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Colorado is high Rocky Mountain country, a wonderland of aspen trees and snow prized by hikers, skiers and all lovers of the outdoors. Colorado is also a state of high plateaus and rugged desert, its starkly beautiful terrain giving locals, whether radicals or ranchers, a fiercely independent streak.

The Colorado Territory was named after the Colorado River, whose powerful reddish-brown waters carved the Grand Canyon and supply much of the western United States. Originally part of Kansas Territory, Colorado came into its own after the Pike’s Peak Gold Rush of 1959, which brought many settlers to Denver. Colorado officially became a state in 1876, earning its nickname as the “Centennial State.”

Colorado’s boundaries are determined entirely by lines of latitude and longitude, giving it a perfectly rectangular shape. The Centennial State’s atmosphere and climate are defined by the towering Rocky Mountains rather than lines on a map, however. With 54 peaks over 14,000 feet, the Rockies bisect Colorado just as the Continental Divide bisects the nation. The Rockies’ conifer and aspen forests separate the Eastern Plains from the high desert of the Colorado Plateau.

The climate in Colorado is cool and dry compared to much of the rest of the U.S., with much local variation due to the stark contrasts in elevation that characterize the state’s mountains, mesas and valleys. Generally, an increase in elevation comes with an increase in precipitation and a decrease in temperature. Severe thunderstorms, hail and snow are all common throughout much of the state.

Most of Colorado’s population lives in the densely urbanized I-25 corridor, just east of the Rockies’ Front Range. Major cities on this strip include Denver, Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, and Boulder. Grand Junction is the largest city in western Colorado, a region better known for the ski resorts of Aspen, Vail, Crested Butte and Steamboat Springs.

Regardless of where they live, though, most Colorado residents are fervent in their love of the outdoors and winter sports, and undying in their loyalty to the Denver Broncos. On this, at least, snowboarders, conservationists and cattle ranchers agree: it’s great to live in the Rockies.