Arapaho

The Sangre de Cristo Range rises between the San Luis Valley and the waters of the Arkansas River. Its long chain of high peaks forms part of the southern Rocky Mountains, separating the inland valley to the west from country opening onto the plains. Arapaho communities, closely allied with the Cheyenne, ranged across the plains and the eastern approaches to the mountains. Horses acquired in the eighteenth century made longer journeys and bison hunts possible for their families.