Sangre de Cristo Range
The Sangre de Cristo Range is a mountain range in the Rocky Mountains in southern Colorado in the United States, running north and south along the east side of the Rio Grande Rift. The mountains extend southeast from Poncha Pass for about 75 mi (121 km) through south-central Colorado to La Veta Pass, approximately 20 mi (32 km) west of Walsenburg, and form a high ridge separating the San Luis Valley on the west from the watershed of the Arkansas River on the east. The Sangre de Cristo Range rises over 7,000 ft (2,100 m) above the valleys and plains to the west and northeast.
This article is about the northernmost extent of the greater Sangre de Cristo mountain range. For the full extent of the mountain range, see Sangre de Cristo Mountains.Sangre de Cristo Range
14,345 ft (4,372 m)
75 mi (121 km) north-south
48 mi (77 km) east-west
1,250 sq mi (3,200 km2)
Sangre de Cristo Spanish: Blood of Christ
San Luis Valley and Arkansas River watershed
Fault-block mountains
According to the USGS, the range is the northern part of the larger Sangre de Cristo Mountains, which extend through northern New Mexico. Usage of the terms "Sangre de Cristo Range" and "Sangre de Cristo Mountains" is varied; however, this article discusses only the mountains between Poncha Pass and La Veta Pass.
History[edit]
Antonio Valverde y Cosio named the Sangre de Cristo range after the red-hue that he saw during the snowy sunrise. Sangre de Cristo means Blood of Christ in English.[30]
In the formation of the range, we can see fossils of footprints, shells and bones.[27]
In August 2009, the Sangre de Cristo Range was dedicated as a National Heritage Area (NHA), an area of cultural, natural, and historic preservation.[31]
Economy[edit]
Today, tourism is the main economic activity.