The Southern Rocky Mountains are a major subregion of the Rocky Mountains of North America located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Wyoming, the central and western portions of the Colorado, the northern portion of the New Mexico, and extreme eastern portions of the Utah. The Southern Rockies include the highest mountain ranges of the Rocky Mountains and include all 30 of the highest peaks of the Rockies. The Southern Rocky Mountains are also commonly known as the Southern Rockies, and since the highest peaks are located in the State of Colorado, they are sometimes known as the Colorado Rockies, although many important ranges and peaks rise in the other three states.

     The Southern Rocky Mountains are divided from the Western Rocky Mountains by the Green River and the Colorado River below the Green River. The Southern Rockies are divided from the Northern Rocky Mountains by the divide in Wyoming running up the North Platte River and the Sweetwater River to South Pass, and then down Pacific Creek and Sandy Creek to the Green River. This later divide between the Southern Rockies and the Northern Rockies provided the lowest elevation traverse of the Rocky Mountain region for the historic Oregon Trail, the Mormon Trail, and the California Trail.

     The Rocky Mountain Front is an area extending over 100 miles (160 km) from the central regions of the U.S. state of Montana to southern Alberta, Canada. Here, the Rocky Mountains meet the Great Plains in an abrupt altitude rise of between 4,000 to 5,000 feet (1,219–1,524 m).   This is one of the few places in the lower 48 states in which the Grizzly bear still ventures onto the Great Plains. Conservationists have been actively working to protect the region from oil and gas exploration interests.