Where is the Colorado Plateau located and what is it? This is the name of the area, which, in fact, is an intermountain region in the western United States. This plateau has many attractive natural attractions for tourists. There are mountains, former volcanoes, amazingly colorful canyons and picturesque outliers. Thanks to the huge Colorado River, many forests are scattered across the plateau. But its main area is the desert. However, due to the huge number of canyons on the plateau, most of the country's national parks are located.
Where is the Colorado Plateau in the USA
This unique natural monument is located in the southwestern United States. Its area is more than three hundred thousand square kilometers. It is located on the territory of several states. These are Utah, Colorado (southeastern plateau), New Mexico, and Arizona (northwestern). There are many picturesque hills with flat peaks. They formed as a result of the destructive work of the Colorado River, originating in the Rocky Mountains, as well as its tributaries of the Green River and San Juan. The uranium ores of this plateau are among the largest reserves in the world. Therefore, these places are not only beautiful, but play an important role in the country's economy. Two thirds of all uranium in the United States is mined here.
Grand Canyon
This is the most famous place in the world, thanks to which even children know where the Colorado Plateau in the USA is located. Photos of this amazing area, in which 4 million travelers come every year, have flown around all countries. Magazines print them, we are happy to watch all kinds of travel shows on TV, where the heroes ride kayaks in the canyon or climb the rocks. The Grand or Grand Canyon has a length of more than 440 kilometers. Its plateau is located at an altitude of about 1800-2000 thousand meters above sea level. The canyon is a national park named after him. In addition to various tourist sites, there are reservations of various Indian tribes. The most famous among them are Navajo. The Grand Canyon is located in Arizona.
Capitol reef
For many thousands of years, the Colorado Plateau was exposed to weathering and water erosion. Because of this, thousands of canyons of amazing shape have formed here. Most plateau national parks are associated with these long bizarre gorges. One of the most famous is Canyonlands Park in Utah. There really is a whole world consisting of mountain formations. There are thousands of them, both large and smaller. There are also specific national parks in Canyonlands. One of them, Capitol Reef, is known to tourists as the land of the most bizarre mountains, rocky monoliths and ledges with breathtaking views. The local ranges are interesting in that they often look like real castles with suspension bridges. Capitol Reef has a well-developed tourist infrastructure, and the paths that travelers take are not too complicated. Therefore, people with families and children often come here.
Other Canyons of the Colorado Plateau
Bryce National Park is interesting in that its winding gorges have a different geological structure. It is the highest among the canyons of the plateau. The nature here is completely different, the rocks are reddish and orange in color, and the troughs resemble giant amphitheaters. Unlike desert canyons, in Bryce there are many forests and meadows, a hundred species of birds. You can see the cougar, bear, deer, mountain lion. At night, astronomers come to local sites to observe the stars. In winter, they snowboard here. Near the city of Springdale is another interesting national park of the Colorado Plateau - Zion. It consists of blocks of sandstone red and yellow. This canyon is created by the Virgin River. It is located near the Mojave Desert. Therefore, there is a forest, and a river floodplain, and quicksand. The gorges are deep, and the cliffs are bizarre and incredibly picturesque. Another strange place is the Black Canyon of Gunnison. The river that created it is so deep that the Indians considered it bottomless. There is still no bridge over it. In these mountains there are many artificial ponds and recreation areas with beaches and campsites.
Amazing and strange places
In addition to gorges and canyons, the Colorado Plateau is also known for other attractions. One of them is the "Petrified Forest" in Arizona. This is not about some bizarre rock formations. These are real trees that have turned into stone. Here they represent whole deposits lying in the open air for thousands of years. In the territory of this national park is located the famous Colored Desert. She is known for the fact that all of her hills and highlands seem to be decorated in the style of bright colors. They shimmer with green, violet, blue, red and yellow stripes. And all this amazing mosaic occupies about 20 thousand square kilometers. Thousands of tourists from all over the world are going to see this rainbow colors carnival. Plateau tours are most often organized from Las Vegas. And it is most convenient to travel on it on “campers”, which you can “load” with your family or company and stop at special places provided for this. Tourists eat in different ways, both cooking on their own, and stopping by at restaurants, which are numerous here.