The State of Colorado ( or ) is a state located in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States of America. It may also be considered to be part of the Western and Southwestern regions of the United States. Colorado entered statehood in 1876 and was nicknamed the “Centennial State”. It is bordered to the north by Wyoming and to the south by New Mexico.

The state is well known for its magnificent scenery of mountains, rivers and plains. The United States Census Bureau estimates that the state population was 4,939,456 in 2008, a 14% increase since the U.S. Census 2000. Denver is the capital of Colorado and the state's most populous city. Residents of Colorado are properly known as "Coloradans", although the archaic term "Coloradoan" is still used.

Geography

The summit of Mount Elbert at elevation in Lake County is the state's highest point and the highest point in the entire Rocky Mountains. Colorado has more than 100 mountain peaks that exceed elevation. Colorado is the only U.S. state that lies entirely above elevation. The point where the Arikaree River flows out of Yuma County, Colorado, and into Cheyenne County, Kansas, is the lowest point in the State of Colorado at elevation. This crossing point holds the distinction of being the highest low point of any U.S. state.

Nearly half of the state is flat in stark contrast to Colorado's rugged Rocky Mountains. East of the Southern Rocky Mountains are the Colorado Eastern Plains of the High Plains, the section of the Great Plains within Colorado at elevations ranging from roughly 3350 to 6500 feet (1010 to 2000 m). The states of Kansas and Nebraska border Colorado to the east. The plains are sparsely settled with most population along the South Platte and the Arkansas rivers. Precipitation is meager, averaging from 12 to 18 inches (300 to 450 mm) annually. There is some irrigated farming, but much of the land is used for dryland farming or ranching. Winter wheat is a typical crop and most small towns in the region boast both a water tower and a grain elevator.

The bulk of Colorado's population lives along the eastern edge of the Rocky Mountains in the Front Range Urban Corridor. This region is partially protected from prevailing storms by the high mountains to the west.

Hinsdale County, with Lake City (population appx. 300) as it's seat, has been judged the most remote county in the 48 contiguous states. It has only one incorporated town (Lake City). It is one of the only places within the continental United States that one can venture more than from any road.