"It is possible to find solitude, even in a busy city, but finding an area so untouched by man is rare. There has never been a motorized vehicle on this Mesa. We need to keep it that way." John Baldus, Montrose

A happy hiker atop Sewemup Mesa photo © Brandon Jett

Isolated from development and most human activity by a fortress-like bastion of high, almost impregnable cliffs, Sewemup Mesa is one of the most ecologically pristine areas in western Colorado. Since most of the mesa has never been grazed by livestock, it provides a rare example of an ecosystem largely undisturbed by human activity. This makes Sewemup Mesa a veritable Shangri-la for scientists and naturalists seeking a glimpse of untouched wilderness. Domes of pink-banded Entrada Sandstone dot the top of the mesa, breaking the sloping landscape of pinyon-juniper forest. Many huge ponderosa pines line the canyons of the mesa top and grow directly from sandstone terraces along the mesa's western cliffs. Few places offer more exhilarating solitude than that found at the edge of Sewemup Mesa's soaring cliffs.

Visit our Sewemup Mesa photo albums on facebook and flickr.

To learn more about this special wild place please visit Colorado's Canyon Country Wilderness Proposal web site.