The Cordillera are mountains, a huge system of which occupies the western edge of the continent North America... They stretch for about 7 thousand km. The Cordillera are mountains with a wide variety of natural conditions. They are characterized by a number of features, and this determines their uniqueness among the other mountain systems of our planet.
General characteristics of the Cordillera
Where are the Cordillera mountains? Mostly they are elongated in the submeridional direction. These mountains were formed within five orotectonic belts of different ages. The Cordillera include a significant proportion of high mountains (2.5-3 thousand meters or more above sea level). They have active volcanism and high seismicity. The great extent of these mountains from north to south has led to the presence here of many spectra of altitudinal zonality. The Cordillera are mountains formed at the junction between lithospheric plates. The border between them almost coincides with the coastline.
Composition of the Cordillera
The third part of the entire continent is occupied by a mountain fold-block system. It is 800-1600 km wide. It includes mountain plateaus, intermontane basins, ridges, as well as volcanic plateaus and mountains. Young deformations, volcanism, denudation have undergone the Cordillera, which determined their present appearance and masked many geological structures that appeared earlier. Very heterogeneous mountain system both in the transverse and longitudinal direction.
More about the structure of the Cordilleras
The structure of the surface of the mainland, where the Cordillera mountains are located, is asymmetric. They occupy its western part, while the eastern part is occupied by low mountains and vast plains. The western part is located at an altitude of about 1700 meters, and the eastern part is 200-300 m. 720 meters is the average height of the continent.
The Cordillera are mountains that include a series of mountain arcs, which are extended mainly in the direction from northwest to southeast. From the city of Mackenzie, ridge. Brooks, the Rockies consists of the eastern arc. A discontinuous belt formed from inner plateaus and plateaus is located to the west of these ridges. Their height is 1-2 thousand meters. The Cordillera are mountains that include the following plateaus and plateaus: the Yukon Plateau, the Columbia Plateau and the British Columbia Plateau, the Great Basin, the highlands and the volcanic plateau of the Mexican Highlands (inland). For the most part they represent an alternation of hollows, ridges and table flat surfaces.
The highest mountain
The Cordillera from the western part are marked by a system of the highest ridges. These are the Aleutian ridge, the Aleutian Islands ridge, the Alaska ridge. The latter reaches a height of 6193 meters. This is McKinley, the highest mountain shown in the photo above. The Cordillera is a system that also includes in the western part the Cascade Mountains, the Coastal Range of Canada, the Western Sierra Madre and the Sierra Nevada, as well as the Transverse Volcanic Sierra located here (5700 meters), etc.
To the west of them, the height decreases. The Cordillera are mountains that smoothly merge into the flat part of the mainland. It is occupied in the west by either Puget Sound, Cook) or lowlands (California Valley, Willamette River Valley). This coast of the continent is formed by the ridges of St. Elijah, the Chugachsky, Kenai, the island ridge of Canada, as well as the Coast Ranges of the United States. The Cordillera chains to the south of the Mexican Highlands bifurcate. One of them deviates to the east, forming the islands of the West Indies and underwater ridges, after which it passes into the Venezuelan Andes. The second half stretches across the Panama and Tehuantepec isthmuses to the Colombian Andes.
What is the reason for the diversity of the relief of the mountains?
It is associated with the different ages of land areas, as well as with the history of their development. The mainland did not immediately form in its present form. The Cordillera mountains in their present form arose thanks to various processes that took place in different time on the continent.
For the Laurentian Upland, marked by the most ancient geological structures, the relief surfaces are characteristic of the alignment surfaces, the formation of which began at the beginning of the Paleozoic. The wavy surface of the modern upland was determined by the different resistance of rocks to denudation, as well as uneven tectonic movement. The subsidence of the central part of the territory caused the cover Quaternary glaciation, due to which the depressions of the present-day were formed.In addition, under its influence, the accumulation of water-glacial and moraine deposits took place, which formed the type of relief (moraine-hilly).
Great and belong to the reservoir type. Under the influence of denudation processes in various places, depending on the characteristics of the occurrence of various rocks, formed cuesta ridges (Great Lakes), stepped plateaus (Great Plains region), midlands and erosional lowlands (Ouoshito, Ozark).
The relief of the Cordilleras themselves is very difficult. The crustal compression belt is crossed by numerous faults starting from the ocean floor and ending on land. The mountain building process has not yet been completed. This is evidenced by volcanic eruptions (for example, Popocatepetl and Orizaba), as well as strong earthquakes that occur here from time to time.
Minerals
As you know, many different minerals can be found where there are mountains. The Cordillera are no exception. There are huge reserves of non-ferrous and ferrous metal ores. Of the nonmetallic ones, oil can be distinguished, which is located in intermontane troughs. There are reserves of brown coal in the Rocky Mountains (their inner hollows).
Climate
Let us continue the description of the mountains with the characteristics of the climate. The Cordillera are in the path of the oceanic air masses. Because of this, in the eastward direction, the influence of the ocean is sharply weakening. This climatic feature of the Cordillera is reflected in the soil and vegetation cover, the development of modern glaciation, and altitudinal zoning. The elongation of the mountain ranges from north to south predetermines the differences in temperature in summer and winter. In winter, it ranges from -24 ° С (in the Alaska region) to +24 ° С (Mexico, south of the country). In summer, the temperature reaches from +4 to +20 ° С.
Precipitation
In the northwest falls the most a large number of precipitation. The fact is that this part of the Cordillera is located on the path of the westerly winds blowing from The Pacific... The amount of precipitation here is about 3000 mm. Tropical latitudes are the least humid, as the oceanic air masses do not reach them. The low amount of precipitation is also explained by the cold current passing near the coast. The inner plateaus of the Cordilleras are also not very wet. The mountains are located within the temperate, subarctic, tropical and subtropical climatic zones.
Rivers and lakes of the Cordillera
A significant part of the western rivers of the continent originates precisely in the Cordilleras. Mostly their food is snow and glacier, there is a flood in the summer. These rivers are mountainous, swift. The largest of them are Colorado and Columbia. The Lakes of the Cordillera are of glacial or volcanic origin. Saline shallow water bodies are located on the inner plateaus. These are the remains of large lakes that existed here for a long time, during a humid climate.
Vegetable world
Very varied vegetable world Cordillera. Coniferous forests with a peculiar appearance are located up to 40 ° C. sh. They are very rich in species composition. Spruce, cypress, fir, thuja (red cedar) are their typical representatives. The height of coniferous trees reaches 80 meters. There is practically no woody undergrowth between them. However, a variety of shrubs grow here in abundance. There are many mosses and ferns in the ground cover. In coniferous forests, when moving south, sugar pine, white fir, yellow pine begin to come across. Evergreen sequoia appears even further south. As dryness increases, south of 42 ° N. sh., thickets of bushes are replaced by forests. They are juniper, heather, and their height usually does not exceed two meters. Here you can sometimes find different types evergreen oak. The humidity of the climate in the interior of the Cordillera is decreasing. They are characterized by dry forests, as well as areas of saltwort and wormwood deserts. The slopes of the mountains receiving precipitation are covered with evergreen forests up to a height of 1200 m.
Animals that live in the Cordillera mountains
Where the Cordillera Mountains are located, you can find the grizzly brown bear - a large predator of the continent of North America. with long black fur, it lives in the southwest of this system. He destroys livestock and spoils crops. There are also many lynxes, foxes, wolves. V southern regions mountains often found arthropods, lizards, snakes. In addition, the gila moth, the only legless venomous lizard, lives here. Large animals in places where people live are either destroyed or are extremely rare. Bison and pronghorn (a rare antelope) are preserved only through national programs in North America. Only in the reserves can one observe a rich animal world today.
Any inhabitant of the North and South America knows where the Cordillera are. The slopes of the ridges in the north. parts of the Cordillera are covered in DOS. coniferous forests. The Cordillera are the source of such large rivers as the Yukon, Mackenzie, Missouri, Columbia, Colorado, Rio Grande and many others.
The Cordillera lie in all geographic zones of America (except for the subantarctic and Antarctic) and are distinguished by a wide variety of landscapes and a pronounced altitudinal zonation. In the northwestern part of the Cordilleras of North America and in the southeast of the Andes, glaciers descend to ocean level; in the hot zone, they cover only the most high peaks.
See what the "Cordillera of North America" is in other dictionaries:
The Cordillera are unusual in that they are located on two continents at once. In addition to the Rocky Mountains themselves, it includes the Brooks Ridge in Alaska, the Richardson Ridge and the Mackenzie Mountains in Canada, and the Eastern Sierra Madre mountain range in Mexico. The highest point of the belt is Mount Elbert, which is located within the state of Colorado.
The Cordillera are some of the highest mountains in the world
It includes the Aleutian, Alaska and Coast Ranges, the Cascade Mountains, the Sierra Nevada mountain range, the Western and Southern Sierra Madre, and the Transverse Volcanic Sierra. It includes the Fraser Plateau, the Columbia Mountains, the Great Basin Highlands, the Colorado Plateau and the Mexican Highlands. V Central America and on the islands Caribbean The Cordillera split into three main mountain arcs, which are separated by depressions. The Cordillera of North America are composed of various geological structures of different ages.
Cordillera height - highest point
Due to the very great length in the meridional direction, the climate in the Cordillera varies greatly. In Alaska, Canada and the northwestern United States, on the Pacific slopes, the climate is characterized as rather mild and humid. In the Cascade Mountains is national park Mount Rainier, on the territory of which the eponymous volcano is located. These mountains stretch along the western side of the aforementioned continents: from Alaska (northwestern North America) to the island of Tierra del Fuego, which is located near Antarctica.
National parks in the Cordilleras
The Cordillera are one of the highest mountains in the world. Only the Himalayas, as well as several other mountain systems of the central part of Asia, surpass them in height. The influence of these mountains on the formation of culture, traditions, lifestyle of the people of America can hardly be overestimated. In the territory where the Cordillera are located, whole civilizations of the Indians were born, unique in their development and cultural heritage... And on a planetary scale Mountain chain The Cordillera are the watershed between the Pacific basin and the water area Atlantic Ocean.
Int. some form plateaus, highlands and plateaus - Yukon, Fraser, Columbia, Colorado, Mexican. To the Center. America to the Cordillera are the ridges in the west. coast, incl. xp. Sierra Madre with Tahumulco volcano (4217 m, the highest point of Central America). Glaciers cover approx. 80 thousand km²; most of them are located in the Alaskan mountains. East. the periphery of the Mexican Highlands grow evergreen tropical forests, in the Cordillera Center. America - deciduous rainforests, thorny shrubs, thickets of cacti and secondary savannas.
In the Cordilleras Center. America and the West Indies are distinguished by three mountain arcs: the northern arc follows through the Cayman Islands to Cuba (Sierra Maestra mountains), Haiti (Central southern parts of the interior plateaus are dry steppes and deserts. Cordillera - Cordillera, Colorado River. , the greatest in length (more than 18 thousand km) mountain system of the globe, stretching along the western outskirts of North and South America.
Orography. In KSA, three longitudinal belts are distinctly expressed — eastern, inner, and western. To the west stretch the myo- and eugeosynclinal troughs of the Mesozoids of the Sierra Nevada and the Rocky Mountains (Nevadids). To the west of the Mesozoic on the Alaska Peninsula and in the California and Oregon Coast Ranges, as well as in the south of Central America, the Cenozoic geosynclinal system stretches.
Another type is volcanic ridges with a folded base, complicated by a series of volcanoes planted on it, including active ones. On the northern slopes the Chugach and St. Elijah mountains, the snow border is at an altitude of 1800-1900 m, on the Alaska ridge - from 1350-1500 m (southern slope) to 2250-2400 m (northern slope).
Rivers and lakes. Within the KSA lie the sources of many river systems of the continent: the Yukon, Peace River - Mackenzie, Saskatchewan - Nelson, Missouri - Mississippi, Colorado, Columbia, Fraser. The largest changes in landscapes are associated with the latitudinal position of the mountain system, with its transition from the subarctic belt to temperate, subtropical and tropical. There are 4 main natural areas: the Northwest, the Canadian Cordillera, the US Cordillera, and the Mexican Cordillera.
To the south, the snow boundary rises to 1500-1800 m in the Coastal Range and up to 2250 m in the Columbian Mountains of Canada. The Cordillera, which occupies the west of North America and extends within the United States proper and Alaska, Canada, and Mexico.
| Cordillera | |
|---|---|
Aconcagua |
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| Mountains of north america |
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| Location: | North and South (Andes) America |
| Highest point: | McKinley (6193 m) and Aconcagua (6962 m) |
| Coordinates: | 63 ° 4′10 ″ N 151 ° 0′26 ″ W and 32 ° 39′20 ″ S, 70 ° 00′57 ″ W |
Cordillera, the largest mountain system in the world, stretching along the western outskirts of North and South America, from 66 ° N. (Alaska) to 56 ° S sh. (Tierra del Fuego).
The length is more than 18 thousand km, the width is up to 1600 km in North America and up to 900 km in the South. Located in [Canada, USA, Mexico, Central America, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile.
Almost along the entire length, they are a watershed between the basins of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, as well as a sharply expressed climatic boundary. In terms of height, they are second only to the Himalayas and the mountain ranges of Central Asia. The highest peaks of the Cordillera: in North America - Mount McKinley (6193 m), in South America - Mount Aconcagua (6960 m).
The whole Cordillera system is divided into 2 parts - Cordillera of North America, and the Cordillera of South America, or the Andes.
The main mountain-building processes that resulted in the emergence of the Cordillera began in North America in the Jurassic period, in South America at the end of the Cretaceous and took place in close connection with the formation of mountain systems on other continents (Alpine folding). The formation of the Cordillera has not yet ended, as evidenced by frequent earthquakes and intense volcanism (more than 80 active volcanoes). Quaternary glaciation also played an important role in the formation of the Cordillera relief, especially north of 44 ° N. and south of 40 ° S latitude.
The Cordillera lie in all geographic zones (except for the sub-Antarctic and Antarctic) and are distinguished by a wide variety of landscapes and a pronounced altitudinal zonation. The snow border in Alaska - at an altitude of 600 m, on Tierra del Fuego - 500-700 m in Bolivia and southern Peru rises to 6000-6500 m.In the northwestern part of the Cordillera of North America and in the southeast of the Andes, glaciers descend to ocean level, in the hot zone, they cover only the highest peaks. The total area of glaciers is about 90 thousand km 2 (in the Cordilleras of North America - 67 thousand km 2, in the Andes - about 20 tons. Km 2).
Literature
- Geographical Encyclopedic Dictionary, M., 1986.
The Cordillera Mountains are the longest mountain range in the world. If you look at the map, you can see that these mountains stretch for almost 18,000 km.
McKinley (Nic McPhee) McKinley (Cecil Sanders) Airplane view of the Cordillera (Vivis Carvalho) Denali National Park and Preserve Cordillera (Ross Fowler) Ross Fowler Helicopter with the background of the Cordillera (The US Army) Pablo Trincado Denali National Park (Harvey Barrison) View of the Cordillera (Maykol Saavedra) View of the Cordillera (Miguel Vera León) Beautiful view of McKinley (Christoph Strässler) Mount McKinley, Denali National Park (Christoph Strässler) Highest point of the Cordillera (Denali) National Park and Preserve Denali National Park and Preserve Denali National Park and Preserve Carlos Felipe Pardo Cordillera, Andes (Ross Fowler) View of the Cordillera, Chile (Daniel Peppes Gauer) Cordillera (Nacho) Cordillera Blanca, Peru (Mel Patterson) Cordillera Blanca, Peru (Mel Patterson) Cordillera Blanca, Peru (Mel Patterson)
On what continent are they located? The Cordillera are unusual in that they are located on two continents at once. If you look at the map, you can see that these mountains stretch for almost 18,000 kilometers from north to south, along the Pacific coast of the Americas - from Alaska to the island of Tierra del Fuego.
The Cordillera are subdivided into two major systems, the Cordillera of North America and the Cordillera of South America, also commonly known as the Andes. In this article, only the Cordillera of North America, stretching from Alaska to southern Mexico, will be described.
Cordillera height - highest point
The highest peak of the Cordilleras in North America is Mount Denali, until recently known as McKinley, whose height is 6190 m. Its coordinates are 63 ° 04′10 ″ north latitude 151 ° 00′26 ″ west longitude.
Mount McKinley, Denali National Park (Christoph Strässler)
Geographic characteristic
The length of the mountain system is almost 9000 km with a width of 800 to 1600 km. At the same time, the Canadian Cordilleras have the smallest width, and the mountains reach the maximum width in the USA. Almost along their entire length, these mountains form 3 belts - eastern, western and inner.
View of the Cordillera (Miguel Vera León)
The eastern belt, also known as the Rocky Mountain Belt, forms a series of high mountain ranges that form the watershed separating the Pacific catchment to the west and the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans to the east. In addition to the Rocky Mountains themselves, it includes the Brooks Ridge in Alaska, the Richardson Ridge and the Mackenzie Mountains in Canada, and the Eastern Sierra Madre mountain range in Mexico. The highest point of the belt is Mount Elbert, which is located within the state of Colorado. Its peak has an absolute mark of 4399 meters.
The western belt is represented by folded and volcanic ridges that run parallel to the Pacific coast. It includes the Aleutian, Alaska and Coast Ranges, the Cascade Mountains, the Sierra Nevada mountain range, the Western and Southern Sierra Madre, and the Transverse Volcanic Sierra. Within the Alaska Ridge, there is the highest mountain not only of this belt, but of the whole of North America - Mount Denali (McKinley), whose height is 6190 m.
The inner belt includes a number of plateaus and plateaus located between two other belts. It includes the Fraser Plateau, the Columbia Mountains, the Great Basin Highlands, the Colorado Plateau and the Mexican Highlands.
The three main mountain arcs of the Cordilleras
In Central America and the Caribbean islands, the Cordillera split into three main mountain arcs, which are separated by depressions.
Cordillera (Ross Fowler)
Thus, the arc, which is a structural continuation of the Rocky Mountains and the Eastern Sierra Madre, forms the mountains of the islands of Cuba, northern Haiti and Puerto Rico.
The southern Sierra Madre is geologically extended by the mountains of Jamaica, southern Haiti, and in Puerto Rico, they merge with the mountains of the first arc.
The third arc runs from the southern borders of Mexico through all the countries of Central America to the west of Panama. Its continuation is the Andes.
The Cordillera cross all geographic zones of the continent, from the arctic in the north to the subequatorial in the south. During their course, the climate of the area, flora and fauna change greatly.
No less strong natural conditions change when moving from west to east of the mountain system; often climate and vegetation change in this direction much faster than moving from north to south. In addition, as in all high mountains, altitudinal zonation is of great importance here.
Geology
The Cordillera of North America are composed of various geological structures of different ages. The mountains began to form in the Jurassic period, a little earlier than the Andes, the formation of which began only at the end of the Cretaceous period.
Mountain building has not ended to this day, as evidenced by the fairly frequent earthquakes and the presence active volcanoes... Approximately north of the parallel of 45 degrees north latitude, the Quaternary glaciation had a significant impact on the formation of the relief.
Gold, mercury, tungsten, copper, molybdenum and other ores are mined in the Cordilleras. Of non-metallic minerals, there are deposits of oil, coal, etc.
Hydrography
The Cordillera are the source of such large rivers as the Yukon, Mackenzie, Missouri, Columbia, Colorado, Rio Grande and many others.
Denali National Park and Preserve
To the north of the 50th latitude, snow supply of watercourses predominates, and to the south - rain supply. Many mountain rivers have great energy potential. Especially many hydropower plants have been built in the Columbia River Basin.
In the inner regions of the mountain system, there are large closed areas. The unloading of a few watercourses, which are mainly of a temporary nature, is carried out here in saline closed lakes, the largest of which is the Bolshoi Salt Lake.
Quite numerous and freshwater lakes: Atlin, Okanagan, Kootenay (Canadian Cordilleras); Utah, Tahoe, Upper Klamath (USA).
Climate
Due to the very great length in the meridional direction, the climate in the Cordillera varies greatly. In Alaska, Canada and the northwestern United States, on the Pacific slopes, the climate is characterized as rather mild and humid.
Denali National Park (Harvey Barrison)
The amount of precipitation on the islands off the coast of Canada and Alaska, as well as on the western slope of the Coast Ranges, exceeds 2000 mm, and in some areas can reach 6000 mm.
The maximum precipitation here falls in the winter, and therefore, most of it falls in the form of snow. Winters are relatively warm and humid, while summers are cool and dry.
Average July temperatures usually range from 13 to 15 degrees, while average January temperatures range from 0 to 4 degrees.
Away from the coast, the climate is very different; it is characterized as continental. On some plateaus, the amount of precipitation does not exceed 400-500 mm. Winters become colder here, while summers, on the contrary, are warmer.
View of the Cordillera (Maykol Saavedra)
In the southwestern United States, the climate is characterized as subtropical. Precipitation here also falls mainly in winter. Their number can reach up to 2000 mm on the western slopes of the Coast Ranges, and up to 1000 mm in the west of the Sierra Nevada.
In the Rocky Mountains, by contrast, eastern elephants receive more rainfall (700-800 mm) than western elephants (300-400 mm). This is due to the fact that air masses reach the eastern slopes from the Atlantic Ocean. Some deep inland basins receive less than 200 mm of precipitation per year.
The most arid deserts are the Mojave and Sonoran, as well as the western part of the Great Basin. In some areas of these deserts, only about 50 mm of precipitation falls.
The climate of the intermontane basins is characterized as sharply continental with very large daily and annual temperature fluctuations. The highest temperature in the world was recorded in the intermontane depression "Death Valley", which was 56.7 degrees, while in winter temperatures here often drop below zero.
The total area of glaciers is over 60,000 square kilometers. The height of the snow line varies from 300-450 meters on the coastal slopes of the mountains in the south and southeast of Alaska to 4500 meters or more in Mexico.
In the Rocky and Cascade Mountains in the United States, the snow line is at an altitude of 2500-3000 meters, and in the Sierra Nevada mountains - up to 4000 meters.
Flora and fauna
The flora of the Cordillera varies greatly not only depending on the height above sea level, as in all other mountains; it also strongly depends on the latitude of a particular area and on its distance from the ocean.
Denali National Park and Preserve
In the north of the mountain system, the slopes of the ranges are covered mainly with coniferous forests.
The inland plateaus, plateaus, and troughs of the United States and northern Mexico are mostly occupied by arid steppes and deserts, due to the effect of rain shadow, which traps moist air masses high mountains and almost never reach these areas.
Parts of the California coast and northwestern Mexico are characterized by a stiff-leaved, bushy vegetation known as chaparral.
On the western slopes in southern Mexico and Central America, both evergreen and deciduous rainforests are common. On the eastern slopes and in intermontane basins, the vegetation is much more scarce and is represented by various shrubs, cacti and savannas. The variety of cacti and agaves is especially great, of which there are hundreds of species.
The fauna of mountain forests is quite similar to the fauna of the plain North American taiga. It is home to grizzly bears, foxes, wolves, beavers, wolverines, lynxes, cougars, etc. Of the species characteristic only of mountains, mountain sheep are found. In the steppes and deserts, cougars, coyotes, steppe wolves, hares, and various rodents live. Animal world the rainforest is represented by various monkeys; one of the predators here is a jaguar.
Great view of McKinley (Christoph Strässler)
National parks in the Cordilleras
On the territory of the Cordillera there are numerous national parks that attract millions of tourists from all over the world. Photos of the local extraordinary landscapes amaze even people who have traveled around the world.
In the western part of the Sierra Nevada mountains is one of the most famous national parks United States - Yosemite, which is famous for high granite cliffs, waterfalls and simply untouched nature.
A little to the south of it is the Sequoia Park, famous, as the name suggests, for its giant sequoias. Mount Rainier National Park is located in the Cascade Mountains, on the territory of which the eponymous volcano is located. On the Colorado plateau is oldest park USA - The Grand Canyon, which is a canyon of the Colorado River.
In my opinion, North America is the most geographically diverse and beautiful region in the world. Traveling around America many times by car, having driven from ocean to ocean, I never ceased to admire its magnificent nature and mesmerizing landscapes. When talking about America in everyday life, we usually talk about its politics or remember famous cities, but we hardly imagine those beautiful creations of nature that the North American continent preserves.
While I support America on many political issues, my main love for her is "geographic." Of course, every country has beautiful places, but the uniqueness of the North American continent lies in the fact that an exceptional variety of scenic natural landscapes accessible thanks to the developed tourism infrastructure. Therefore, I want to talk about the geography of the natural resources of the United States and Canada, about their national parks, landscapes and simply beautiful places where I was lucky enough to visit. It is no coincidence that American national parks, created to protect the continent's most picturesque landscapes and fragile ecosystems, are called America's greatest treasures.
The Cordillera of North America - a masterpiece of nature
In the western part of the United States and Canada, the Cordillera mountain system of North America is located, which is a parallel range stretching from north to south and separating them inland plateaus, plateaus and valleys. Coastal ridges stretch along the Pacific Ocean; to the east are located the Cascade Mountains and the Sierra Nevada Mountains related to them; in Canada, the Columbia Mountains are also distinguished; further east are the Rocky Mountains. Between these mountains are the California Valley, the Great Basin, the Columbia Plateau, and the Colorado Plateau. The maximum width of the Cordillera of North America - between San Francisco (California) and Denver (Colorado) - reaches 1,600 km.
It is the most picturesque part of the North American continent with many national parks and other protected areas. A wide variety of landscapes and amazing geological formations are concentrated here - from snow-capped mountain peaks to breathtaking deep canyons, from emerald glacial lakes to colorful geothermal springs, from huge caves to cliffs bizarre shapes... The landscapes of this region make an unforgettable impression.
Many rivers in western North America originate in the Cordilleras. These are rapid mountain streams, the most famous of which are Colorado, Columbia and Fraser. The Cordilleras are home to many beautiful lakes of volcanic or glacial origin, the largest being Lake Tahoe on the California-Nevada border. And on the inland plateaus, there are shallow saline lakes - remnants of reservoirs that existed here during a wetter climate, such as the Great Salt Lake in Utah, called the American By the dead sea... The Colorado Plateau is replete with canyons, ledges, outliers and other scenic landforms, the most famous of which is of course the Grand Canyon.
Geologists date the formation of the Cordillera to the second half of the Mesozoic era, about 150 million years ago. This process continued until the beginning of the Cenozoic era, 60 million years ago. Thus, the Cordillera are relatively young mountains, comparable in age to the Alps. For comparison, the history located on east coast The North American Appalachian Mountains began about 480 million years ago.
The westernmost Cordillera mountain range, the Pacific Coast Ranges, stretches 7,250 km across the United States and 1,600 km in Canada. It is composed of the Alaskan Ridge, the British Columbia Coast Range, the Olympic Mountains in Washington State, the Cascade Mountains and Coast Ranges of the three Pacific states of Washington, Oregon, and California, and the Transverse Ridges in southern california... In addition, the Sierra Nevada Mountains are often included in the Coast Ranges. The first parts will focus on this mountain range system (with the exception of Alaska). And we will start with some distance from the Pacific Ocean inland of the state of California.
Sierra Nevada - snow-capped mountains
Sierra Nevada mountain range, "snow-capped mountains" in Spanish, stretches 750 km along eastern California. The ridge is 110 km wide. High east edge of these mountains, composed mostly of granites, drops abruptly to the Great Basin, and the long western slope slopes relatively gently down to the Central California Valley. Here is the most high point continental states (adjacent 48 US states) - Mount Whitney (4421 m); it is only 160 km away from Death Valley, the lowest point in the country.
The Sierra Nevada is one of the oldest mountains in the Cordilleras, almost twice as old as the Rocky Mountains. Their history began about 150 million years ago during the so-called Nevadan orogeny - the first stage of a grandiose geological transformation of the western part of the North American continent. About 2.5 million years ago, during the Ice Age, glaciers began to carve characteristic U-shaped valleys along the entire length of the Sierra Nevada, the most famous of which is Yosemite. The combination of river activity and glacial erosion brought to the surface granite rocks previously located at a depth, leaving only remnants of metamorphic rocks on the tops of the mountains. The ancient granite rocks are known as the "batholiths of the Sierra Nevada". Their age is over 100 million years.
The Sierra Nevada mountains have many alpine lakes, which lead to scenic hiking trails.
Among the attractions of the Sierra Nevada range are the Yosemite and Sequoia National Parks, as well as the alpine Lake Tahoe.
Yosemite - Ice Age Granite Monument
Yosemite national park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, is one of the largest conservation areas wildlife in the Sierra Nevada area: almost 95 percent of the park is designated wilderness. The park is renowned for its spectacular granite cliffs, waterfalls and rich biodiversity. The picturesque landscape of the park emerged as a result of the confrontation between the glacier and the granite ridge of the Sierra Nevada: huge masses of ice literally ripped off the top layer of granite, but the walls of the mountains withstood the onslaught. As a result, deep valleys and smooth steep cliffs appear before our eyes, the largest of which rise almost one and a half kilometers above the ground.
The most visited part of the park is the 13 km long glacial U-shaped Yosemite Valley surrounded by granite monoliths, the most famous of which are Half Dome and El Capitan. Half Dome is one of the largest monoliths in North America. Its summit is 2694 m above sea level and 1450 m above the Yosemite Valley.
El Capitan is also one of the largest monoliths in North America. Its summit is at an altitude of 2307 m above sea level and 910 m above the Yosemite Valley.
Yosemite Valley - Centerpiece national park... The river Merced flows through it.
From the observation deck Glacier point a panoramic view of the Yosemite Valley opens.
A scenic road runs through the park in the west-east direction Tioga Pass- most high pass in the Sierra Nevada mountains, reaching an altitude of 3031 m. One of the attractions of this road is Lake Tenaya.
Here is located observation deck Olmsted point: a few million years ago, the glacier was polished stone mountains leaving wandering boulders on them.
Beyond the Tioga Pass, at the eastern end of the Sierra Nevada Mountains, is Lake Mono with lime-tuff formations.
The scenic US-395 road runs along the eastern foothills of the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
Sequoia - a giant forest
South of Yosemite is located sequoia national park famous for its giant trees, including a specimen named General Sherman - the largest tree on Earth by volume of wood. The diameter at the base of the tree is 11 m. "General Sherman" has lived on Earth for 2,200 years.
The General Sherman tree grows in the Giant Forest, which contains five of the ten most massive trees in the world, with a volume of up to 1,500 cubic meters of timber.
Another famous giant tree in the park is the second largest tree in the world by General Grant. Since 1926 it has been the National Christmas Tree. "General Grant" is 1700 years old, during which time it has grown by 82 m.
In addition to giant trees, the park has an "attraction" not for the faint of heart: to climb the equipped mountain trail to the dome of a granite monolith Moro Rock, towering 2000 m above sea level. "Stairway to Heaven", built in the 30s of the last century, has a length of 400 m; vertical drop - 90 m.
There are also interesting geological objects in the park, such as Tunnel rock.
Lake Tahoe - an alpine tale
Lake Tahoe in the eastern part of the Sierra Nevada, it was formed several million years ago at the site of a geological fault and reaches a depth of 501 m. It is the largest alpine lake in North America and the second deepest lake in the United States after Crater Lake in Oregon. Tahoe is located at an altitude of 1897 m above sea level; its length is 35 km, width is 19 km; extent coastline 116 km. There are numerous recreation areas and ski resorts around the lake.
Emerald bay- the most beautiful part of the lake.
Northern part of the lake.
Eastern part of the lake.
Bay Zephyr.
The continuation of the Sierra Nevada mountains towards the north is the Cascade Mountains, which will be discussed
