<P> The Colorado River is one of the principal rivers of the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico ( the other being the Rio Grande ) . The 1,450 - mile - long ( 2,330 km ) river drains an expansive , arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. and two Mexican states . Starting in the central Rocky Mountains in the U.S. , the river flows generally southwest across the Colorado Plateau and through the Grand Canyon before reaching Lake Mead on the Arizona -- Nevada border , where it turns south toward the international border . After entering Mexico , the Colorado approaches the mostly dry Colorado River Delta at the tip of the Gulf of California between Baja California and Sonora . </P>
<P> The Colorado River is one of the principal rivers of the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico ( the other being the Rio Grande ) . The 1,450 - mile - long ( 2,330 km ) river drains an expansive , arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. and two Mexican states . Starting in the central Rocky Mountains in the U.S. , the river flows generally southwest across the Colorado Plateau and through the Grand Canyon before reaching Lake Mead on the Arizona -- Nevada border , where it turns south toward the international border . After entering Mexico , the Colorado approaches the mostly dry Colorado River Delta at the tip of the Gulf of California between Baja California and Sonora . </P>
where does the colorado river empty into the gulf
where does the colorado river empty into the gulf
between Baja California and Sonora
between Baja California and Sonora