Colorado Plateau

Major section of the Intermontane Region of the western USA, which takes in parts of southwestern Colorado, southeastern Utah, northwestern New Mexico, and northern Arizona. The Colorado River, which gives the region its name, flows southwest across the area. The plateau is renowned for its striking geological features, such as volcanic outcrops and deep canyons that cut through its colourful sedimentary rocks; the most famous of these is the spectacular Grand Canyon in Arizona.

The Colorado Plateau is situated west of the Southern Rocky Mountains and northeast of the Sonoran Desert. It comprises a series of arid or semiarid uplands that lie at an altitude of 1,220-3,350 m/4,000-11,000 ft, with peaks rising to about 4,000 m/13,000 ft. Aside from the Grand Canyon, other notable canyons on the plateau are Glen Canyon (which now lies beneath Lake Powell) and Canyonlands, both in southeastern Utah. The area was home for centuries to the Anasazi people, and is the site both of ancient ruins such as the Mesa Verde and of major present-day Indian Reservations, most notably the huge Navajo Indian Reservation. Among the many national parks and monuments here are the Canyon de Chelly, Capitol Reef, the Arches, and Rainbow Bridge.