Cimarron Ridge

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Cimarron Ridge
Cimarron Range in Sep 2014.jpg
Part of the ridge as viewed from the west
Highest point
Elevation 3,710 m (12,170 ft) [1]
Coordinates 38°12′36″N107°34′32″W / 38.21000°N 107.57556°W / 38.21000; -107.57556 Coordinates: 38°12′36″N107°34′32″W / 38.21000°N 107.57556°W / 38.21000; -107.57556 [2]
Geography
USA Colorado relief location map.svg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Cimarron Ridge
Location in Colorado
LocationSouthwestern Colorado
Parent range San Juan Mountains
Topo map USGS Courthouse Mountain
Washboard Rock
Buckhorn Lakes
Geology
Mountain type Ridge

Cimarron Ridge [2] is a ridge in the San Juan Mountains in southwestern Colorado. The ridge runs north-south and occupies parts of Gunnison, Montrose, Ouray, and Hinsdale counties. The ridge parallels U.S. Highway 550, and parts of the ridge can be seen from points along the highway.

Contents

Prominent peaks

Sunset at Chimney Rock, Colorado, in autumn Chimney Rock Cimarron Ridge Sunset.jpg
Sunset at Chimney Rock, Colorado, in autumn

Peaks along the ridge include Courthouse Mountain, elevation 12,172 ft (3,710 m), [1] and Chimney Rock, elevation 10,958 ft (3,340 m). [3] Chimney Rock is known for appearing in the 1969 western motion picture True Grit and is considered among the most difficult peaks to climb in Colorado. [4]

Geology

The ridge is made up of green and gray tuff breccia and is the "erosional remains of a larger volcanic pile that surrounded several volcanoes." [5] The Cimarron Ridge Formation takes its name from the ridge. [6]

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Dunsinane Mountain, or officially Dunsinane, is a 12,742-foot-elevation (3,884 meter) mountain summit located in Hinsdale County, of Colorado, United States. It is situated 11 miles east of the community of Ridgway, in the Uncompahgre Wilderness, on land managed by Uncompahgre National Forest. It is part of the San Juan Mountains which are a subset of the Rocky Mountains, and is situated west of the Continental Divide. Topographic relief is significant as the east aspect rises 2,500 feet (760 meters) above the Middle Fork Cimarron River valley in approximately one mile. The mountain's name was officially adopted as Dunsinane by the United States Board on Geographic Names in 1966, and is so named because it resembles the castle Dunsinane of Shakespeare's Macbeth.

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Courthouse Mountain is a 12,152-foot-elevation (3,704 meter) mountain summit located on the shared boundary of Hinsdale County with Ouray County, in southwest Colorado, United States. It is situated 10.5 miles east of the community of Ridgway, and south of Owl Creek Pass, in the Uncompahgre Wilderness, on land managed by Uncompahgre National Forest. It is part of the San Juan Mountains which are a subset of the Rocky Mountains, and is situated west of the Continental Divide. Topographic relief is significant as the east aspect rises nearly 2,000 feet (610 meters) above West Fork Cimarron River in approximately one-half mile, and with its prominence can be seen from Highway 550 near Ridgway. The mountain's name, which has been officially adopted by the United States Board on Geographic Names, was in use before 1906 when Henry Gannett published it in the Gazetteer of Colorado.

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References

  1. 1 2 "Courthouse Mountain". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  2. 1 2 "Cimarron Ridge". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  3. "Chimney Rock". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior.
  4. "Courthouse Mountain" . Retrieved April 22, 2011.
  5. "Geologic Unit: Cimarron Ridge, Geolex — Significant Publications". National Geologic Map Database. U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey. 2020-01-14. Retrieved 2020-04-21.
  6. "Geologic Unit: Cimarron Ridge, Geolex — Unit Summary". National Geologic Map Database. U.S. Department of the Interior, U.S. Geological Survey. 2020-01-14. Retrieved 2020-04-21.