Laramie Mountains, range of the central Rocky Mountains, in southeastern Wyoming, U.S. A northern section of Colorado’s Front Range, it stretches north-northwestward for 125 miles (200 km) from the Wyoming-Colorado border, between Laramie and Cheyenne, to the North Platte River, around Casper. The range (roughly 25–50 miles [40–80 km] wide) rises about 3,000 feet (900 metres) from the Great Plains on the east and 1,500 feet from the Laramie Basin on the west. It exceeds 9,000 feet in many places, with Laramie Peak (10,272 feet [3,131 metres]) being the high point. Its low southern portion provides a relatively easy path into the Rockies for the Union Pacific Railroad, as well as for a cross-country highway. Two divisions of the Medicine Bow National Forest encircle the mountains, which were named for Jacques La Ramie (see Laramie).