To the traveler who has passed through the plains of kansas and eastern colorado, the high rockies might seem like a beautiful but forbidding wilderness, approachable by only the toughest mountaineers. It is true that the 53 peaks in the rockies that soar over 14,0 feet in elevation should only be attempted by seasoned climbers. However, the peaks under 14,0 feet, the fourteeners, can be easily climbed by the average person. Actually, climbing colorado's fourteeners is hardly a rugged experience because most of them take only a day to climb, involve no more than hiking and simple scrambling, and are conquered by many people each year.

Everest, a climb up one of colorado's 14,0 foot peaks rarely takes more than a day. Pike's peak, with the state's greatest base to summit elevation gain, is admittedly a strenuous climb, yet a retired college professor in his middle seventies makes the hike every day in the summer. A friend of mine, carson black, in a day, once climbed four fourteeners, three of which crestone peak, crestone needle, and kit carson peak are the most challenging in the state. Even more revealing is the bicentennial celebration by the colorado mountain club. It planned to have members on the summit of every fourteener in the state on july 4, 1976. Colorado's 14,0 foot peaks are also fairly easy to climb because they require no special climbing techniques.

The knife edge traverse on capitol peak is probably the most infamous challenge, yet most hikers who carry ropes don't use them when they see the ridge is not very intimidating. Elbert, is so simple to climb that a jeep made it in 1949, and one man rode a 24 year old bicycle to the summit in 1951 perry eberhart and philip schmuck, the fourteeners, p. Another indication that climbing colorado's highest peaks is not very difficult is the sheer number of people who succeed each summer. After descending from torrey's peak one weekend in august, i counted over seventy cars in the parking lot. On a week the previous august, i passed fifty people in various stages of climbing mt. Its parking lot today, to accommodate the number of climbers, is about a quarter mile long. If i've shattered your belief that colorado's peaks are the domain of only bears and mountain men who look like bears, consider how zebulon pike might feel about pikes peak today.

In 1806, he predicted that the mountain would never be climbed eberhart and schmuck, p. Now, via the cog railway or the toll highway, he could reach the summit without moving his legs. When many people hear the word africa, they picture steaming jungles and gorillas. Hollywood films have shrunk the public image of this immense, varied continent into a small segment of its actual diversity. To have a more accurate picture of the whole continent, however, one should remember that there are, roughly, three africas, each with its distinct climate and terrain and with a style of life suited to the environment.

The continent can be divided into the northern desert areas, the southeastern grasslands, and the tropical jungles to the southwest. Egypt, libya, algeria, and morocco have hot, dry climates with very little land suited to farming. Therefore, the population tends to be clustered into cities along rivers or the seacoast or into smaller settlements near oases.

For thousands of years, people have lived in this vast region, subsisting partly on what crops and animals they could raise and partly on trade with europe. The southeastern grasslands provide a better environment for animal life and for some kinds of crops. Many wild animals inhabit the plains in this region elephants, giraffes, rhinoceros, antelopes, zebras, and lions. Tea, coffee, cotton, cashew nuts, and tobacco are some of the main products grown in this region. The population here is less concentrated in cities and towns than in the north, but tends to be denser in areas where adequate rainfall and fertile soil make farming possible. As in the other two regions, the way people subsist depends upon their environment. Such nations as nigeria have become highly modernized by income from oil, timber, and minerals.

Most of the western countries have some farming that provides food and income sugar cane, coffee, and tobacco are the important cash crops, while bananas, rice, and corn are raised for food. Fishing in the rivers and along the coast also accounts for food and income, and precious stones, especially diamonds, enhance the economy of angola and the ivory coast. Even a superficial look at the major regions of africa shows that it is a varied continent with several environments. Although most of the continent is tropical in its range of temperature, the climate ranges from deserts to rain forests. Similarly, human life styles vary from the simplest rural villages to industrial cities, both new and ancient. Contrary to the myth, however, jungle life makes up only a very small portion of the whole of africa. it should have a hook: a fairly brief, thought provoking sentence assertion, question, quotation, humor to catch and focus your reader's interest.

Look for transitional words and phrases to introduce and connect the middle paragraphs. Definition of a thesis statement: a thesis statement is a proposition to be defended or proved. it requires the writer to take sides on an issue, and to support that position. unless the thesis is supported by reasons, it is just an expression of one's opinion. A topic is anything you can think or write about, a subject for study or discussion.

notice the difference between the following topics general subjects , and thesis statements which are based upon them specific assertions: c. Shakespeare expresses timeless truths which are the foundation of democracy and absolutely essential for a good education b. Global warming is a natural and recurring phenomenon which humans cannot significantly influence or change. Global warming is an unprecedented event which is caused by humans, and which requires a human solution.