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The Roan Cliffs are a series of desert mountains and in eastern Utah and western Colorado, in the western United States that are distinct from (but closely associated with) the Book Cliffs.
The Roan Cliffs are situated north of (in back of) and above, but run roughly parallel to, the Book Cliffs. Stretching nearly from west to east, the Roan Cliffs begin on southern edge of the West Tavaputs Plateau, on the eastern edge of the Willow Creek (and the US-191 corridor), north of Emma Park, and northwest of Helper on the Carbon‑Duchesne Border. (The Book Cliffs do not reach into Duchesne County, but do extend a bit further west to the Price River.) The Roan Cliffs then run southeast along the southern edge of the West Tavaputs Plateau (but north of Whitmore Park), passing through the northeast corner of Emery County until it reaches the Green River in the Desolation and Gray canyons. (The Green River divides the West Tavaputs Plateau from the East Tavaputs Plateau and runs along the Emery‑Grand county line.)
Upon entering Grand County, the Roan Cliffs initially pass through the southern edge of the Uintah and Ouray Indian Reservation. The cliffs continue their southeast course along the southern edge of the East Tavaputs Plateau until they reach a point near the head of Thompson Canyon (about north of the community of Thompson Springs). From that point the cliffs head northeast, but still along the southern edge of the East Tavaputs Plateau. They continue northeast until, after passing partially and briefly back into Uintah County, they reach the Utah‑Colorado Border.
East of the state line, the Roan Cliffs continue a northeastern course in Garfield County until they reach the East Salt Creek (and the SH-139 Douglas corridor). Beyond that creek, the Roan Cliffs run southeast along the southern edge of the East Tavaputs Plateau until they reach the Colorado River (and the I-70/US-6 corridor) at a point about north of the Town of De Beque. (The course of the Book Cliffs runs southeast to their eastern end at the Colorado River in the De Beque Canyon, near the town of Palisade and just northeast of the city of Grand Junction. This is also the eastern end of the Grand Valley.)
The Roan Cliffs then run briefly northeast again (along the Colorado River) to a point about west‑northwest of the City of Rifle. This is also near the highpoint for the Roan Cliffs, the Gardner Benchmark, with an elevation of and coordinates . The course of cliffs then turns northwest to run along the southwest side of Government Creek (and the SH-13 Government corridor) until they reach their eastern end, just south of the Garfield‑Rio Blanco county line, about south‑southeast of the "mid-corner" of Rio Blanco County and about northwest of the City of Rifle.
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