus legends suggest. The Academy's first class of Space
Force officers Air Force entered service on April 18, 2020.
Some
of the major educational institutions at the university level include:
The University System of Colorado
University of Colorado at Boulder
University of Colorado at Colorado Springs
University of Colorado at
Denver
University of Colorado Health Sciences Center
United States
Air Force Academy
Colorado State University System
Colorado State
University
Adams State College
Colorado Christian University
Colorado College
Colorado School of Mines
Colorado State
University - Pueblo
Colorado Technical University
Fort Lewis
College
Heritage College & Heritage Institute
Jones International
University
Mesa State College
Metropolitan State College of Denver
Naropa Institute
National Technological University
Nazarene Bible
College
Regis University
Rocky Mountain College of Art and Design
University of Denver
University of Northern Colorado
Western State
College
The Colorado State Health System Initiative, Amendment 69, was a
constitutional amendment proposal initiated by citizens in November 2016
to vote for a single-payer health system called ColoradoCare. The system
would have been financed by a 10% payroll tax divided equally between
employers and workers. It would have replaced the private health
insurance premiums currently paid by employees and companies. It would
have started operating in 2019 and was estimated to require revenue of
$38 billion annually (from the federal government and corporate taxes).
payrolls) and would provide coverage to all residents, without
deductibles.
The proposal was rejected by 79% of voters.
Colorado is open to cannabis (marijuana) tourism. With the adoption of
the 64th state amendment in 2012, Colorado became the first state in the
union to legalize marijuana for medicinal (2000), industrial (referring
to hemp, 2012), and recreational (2012) uses. Colorado's marijuana
industry sold $1.31 billion in marijuana in 2016 and $1.26 billion in
the first three quarters of 2017. The state generated tax, fee and
licensing revenue of $194 million. dollars in 2016 from legal marijuana
sales. Colorado regulates hemp as any part of the plant with less than
0.3% THC.
On April 4, 2014, Senate Bill 14-184 addressing
oversight of Colorado's industrial hemp program was first introduced,
eventually being signed into law by Governor John Hickenlooper on May
31, 2014.
On November 7, 2000, 54% of Colorado voters approved
the 20th Amendment, which amends the Colorado State Constitution to
allow the medicinal use of marijuana. The medical use of marijuana by a
patient, Within the following limits, it is legal:
(I) No more than 2
ounces (57 g) of a usable form of marijuana; and
(II) No more
than twelve marijuana plants, of which six or fewer must be mature
flowering plants that produce a usable form of marijuana.
Currently, Colorado has listed "eight medical conditions for which
patients can use marijuana - cancer, glaucoma, HIV/AIDS, muscle spasms,
seizures, severe pain, severe nausea and cachexia, or dramatic weight
loss and muscle atrophy." While governor, John Hickenlooper allocated
about half of the state's $13 million "Medical Marijuana Program Cash
Fund" to medical research in the 2014 budget. By 2018, the Medical
Marijuana Program Cash Fund was the "largest pool of marijuana money in
the state" and was used to fund programs including research into
pediatric applications to manage autism symptoms.
Colorado's primary mode of transportation (in terms of passengers) is
its highway system. Interstate 25 (I-25) is the state's major
north-south highway, connecting Pueblo, Colorado Springs, Denver, and
Fort Collins, and extending north to Wyoming and south to New Mexico.
I-70 is the main east-west corridor. It connects Grand Junction and
mountain communities with Denver and extends into Utah and Kansas. The
state is home to a network of US and Colorado highways that provide
access to major areas of the state. Many smaller communities are
connected to this network only through county roads.
Denver
International Airport (DIA) is the third-busiest U.S. and international
airport in the world by passenger traffic. DIA handles by far the
largest volume of commercial air traffic in Colorado and is the busiest
U.S. hub airport between Chicago and the Pacific coast, making Denver
the most important airport for connecting passenger traffic in the
western United States.
Both intracity and intercity public
transportation bus services are offered, including metro Denver RTD
services. The Regional Transportation District (RTD) manages the popular
RTD Bus & Rail transit system in the Denver metropolitan area. As of
January 2013, RTD's rail system had 170 light rail vehicles, serving 47
miles (76 km) of track. In addition to local public transportation,
Burlington Trailways, Bustang, Express Arrow and Greyhound Lines provide
intercity bus service.
Amtrak operates two passenger rail lines
in Colorado, the California Zephyr and the Southwest Chief. Colorado's
contribution to world railroad history was shaped primarily by the
Denver and Rio Grande Western Railroad, which began in 1870 and wrote
the book on mountain railroading. In 1988, its co-owner Philip Anschutz
acquired the "Rio Grande" and merged it with the Southern Pacific
Railroad. On September 11, 1996, Anschutz sold the combined company to
Union Pacific Railroad, creating the largest railroad network in the
United States. The sale of Anschutz was in part a response to the
earlier merger of Burlington Northern and Santa Fe, which formed the
large Burlington Northern and Santa Fe Railway (BNSF), Union Pacific's
main competitor in the western United States railroad. Both Union
Pacific and BNSF conduct extensive freight operations in Colorado.
Colorado's freight railroad network consists of 2,688 miles of Class
I track. It is an integral part of the United States railroad network.
It is integral to the United States economy, being a critical artery for
the movement of energy, agriculture, mining and industrial raw
materials, as well as general cargo and manufactured goods between the
East and Midwest and the Pacific Coast states.
In August 2014,
Colorado began issuing driver's licenses to foreigners who were not
legally in the United States and who lived in Colorado. In September
2014, KCNC reported that 524 noncitizens were issued Colorado driver's
licenses that would normally be issued. issued to US citizens living in
Colorado.
Interstate 25
Interstate 70
Interstate 76
US Route 6
US
Route 24
US Route 34
US Route 36
US Route 40
US Route 50
US Route 85
US Route 87
US Route 285
Art and cinema
Several film productions have been filmed in
Colorado, especially notable Western films such as True Grit, The
Searchers and Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Several historic
military forts, railroads with trains still in operation, and ghost
mining towns have been used and transformed for greater historical
fidelity in well-known films. There are also several scenic roads and
mountain passes that helped showcase the open road in movies such as
Vanishing Point, Bingo and Starman.
Some Colorado landmarks have
appeared in movies, including The Stanley Hotel in Dumb and Dumber and
The Shining and the Sculptured House in Sleeper. In 2015, Furious 7 went
to film driving sequences on the Pikes Peak Highway in Colorado. The
adult animated television series South Park takes place in central
Colorado, in the titular town. Additionally, the television series Good
Luck Charlie was set, but not filmed, in Denver, Colorado. The Colorado
Film and Television Office has noted that more than 400 films have been
filmed in Colorado.
There are also several film festivals
established in Colorado, such as Aspen Shortsfest, Boulder International
Film Festival, Castle Rock Film Festival, Denver Film Festival, Festivus
Film Festival, Mile High Horror Film Festival, Moondance International
Film Festival, Mountainfilm in Telluride, Rocky Mountain Women's Film
Festival and Telluride Film Festival.
Many notable writers have
lived or spent extended periods of time in Colorado. Beat Generation
writers Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady lived in and around Denver for
several years each. Irish playwright Oscar Wilde visited Colorado on his
tour of the United States in 1882, and in his Impressions of the Country
in 1906 he wrote that Leadville was "the richest city in the world." It
also has a reputation for being the toughest, and everyone carries a
revolver."
Colorado is known for its Southwestern and Rocky Mountain cuisine,
with Mexican restaurants throughout the state.
Bon Appétit named
Boulder America's Foodiest City in 2010. Boulder, and Colorado in
general, is home to several national food and beverage companies,
top-notch restaurants, and farmers markets. Boulder also has more master
sommeliers per capita than any other city, including San Francisco and
New York. Denver is known for its steaks, but now has a diverse
culinary scene with numerous restaurants.
Polidori sausage is a
brand of pork products available in supermarkets, originating in
Colorado in the early 20th century.
The Food & Wine Classic is
held annually in June in Aspen. Aspen is also reputed to be the culinary
capital of the Rocky Mountain region.
Colorado wines include
award-winning varietals that have attracted favorable attention from
outside the state. With wines made from the traditional Vitis vinifera
grapes along with wines made from cherries, peaches, plums and honey,
Colorado wines have Colorado has won top national and international
awards for quality. Colorado's grape-growing regions contain the highest
altitude vineyards in the United States, and most of the state's
viticulture is practiced between 1,219 and 2,134 m ( 4,000 and 7,000
feet) above sea level.
The mountain climate guarantees warm days
in summer and cool nights. Colorado has two American wine regions, the
Grand Valley AVA and the West Elks AVA, where most of the state's
vineyards are located. However, an increasing number of wineries are
located along the Front Range. In 2018, Wine Enthusiast magazine named
Colorado's Grand Valley AVA, in Mesa County, Colorado, one of the top
ten wine travel destinations in the world.
Colorado has numerous
nationally acclaimed microbreweries, such as New Belgium Brewing
Company, Odell Brewing Company, Great Divide Brewing Company, and
Bristol Brewing Company. The area of northern Colorado, near and between
the cities of Denver, Boulder and Fort Collins, is known as the "Napa
Valley of Beer" due to its high density of craft breweries.
The state of Colorado has professional teams in the five major sports
leagues, all of them based in the city of Denver: the Denver Broncos
have played in the National Football League since 1960; The Denver
Nuggets have played in the National Basketball Association since 1967;
The Colorado Rockies have competed in Major League Baseball since 1993;
The Colorado Avalanche has participated in the National Hockey League
since 1995; and the Colorado Rapids have played in Major League Soccer
since 1996.
The state's main university team is the Colorado
Buffaloes, which in American football has won five Big Eight conference
titles, one in the Big 12, two Orange Bowls, one Cotton Bowl and one
Fiesta Bowl.
The Unser family has been notable in motorsports,
particularly Al Unser, Bobby Unser and Al Unser Jr., who won the
Indianapolis 500. The Pikes Peak International Hill Climb is a mountain
race where international rally drivers have competed. For its part, the
IndyCar Series, NASCAR Busch Series and NASCAR Truck Series have
competed at Pikes Peak International Raceway.
Cherry Hills Golf
Course hosted the US Open, US Women's Open, US Veterans Open and the PGA
Championship.
Several of the country's largest ski resorts are
located in the state. The resorts of Aspen, Vail and Beaver Creek are
three of the most visited in the entire United States, and are also
regular venues for the Alpine Ski World Cup.
Other Colorado
professional teams are:
Colorado Crush, Arena Football League
Colorado Mammoth, National Lacrosse League
Colorado Springs Sky Sox,
Minor League Baseball (AAA)
Colorado Eagles, Central Hockey League
Colorado Chill, National Women's Basketball League