Dallas Divide in south-west Colorado, USA

© Ronda Kimbrow/Shutterstoc

A valley at 9,000ft

This is the Dallas Divide, a high mountain pass in the Colorado Rockies which is hundreds of miles north-west of (and more than 8,500ft above) its namesake city in Texas. This valley amid the mountains cuts a swathe just north of the San Juan Mountains. Nestled in those peaks you'll find former mining towns that got a boost from the Rio Grande Southern Railroad when it came to the Dallas Divide in 1890. Nowadays the divide hosts US Highway 62, a less-travelled road for most Colorado motorists but worth the detour if you're a fan of sweeping valley vistas.