Wind River Range

Wind River Range

Geobox|Range
name=Wind River Range



image_caption=Wind River Range highcountry
country=United States
state=Wyoming
parent=Rocky Mountains
area_imperial=2800
length_imperial=100
length_orientation=NW/SE
width_imperial=30
width_orientation=SW/NE
highest=Gannett Peak
highest_elevation_imperial=13804
highest_lat_d=43|highest_lat_m=11|highest_lat_s=04|highest_lat_NS=N
highest_long_d=109|highest_long_m=39|highest_long_s=12|highest_long_EW=W


map_caption=The Wind River Range highlighted in pink
The Wind River Range (or "Winds" for short), is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in western Wyoming in the United States. The range runs roughly NW-SE for approximately 100 miles (161 km). The Continental Divide follows the crest of the range and includes Gannett Peak, which at 13,804 feet (4,207 m), is the highest peak in Wyoming. There are more than 40 other named peaks in excess of 13,000 feet (3,962 m).cite web| title =Wyoming 13,000-foot Peaks| publisher =Peakbagger| url =http://www.peakbagger.com/list.aspx?lid=21344| accessdate = 2007-04-06 ] Two large National Forests including three wilderness areas encompass most of the mountain range. Shoshone National Forest is on the eastern side of the continental divide while Bridger-Teton National Forest is on the west. Both National Forests and the entire mountain range are an integral part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Portions of the range are also inside the Wind River Indian Reservation.

Geology

The Winds are composed primarily of a granitic batholith which is granite rock formed deep under the surface of the Earth, over one billion years ago. Over hundreds of millions of years, rocks that were once covering this batholith eroded away. As the land continued to rise during the Laramide orogeny, further erosion occurred until all that remained were the granitic rocks. The ice ages beginning 500,000 years ago began carving the rocks into their present shapes. Within the Winds, numerous lakes were formed by the glaciers and numerous cirques, or circular valleys, were carved out of the rocks, the most well known being the Cirque of the Towers, in the southern section of the range. Shoshone National Forest claims that there are 16 named and 140 unnamed glaciers just on the east side of the range for a total of 156, with another 27 reported by Bridger-Teton National Forest for the western slopes of the range. Several of these are the largest glaciers in the U.S. Rocky Mountains. Gannett Glacier which flows down the north slope of Gannett Peak, is the largest single glacier in the Rocky Mountains of the U.S., and is located in the Fitzpatrick Wilderness in Shoshone National Forest.

Hydrology

Several major rivers have headwaters on either side of the range. The Green and Big Sandy rivers drain southward from the west side of the range, while the Wind River drains eastward through the Shoshone Basin. The Green is the largest fork of the Colorado River while the Wind River, after changing its name to the Bighorn River, is the largest fork of the Yellowstone River

Ecology

The Winds are known to have a small Grizzly Bear population, primarily in the northernmost areas. Other mammals include the black bear, elk, moose, mule deer, pronghorn, bighorn sheep, and wolverine. Bald eagles, falcons and hawks are just a few of the 300 species of birds known to inhabit the region. The streams and lakes are home to cutthroat trout, brown trout, Mackinaw Trout (Lake Trout), and Golden Trout. The forests are dominated by lodgepole pine, whitebark pine, fir and spruce.

The range sits alongside many of the animal migration routes in the United States and contains several important passes, notably South Pass, (7,412 ft / 2,301 m), at the south end of the range, which was one of the more important passes on the Oregon Trail as it passed through the Rockies. Aside from South Pass, which is at the southernmost tip of the range, no roads cross the mountains until Union Pass, (9,210 ft / 2,807 m) at the northern terminus of the range.

References

Cited references

External links

* [http://www.fs.fed.us/r2/shoshone/ Shoshone National Forest Federal website]
* [http://www.fs.fed.us/outernet/btnf/ Bridger-Teton National Forest Federal website]
* [http://www.mountainmancountry.com/attractions/destinations/wind-river-mountians.html General Information on the Wind River Mountains]
* [http://www.wyomingtourism.org/cms/index.php?id=53 Wyoming Tourism information]
* [http://www.cdtrail.org/ Continental Divide Trail information]
* [http://www.wyomingoutdoorcouncil.org/news/newsletter/docs/2003a/ Article discussing glacial retreat in the Wind River Range]
* [http://www.sublette.com/examiner/v5n23/v5n23s3.htm Glaciers shrinking]


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Look at other dictionaries:

  • Wind River Range — /wind/ a mountain range in W Wyoming, part of the Rocky Mountains. Highest peak, Gannett Peak, 13,785 ft. (4202 m). * * * Mountain range, central Rocky Mountains, west central Wyoming, U.S. The range extends for 100 mi (160 km) northwest… …   Universalium

  • Wind River Range — (spr. riwwer rēndsch), Kette der Rocky Mountains, im nordamerikan. Staate Wyoming, im Fremont Peak 4203 m hoch, bildet die Wasserscheide zwischen Wind River (obern Bighorn River) und Green River …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Wind River Range — [from the severe winds near its head] range of the Rocky Mountains, in WC Wyo.: highest peak, 13,787 ft (4,202 m) …   English World dictionary

  • Wind River Range — p1f1 Wind River Range Höchster Gipfel Gannett Peak (4.207 m) Lage Wyoming (USA) Teil der Rocky Mountains …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Wind River Range — Cordillère de Wind River Cordillère de Wind River Géographie Altitude 4 207 m, Pic Gannett …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Wind River Range — Sp Vėjų Ùpės kalnãgūbris Ap Wind River Range L Uoliniuose kk., JAV (Vajomingas) …   Pasaulio vietovardžiai. Internetinė duomenų bazė

  • Wind River Range — Wind′ Riv′er Range′ [[t]wɪnd[/t]] n. geg a mountain range in W Wyoming, part of the Rocky Mountains. Highest peak, Gannett Peak, 13,785 ft. (4202 m) …   From formal English to slang

  • Wind River Range — /wind/ a mountain range in W Wyoming, part of the Rocky Mountains. Highest peak, Gannett Peak, 13,785 ft. (4202 m) …   Useful english dictionary

  • Wind River Range — /wɪnd/ (say wind) noun a range of mountains in the US, in western Wyoming. Highest peak, Gannet Peak, 4202 m …  

  • Wind River Range — geographical name mountain range W central Wyoming see Gannett Peak …   New Collegiate Dictionary

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