The Pulaski citizen. [volume] (Pulaski, Tenn.) 1866-current, 1874-01-08
The Colorado Mountain Peaks.

Mr.. James T. Gardner, the gee
grapher of the Hayden scientific expe-
dition, in Colorado, the past season, has
contributed brief article to the Amer
lean Journal of Science, in which sew
eral interesting facts are grouped in re-
gard to the number and elevation of the
mountain peaks of alI that region. He
states that from Mt. Lincoln two hun
dred peaks can be counted, of 13, 600
feet and over. OF the three great ran
ges which lie between latitude 80, 80,
and 40, 80, the most eastern was named
the Fort range, in which are Longs
peak, Mt. Tory, Gray's peak, Mt. Rosa,
Mt. Evans, Pixies peak, attaining an ell
ovation of from 600 to IA, 200 feet
above the level of the sea. West of the
fort range lie the great parks, separated
from each other by comparatively low
or broken cross ridges. Parallel with
it, and about forty miles farther west,
is grand line of mountains, forming
the western boundary of the south, mid
die and north parks. We named this
the park range. Its highest points are
near the junction of the cross range
that divides the south from the middle
park. They are the Mt. Lincoln group,
which include twenty peaks that exceed
5000 feet in height; and its culmina-
ting points, Lincoln and Quandary rise
above $4,000. Twenty miles farther
north, the range becomes very sharply
crested wall, with many 13,0O0-foot
peaks, and with its eliminating points
rising to 13, 300 feet. This we call the
blue river group. To its northmost and
highest summit belongs the name of
Mt. Powell, from the gallant explorer
by whom it was first assembled in 1868.
From Mt. Powell Tor Inward there are
no high peaks until opposite the north
park, where the range rises again into
SUBMITS of IL, 600 feet and over. West
of the southern park of the park range
is the Arkansas valley; and beyond this
valley is another grand line of heights,
heretofore unnamed, and which we call
the National range. The highest part
of the national range commences about
twenty miles south of tina holy cross,
in grand mountain, opposite the town
/ of Orc, In the Arkansas valley. Grand
mountain IS about Ii. 200 feet high, and
| from here to 80 miles farther south the
whole range is elevated to 13, 900 feet
while there are ten peaks that rise
| above IA, 900 feet, some of them doubt
less reaching II, 400 These culminat-
ing points rise at intervals of five to
eight miles along the crest of the range.
The one next south of Grand mountain
is Mt. Elbert the next is La Plata
mountain: then come the peaks ma ned
by professor S. d. Whitney in 1869.
Mt. Harvard and Mt. Yale, and so oD.
The National range is one of the grand
est on the continent. Through nearly
is whole extent it forms the divide
between the waters of the Atlantic and
Pacific oceans. West of this range,
and connected with it, is a great group
o mountains. lying in a tli5ngle be
tween the Grand river on the north and
the Gunnison river on the south, and
known as the Elk mountains. The most
elevated peaks of this group from q
ridge about thirty miles long, nearly
parallel with the National range, and
some thirty-five miles west of it, II
the northern end of this line of eleya-
ton, in latitude 80, Is, is Sopris noun.
tain, long, dome shaped ridge, about
10, coo feet high. Tea miles to the
south of it is a sharp cone, overtoppine
all its nCighbors, and rising to about
il, 600 feet this we have named the
Capitol. Three miles further south is
another great peak, only about fifty
feet lower, which we call the White
House, from the conspicuous snow field,
about a mile in horizontal breadth and
having slope OF nan nue. Nnlcl
covers its eastern front. This snow
mass is by far the largest We have found
in the mountains of Colorado, and dis
tinctly marks and characterizes the
peak, even as seen from the Front
range, eighty miles away. Yet further
south, Eve and ten miles respectively,
are two 14,0O0-foot peaks, of dark red
sandstone, which we call Maroon noun
tain and Castle peak. We expect tC
publish accurate panoramic drawings o.
each of these four ranges nothing bui
these and photographs can give an ide'
Of their grand forms and interesting
structure. It seems very remarkable
that, in a region where there are &c
many high peaks, the eliminating
points should all range between IA, 00
and IA, 500 feet. So far as I know
there are twenty-five SUBMITS of thi
class IN our district.