The Western Edge of the American Bread Basket

Most people think Colorado is completely covered by the Rockies, but at least 1/3 of the State is plains. The Great Plains sweep westward to meet the Rockies at an elevation between 4,300 and 6,000 feet. It is here were the mountains tower above the plains that Colorado's urban corridor can be found. More than 4 million of the 5 million people in the state live in a strip 200 miles long by 20 miles wide. Stretching from Pueblo in the south to Fort Collins in the north, it threatens to be the next Los Angles. Only time and water will tell the story.

It is also here where the rivers exit the mountains that the soil and moisture are present to create some of the best farmland in the Inter mountain West. Further east limited water and poorer soil create hardscrabble condition for even dry-land wheat. Like many urban areas Colorado threatens to pave over its most productive land