| Crestones | |
|---|---|
 Crestone Peak and Crestone Needle seen from the south | |
| Highest point | |
| Peak | Crestone Peak |
| Elevation | 14,300 feet (4,359 m) |
| Listing | Mountain ranges of Colorado |
| Coordinates | 37°58′00″N 105°35′07″W / 37.9666665°N 105.5852865°W / 37.9666665; -105.5852865 |
| Geography | |
  Crestones
| |
| Country | United States |
| State | Colorado |
| Range coordinates | 37°58′01″N 105°35′07″W / 37.9668400°N 105.5853471°W / 37.9668400; -105.5853471 |
| Parent range | Sangre de Cristo Range |
The Crestones are a group of four 14,000-foot (4,300 m) peaks (fourteeners) in the Sangre de Cristo Range above Crestone, central southern Colorado, comprising:
- Crestone Peak (14,294 ft; 4,357 m )
- Crestone Needle (14,197 ft; 4,327 m )
- Kit Carson Mountain (14,165 ft; 4,317 m )
- Humboldt Peak (14,064 ft; 4,287 m )
Snow is usually mostly melted by early July. Climbers can expect afternoon rain, hail, and lightning from the seasonal monsoon in late July and August.
Climbing
- Crestone Peak and Crestone Needle are rock scrambles (Class 3) with some exposure.
- Kit Carson Mountain is a walk-up (Class 2), but only if the correct route is carefully followed; it has claimed more lives than Crestone Peak or Crestone Needle. Challenger Point (14,081 ft; 4,292 m ) and Columbia Point (13,980-foot (4,261 m)) are sub-peaks of Kit Carson Mountain.
- Humboldt Peak is the easiest of the four, with a straightforward walk-up route. Sometimes Humboldt is not included in the term "The Crestones."
Broken Hand Peak, 13,573 ft (4,137 m), southeast of Crestone Needle, is included within the official name "Crestone Peaks". Mount Adams (13,931 ft; 4,246 m ) is a notable peak just to the north of the Crestones, and is quite rugged.
Note that Crestone Peak and Crestone Needle are somewhat more technical climbs than many Colorado fourteeners; caution is advised. About one person per year is killed on the Crestones; occasionally they are skilled mountaineers.
See also
References
- "Topographic map of Crestone Peak". opentopomap.org. Retrieved 2023-01-02.
- "Crestone Peak". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved November 14, 2014.
- ^ "Crestone Peaks". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved January 2, 2023.
- Haag, Matthew (August 3, 2010). "Plano mountaineers fall to their deaths in Colorado". The Dallas Morning News. Retrieved January 16, 2018.
External links
- The Crestones on TopoQuest
- U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Crestone Peaks or Crestone Group
- Well illustrated trip report of climbs of Crestone Needle and Crestone Peak via Broken Hand Pass