The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain
range in western North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch 3,000 mi
(4,800 km) in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of
British Columbia, in western Canada, to New Mexico in the Southwestern
United States. The northern terminus is located in the Liard River
area east of the Pacific Coast Ranges, while the southernmost point is
near the Albuquerque area adjacent the Rio Grande Basin and north of
the Sandiaâ€"Manzano Mountain Range. Located within the North American
Cordillera, the Rockies are distinct from the Cascade Range and the
Sierra Nevada, which all lie farther to the west.The Rocky Mountains
formed 80 million to 55 million years ago during the Laramide orogeny,
in which a number of plates began sliding underneath the North
American plate. The angle of subduction was shallow, resulting in a
broad belt of mountains running down western North America. Since
then, further tectonic activity and erosion by glaciers have sculpted
the Rockies into dramatic peaks and valleys. At the end of the last
ice age, humans began inhabiting the mountain range. After
explorations of the range by Europeans, such as Sir Alexander
Mackenzie, and Americans, such as the Lewis and Clark expedition,
natural resources such as mineral and fur drove the initial economic
exploitation of the mountains, although the range itself never
experienced a dense population.Of the 100 highest peaks in the Rocky
Mountains, 78 (including the 30 highest) are located in Colorado, ten
in Wyoming, six in New Mexico, three in Montana, and one in Utah.
Public parks and forest lands protect much of the mountain range, and
they are popular tourist destinations, especially for hiking, camping,
mountaineering, fishing, hunting, mountain biking, skiing, and
snowboarding. Rocky Mountains Biography, NetWorth, Height, Age, Weight, Family, Married, Son, Daughter