Elk Mountains (Colorado)
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Capitol Peak ( 4307 m)
The Elk Mountains are a mountain range of the Southern Rocky Mountains in the U.S. state of Colorado. The mountain range is located in the County Pitkin and Gunnison and runs over a length of about 80 km in NW- SE direction. Be limited, the Elk Mountains from the Roaring Fork River in the north, of the Sawatch Range in the east, the West Elk Mountains in the southwest and from the Crystal River in the west.
Geology
In the area of today's Elk Mountains there was a very warm and humid climate in the age of carbon. During this time, the coal seams have their origin, which today are located in the western and southern part of the mountain range. The result are the Elk Mountains in the Lara mixing orogeny. It was mainly in the eastern half of the mountain chain to an ascent of magma from which ore deposits were formed. This section of the Elk Mountains is part of the Colorado Mineral Belt. In particular, the occurrence of silver ore dissolved in the 1880s from a true noise and led to a rapid development of the Elk Mountains. Most of these mining towns were but a few decades later disappeared from the map.
Conservation
Large parts of the Elk Mountains lie in the two national forests White River National Forest and Gunnison National Forest. Furthermore, the two nature reserves Maroon Bells -Snowmass Wilderness and Wilderness Raggeds part of the mountain range.
Surveys
- Castle Peak, 4352 m
- Maroon Peak, 4317 m
- Capitol Peak, 4307 m
- Snowmass Mountain, 4295 m
- Pyramid Peak, 4275 m
- Cathedral Peak, 4252 m
- Treasure Mountain, 4125 m