Carved from a block of 1.7 billion year old basement granite that was uplifted around 10-20 million years ago, the Gore are some of the youngest and most rugged mountains in Colorado. Geologists have found fresh fault breaks in glacial morianes, suggesting that these montains continue to grow.

The Gore Range was named for Lord Gore, who apparently was a horrible person noted for slaughtering thousands of animals for target practice in the mid-1800's, and who never even set foot in these mountains anyways. The native Utes called these mountains the Shining Mountains; there's a recent movement to rename the range back to the original name.