Muddy Pass (el. 8772 ft.) is a high
mountain pass
A mountain pass is a navigable route through a mountain range or over a ridge. Since many of the world's mountain ranges have presented formidable barriers to travel, passes have played a key role in trade, war, and both Human migration, human a ...
in the
Rocky Mountains
The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...
of northern
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
The pass straddles the
continental divide
A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not ...
along the boundary between
Jackson
Jackson may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name
Places
Australia
* Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region
* Jackson North, Qu ...
and
Grand
Grand may refer to:
People with the name
* Grand (surname)
* Grand L. Bush (born 1955), American actor
* Grand Mixer DXT, American turntablist
* Grand Puba (born 1966), American rapper
Places
* Grand, Oklahoma
* Grand, Vosges, village and commu ...
counties. The pass separates
North Park and the headwaters of the
North Platte River
The North Platte River is a major tributary of the Platte River and is approximately long, counting its many curves.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map accessed March 21, 2011 In a ...
with
Middle Park near the headwaters of the
Colorado River
The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...
. It is named for
Muddy Creek, a tributary of the Colorado that descends southward from the pass to join the Colorado at Kremmling.
The pass is one of the lower crossings of the continental divide in Colorado, in a gap between the
Park Range to the north and the
Rabbit Ears Range to the east. It is rarely closed in winter and has a mild approach on both sides, with no switchbacks or tight spots. It provides the route of
U.S. Highway 40 between
Kremmling and
Steamboat Springs. The road briefly enters the watershed of the North Platte (see
North Park).
Rabbit Ears Pass
Rabbit Ears Pass (el. 9426 ft, 2873 m) is a high mountain pass in the Rocky Mountains of northern Colorado in the United States, where US highway 40 crosses the Continental Divide. North of the summit is Rabbit Ears Peak which has the sh ...
, which is just to the west of the pass, provides a third crossing of the continental divide along the U.S. Highway (
Berthoud Pass
Berthoud Pass ( ; elevation ) is a high mountain pass in central Colorado, in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of the western United States.
The pass is located west of Denver, and provides a high route between upper Clear Creek Canyon ...
being the other).
State Highway 14 from
Walden, Colorado
The Town of Walden is the Statutory Town that is the county seat, the most populous community, and the only incorporated municipality in Jackson County, Colorado, United States. It is situated in the center of a large open valley called Nor ...
has its western terminus at the pass, where it intersects U.S. Highway 40.
Mountain passes of Colorado
Landforms of Jackson County, Colorado
Landforms of Grand County, Colorado
U.S. Route 40
Transportation in Grand County, Colorado
Transportation in Jackson County, Colorado
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