Wet Mountains
Encyclopedia
The Wet Mountains are a small range of mountains in southern Colorado
named for the amount of snow they receive in the winter. There are three variant names of this range: Cuerno Verde, Greenhorn Mountains, and Sierra Mojadas. Most of the range is contained in Custer County
, and run approximately from Highway 50
to Walsenburg.
The tallest mountain is known as the Greenhorn
, which has multiple peaks, the highest of which reaches 12,346 feet. Greenhorn Peak, St Charles Peak and North Peak all go above tree line. Though the mountains do not have high elevations as do many in the state (Colorado has many peaks over 13,000 and 14,000 feet). The range provides the eastern boundary of the Wet Mountain Valley
, bordered on the west by the Sangre de Cristos
.
The valley contains the small towns of Westcliffe
and Silver Cliff
. Within the mountains, Highway 96 weaves its way down to Wetmore
by way of Hardscrabble Canyon and is one of only three main exits from the valley. The only other highway in the range is Highway 165, which travels through the range to Rye
and Colorado City
and can also be noted for Lake Isabel and Bishop's Castle
.
Bishop's Castle is a stone castle made to resemble those of the Middle Ages. Parts are completed and open to the public, and it is also being expanded. Both the lake and the castle can be accessed directly from the highway, which also connects to the access route for climbing the Greenhorn. Other towns/communities in the small range include Beulah
and Rosita
, which is now a ghost town
after a period of gold and silver mining over the past two centuries.
faulted anticline
. The core of the range consists of Precambrian
granitic rocks with Paleozoic
and Mesozoic
strata
in fault contact around the southern end and in the northwest. The range lies on the southeast end of the Central Colorado volcanic field
and contains Eocene
to Oligocene
(38–29 Ma) volcanic rock
s.
Colorado
Colorado is a U.S. state that encompasses much of the Rocky Mountains as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of the Great Plains...
named for the amount of snow they receive in the winter. There are three variant names of this range: Cuerno Verde, Greenhorn Mountains, and Sierra Mojadas. Most of the range is contained in Custer County
Custer County, Colorado
Custer County is the tenth least populous of the 64 counties of the State of Colorado of the United States. The county population was 3,503 at U.S. Census 2000. The county seat is Westcliffe.- History :...
, and run approximately from Highway 50
U.S. Route 50
U.S. Route 50 is a major east–west route of the U.S. Highway system, stretching just over from Ocean City, Maryland on the Atlantic Ocean to West Sacramento, California. Until 1972, when it was replaced by Interstate Highways west of the Sacramento area, it extended to San Francisco, near...
to Walsenburg.
The tallest mountain is known as the Greenhorn
Greenhorn mountain
Greenhorn Mountain is the highest point in the Wet Mountains of southern Colorado and at elevation is just high enough to pass tree line which is about in this part of Colorado. The massive mountain can be seen from Pueblo and all along Interstate 25 rising 6,000 feet above the surrounding area...
, which has multiple peaks, the highest of which reaches 12,346 feet. Greenhorn Peak, St Charles Peak and North Peak all go above tree line. Though the mountains do not have high elevations as do many in the state (Colorado has many peaks over 13,000 and 14,000 feet). The range provides the eastern boundary of the Wet Mountain Valley
Wet Mountain Valley
The Wet Mountain Valley is a high elevation mountain valley located in Custer County in south-central Colorado. The towns in the valley are Westcliffe and Silver Cliff, which are at an elevation of just under 8,000 feet...
, bordered on the west by the Sangre de Cristos
Sangre de Cristo Range
The Sangre de Cristo Range, called the East Range locally in the San Luis Valley, is a narrow mountain range of the Rocky Mountains running north and south along the east side of the Rio Grande Rift in southern Colorado in the United States...
.
The valley contains the small towns of Westcliffe
Westcliffe, Colorado
-Nonprofit Cultural Groups:* * * * * -Media:* * * -External links:***...
and Silver Cliff
Silver Cliff, Colorado
Silver Cliff is a Statutory Town that is the most populous town in Custer County, Colorado, United States. The population was 512 at the 2000 census.-History:...
. Within the mountains, Highway 96 weaves its way down to Wetmore
Wetmore, Colorado
Wetmore is an unincorporated town and a U.S. Post Office located in Custer County, Colorado, United States. The Wetmore Post Office has the ZIP Code 81253....
by way of Hardscrabble Canyon and is one of only three main exits from the valley. The only other highway in the range is Highway 165, which travels through the range to Rye
Rye
Rye is a grass grown extensively as a grain and as a forage crop. It is a member of the wheat tribe and is closely related to barley and wheat. Rye grain is used for flour, rye bread, rye beer, some whiskeys, some vodkas, and animal fodder...
and Colorado City
Colorado City, Colorado
Colorado City is a census-designated place in Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. It is part of the Pueblo Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 2,193 at the 2010 census...
and can also be noted for Lake Isabel and Bishop's Castle
Bishop Castle
Bishop Castle started as a family construction project situated in the Wet Mountains of Southern Colorado in the San Isabel National Forest located North West of Rye, Colorado...
.
Bishop's Castle is a stone castle made to resemble those of the Middle Ages. Parts are completed and open to the public, and it is also being expanded. Both the lake and the castle can be accessed directly from the highway, which also connects to the access route for climbing the Greenhorn. Other towns/communities in the small range include Beulah
Beulah, Colorado
Beulah is an unincorporated town and U.S. Post Office in Pueblo County, Colorado, United States. The ZIP Code of the Beulah Post Office is 81023.-History:...
and Rosita
Rosita, Colorado
Rosita was a silver mining town — now a ghost town — in Custer County, Colorado, United States. Rosita is Spanish for little rose. Although the old town has almost entirely disappeared , the surrounding area has been largely developed into semi-rural home sites.The town was used in the filming of...
, which is now a ghost town
Ghost town
A ghost town is an abandoned town or city. A town often becomes a ghost town because the economic activity that supported it has failed, or due to natural or human-caused disasters such as floods, government actions, uncontrolled lawlessness, war, or nuclear disasters...
after a period of gold and silver mining over the past two centuries.
Geology
The Wet mountains are the east flank of an upliftedTectonic uplift
Tectonic uplift is a geological process most often caused by plate tectonics which increases elevation. The opposite of uplift is subsidence, which results in a decrease in elevation. Uplift may be orogenic or isostatic.-Orogenic uplift:...
faulted anticline
Anticline
In structural geology, an anticline is a fold that is convex up and has its oldest beds at its core. The term is not to be confused with antiform, which is a purely descriptive term for any fold that is convex up. Therefore if age relationships In structural geology, an anticline is a fold that is...
. The core of the range consists of Precambrian
Precambrian
The Precambrian is the name which describes the large span of time in Earth's history before the current Phanerozoic Eon, and is a Supereon divided into several eons of the geologic time scale...
granitic rocks with Paleozoic
Paleozoic
The Paleozoic era is the earliest of three geologic eras of the Phanerozoic eon, spanning from roughly...
and Mesozoic
Mesozoic
The Mesozoic era is an interval of geological time from about 250 million years ago to about 65 million years ago. It is often referred to as the age of reptiles because reptiles, namely dinosaurs, were the dominant terrestrial and marine vertebrates of the time...
strata
Stratum
In geology and related fields, a stratum is a layer of sedimentary rock or soil with internally consistent characteristics that distinguish it from other layers...
in fault contact around the southern end and in the northwest. The range lies on the southeast end of the Central Colorado volcanic field
Central Colorado volcanic field
The central Colorado volcanic field is a volcanic field in Colorado, USA. It is located in the southern Rocky Mountains and covered a roughly triangular area centered on the Thirtynine Mile volcanic area and extending from the Sawatch Range southeast to the northern Sangre de Christo Range and the...
and contains Eocene
Eocene
The Eocene Epoch, lasting from about 56 to 34 million years ago , is a major division of the geologic timescale and the second epoch of the Paleogene Period in the Cenozoic Era. The Eocene spans the time from the end of the Palaeocene Epoch to the beginning of the Oligocene Epoch. The start of the...
to Oligocene
Oligocene
The Oligocene is a geologic epoch of the Paleogene Period and extends from about 34 million to 23 million years before the present . As with other older geologic periods, the rock beds that define the period are well identified but the exact dates of the start and end of the period are slightly...
(38–29 Ma) volcanic rock
Volcanic rock
Volcanic rock is a rock formed from magma erupted from a volcano. In other words, it is an igneous rock of volcanic origin...
s.