Gold Aspen On The Mesa is a photograph by Janice Pariza which was uploaded on September 21st, 2015.
Gold Aspen On The Mesa
Aspen captured the Autumn of 2010 on the Grand Mesa, Colorado.... more
Title
Gold Aspen On The Mesa
Artist
Janice Pariza
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
Aspen captured the Autumn of 2010 on the Grand Mesa, Colorado.
The Grand Mesa is a large mesa in western Colorado in the United States. It is the largest flat-topped mountain in the entire world[citation needed]. It has an area of about 500 square miles (1,300 km2) and stretches for about 40 miles (64 km) east of Grand Junction between the Colorado River and the Gunnison River, its tributary to the south. The north side of the mesa is drained largely by Plateau Creek, a smaller tributary of the Colorado. The west side is drained largely by Kannah Creek, which is received to the west by the lower Gunnison River. The mesa rises about 6,000 feet (1,800 m) above the surrounding river valleys, including the Grand Valley to the west, reaching an elevation of about 11,000 feet (3,400 m), with a maximum elevation of 11,333 feet (3,454 m) at Crater Peak. Much of the mesa is within Grand Mesa National Forest. Over 300 lakes, including many reservoirs created and used for drinking and irrigation water, are scattered along the top of the formation. The Grand Mesa is flat in some areas, but quite rugged in others.
The mesa is topped by a hard volcanic basalt. This layer, formed approximately 10 million years ago by basalt flows, suppressed erosion compared to the surrounding sedimentary rock layers, which suffered rapid downcutting from the action of the Colorado and the Gunnison rivers.[1] The top layer rests on a thick sequence of Eocene shale and sandstone known as the Green River and Wasatch Formations. These layers in turn rest on a Cretaceous layer known as the Mesaverde Group that forms a cliff about halfway up the side of the mesa. The lowest layers are yellow and gray Mancos Shale of late Cretaceous age. The shale continues outward into the surrounding valleys in the vicinity of the mesa, providing a soil base that is fertile for various kinds of agriculture, especially in the Gunnison Valley to the south.
Climate on Grand Mesa varies by elevation. Higher elevations tend to be cooler and receive more precipitation. The top of the mesa is nearly two miles above sea level, and experiences an Alpine climate with substantial amounts of precipitation throughout the year. Because of the high altitude, summer days are mild, and temperatures drop sharply after sunset. Winter temperatures rarely rise above freezing, and can be extremely cold, often falling far below zero, especially at night. The top of the mesa is usually snow-free from late June through early October, however, the mesa receives heavy snowfall in the winter, rendering the forest service roads impassable. Accumulations of 20 or 30 inches of snow in the winter are typical. Surrounding areas with lower elevation are warmer and more arid throughout the year.
The mesa is traversed by the Grand Mesa Scenic and Historic Byway (which includes SH 65) between the town of Mesa on the north and the town of Cedaredge on the south. The route over the mesa provides a dramatic contrast in landscape, climate and vegetation. On the north side, the road climbs the steep terrain near the Powderhorn Resort ski area. The forested top of the mesa remains snowbound much later in the spring than the surrounding valleys, and is a popular location for cross-country skiing and snowmobiling.
For Information
Join My Mailing List;
Janice-Rae-Pariza.ArtistWebsites.com
Copyright Janice Rae Pariza producer of Crazy Woman Art
Fine Art American Logo will not appear on your finished product.
PURCHASE OPTIONS:
Prints of this art are available on canvas, metal, acrylic and gallery prints, framed or unframed, greeting cards and iPhone or Galaxy phone covers . FAA has a large selection of frames, mats and surfaces available for you to create museum quality masterpieces of your original print selections.
IF YOU LIKE MY ART, I would be appreciative it if you would take a moment to favorite, like, tweet, pin to pinterest, google, stumbleupon and facebook . This enables my art and photography to be found on FAA and other internet searches.
I hope you enjoyed this visual journey! Please return often as I upload fresh work quite often! I am grateful for your time!
Uploaded
September 21st, 2015
Statistics
Viewed 735 Times - Last Visitor from New York, NY on 03/15/2024 at 9:15 AM
Colors
Embed
Share
More from Janice Pariza
Comments (10)
Sharon Nelson-Bianco
Hi Janice, this is a beautiful autumn landscape, You have caught the Colorado spirit! Congratulations on your features in Landscape Art group. Best regards, Sharon
Beverly Stapleton
Makes me homesick. This beautiful image has been chosen to be featured in the "Landscape Art" group. Thank you for sharing it.
John Bailey
Congratulations on being featured in the Fine Art America Group "Images That Excite You!"
Judy Vincent
This image is being featured in the “Photography ONLY – Landscapes and Landmarks” group – one of the most active groups on Fine Art America featuring the best landscape photographers in the world! Congratulations on your excellent work!
Lisa Phillips
Congratulations, your stunning work has been featured in the FAA group "Sky and or Clouds". http://fineartamerica.com/groups/sky-and-or-clouds.html
Jean OKeeffe Macro Abundance Art
Congratulations for the feature of your artwork on the Greeting Cards For All Occasions homepage 9-23-15!
Randy Rosenberger
It is an honor and a privilege as the administrator of our Wisconsin Flowers and Scenery group, to promote and highlight your awesome artworks on our Featured Section of our homepage. Your artworks show your love of what you do, and is refined to where we not only accept and promote your fine works, but welcome that opportunity. It is a pleasure to have you as a member of our family of friends and fine artists in the WFS group. Thanks for sharing! LIKED and FAVED Randy B. Rosenberger Administrator of the Wisconsin Flowers and Scenery group