North Table Mountain
North Table Mountain | |
---|---|
Highest point | |
Elevation | 6,555 ft (1,998 m)[1][2] |
Isolation | 2.18 mi (3.51 km)[3] |
Coordinates | 39°47′30″N 105°12′03″W / 39.7915537°N 105.2007859°W[1] |
Geography | |
Location | Jefferson County, Colorado, U.S.[4] |
Parent range | Front Range foothills[3] |
Topo map | USGS 7.5' topographic map Golden, Colorado[1] |
Geology | |
Mountain type | Mesa |
Climbing | |
First ascent | 1840s by Black Kettle and tribe |
Easiest route | Quarry road up west slope |
North Table Mountain is a
Mesa
The most distinctive feature of the mesa is its nearly flat cap that was formed by ancient
North Table Mountain is a popular scenic and recreational destination in the
Geology
North Table Mountain is underlain by sedimentary rocks of the
Three prominent,
Zeolite
Both North and South Table Mountain are known for the wide variety of
Wildlife
Among the animals known to frequent the mesa through time, according to local newspaper accounts [
Burial Site
On September 1, 1909 quarry workers discovered and unearthed a human skull and bones at the Doane-Westcott quarry, located approximately midway up the western slope where the vertical lines of its aerial tramway intersect the bench land today. The Golden Transcript described "The ghastly relics of a tragedy many years ago had been buried under at least forty feet of earth and rocks" during excavation for the tramway. Upon examination by Jefferson County, Colorado Coroner John Lofton Davidson and Dr. James Kelly they pronounced the remains to be an adult caucasian male with cause of death by modern terms an execution-style homicide. The newspaper described "One side of the skull is dented and crushed, showing that death was caused by a blow from a stone or some heavy instrument. It was found at least three hundred feet from the base of the cliffs, showing that the man could not have fallen from the top." Coroner Davidson concluded that death preceded settlement of the region and theorized it was the remains of one of the early fur trappers, killed by Indians who wedged the body between two rocks that was subsequently covered by rockfall from above.[9] The remains are potentially related to the killings of three other mountaineers by a small band of Cheyenne that took place in what is today southern Jefferson County west of the South Platte River in 1842.[10]
Fire
On July 22, 2005, more than 200 acres (81 hectares) were set ablaze. Two fifteen-year-old boys were charged with first-degree felony arson and misdemeanor fourth-degree arson for lighting fireworks. They claimed to have shot off a Roman Candle, which started several small spot fires at the base of the north face. They fled the scene, but an area resident had witnessed the act and reported them to the police after the fire escalated, and they were soon found. The fire was contained later the same day, but it was summer with dry prairie grass conditions, so the fire had spread rapidly. It only burned one structure, a toolshed, and some other small miscellaneous pieces of property, but it cost more than 100,000 dollars (U.S. currency) to contain and extinguish.
Pictures
See also
- List of Colorado mountain ranges
- List of Colorado mountain summits
- List of Colorado county high points
References
- ^ a b c d "TABLE MOUNTAIN". NGS Data Sheet. National Geodetic Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
- ^ NGVD 29 to NAVD 88.
- ^ a b c "North Table Mountain, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
- ^ a b "North Table Mountain". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved November 4, 2014.
- ^ Kauffman, E.G., Upchurch, G.R. Jr., and Nichols, D.J., 2005. The Cretaceous-Tertiary boundary at South Table Mountain near Golden, Colorado. In: Extinction Events in Earth History, Lecture Notes in Earth Sciences, vol. 30, p. 365-392.
- ^ a b Van Horn, R. 1957. Bedrock geology of the Golden Quadrangle, Colorado. U.S. Geological Survey, Map GQ-103.
- ^ a b c Kile D.E., 2004. Zeolites and associated minerals from the Table Mountains near Golden, Jefferson County, Colorado. Rocks and Minerals, vol. 79, no. 4, p. 218-238.
- ^ Bartos, P.J. 2004. Table Mountain zeolites: The Colorado School of Mines perspective. Rocks and Minerals, vol. 79, no. 4, p. 240-244.
- ^ "The Colorado Transcript". September 2, 1909 – via www.coloradohistoricnewspapers.org.
- ^ "Golden Transcript". April 30, 1973 – via www.coloradohistoricnewspapers.org.