page_title: Colorado Western Slope
section_title: Location
hierarchical_section_title: Colorado Western Slope / Location
context_page_description: The Western Slope refers to a region of the state of Colorado incorporating everything in the state west of the Continental Divide. Bodies of water west of the Divide flow toward the Pacific Ocean. Water that falls and flows east of the Divide heads east. The Western Slope encompasses about 33% of the state, but has just 10% of the state's residents. The eastern part of the state, including the San Luis Valley and the Front Range is the more populous portion of the state.
context_section_description: The Western Slope includes Moffat, Routt, Hinsdale, Grand, Summit, La Plata, Montezuma, Dolores, Eagle, Pitkin, Rio Blanco, Garfield, Mesa, Delta, Montrose, Gunnison, Ouray, and San Miguel counties and portions of Saguache, Archuleta, Mineral, and San Juan counties. 
  The Western Slope has about 70% of the state's water. The Colorado River and its tributaries divide the region into north and south at Grand Junction, Colorado. The area has a climate similar to that of the Great Basin.
caption: Map of Colorado counties