This article comprises four sortable tables of mountain summits of the United States that are higher than any other point

north North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating Direction (geometry), direction or geography. Etymology T ...

south South is one of the cardinal directions or Points of the compass, compass points. The direction is the opposite of north and is perpendicular to both east and west. Etymology The word ''south'' comes from Old English ''sūþ'', from earlier Pro ...

of their

latitude In geography, latitude is a coordinate that specifies the north– south position of a point on the surface of the Earth or another celestial body. Latitude is given as an angle that ranges from –90° at the south pole to 90° at the north pol ...

east East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the fa ...

west West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...

of their

longitude Longitude (, ) is a geographic coordinate that specifies the east–west position of a point on the surface of the Earth, or another celestial body. It is an angular measurement, usually expressed in degrees and denoted by the Greek letter l ...

in the U.S. The

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used ...

of a mountain or hill may be measured in three principal ways: #The

topographic elevation The elevation of a geographic location is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § Vertic ...

of a summit measures the height of the summit above a geodetic sea level.All elevations in the 48 states of the

contiguous United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

include an elevation adjustment from the

National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 The National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 is the official name since 1973 of the vertical datum established for vertical control surveying in the United States of America by the General Adjustment of 1929. Originally known as Sea Level Datum ...

(

NGVD 29 The National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 is the official name since 1973 of the vertical datum established for vertical control surveying in the United States of America by the General Adjustment of 1929. Originally known as Sea Level Datum ...

) to the

North American Vertical Datum of 1988 The North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88) is the vertical datum for orthometric heights established for vertical control surveying in the United States of America based upon the General Adjustment of the North American Datum of 1988. ...

(

NAVD 88 The North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88) is the vertical datum for orthometric heights established for vertical control surveying in the United States of America based upon the General Adjustment of the North American Datum of 1988. ...

). For further information, please see this

United States National Geodetic Survey The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) is a United States federal agency that defines and manages a national coordinate system, providing the foundation for transportation and communication; mapping and charting; and a large number of applications ...

br>note
If the elevation or prominence of a summit is calculated as a range of values, the

arithmetic mean In mathematics and statistics, the arithmetic mean ( ) or arithmetic average, or just the ''mean'' or the ''average'' (when the context is clear), is the sum of a collection of numbers divided by the count of numbers in the collection. The colle ...

is shown. #The

topographic prominence In topography, prominence (also referred to as autonomous height, relative height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop or relative height in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contou ...

of a summit is a measure of how high the summit rises above its surroundings.The

of a summit is the

difference between the summit and its highest or key col to a higher summit. The summit may be near its key col or quite far away. The key col for

Denali Denali (; also known as Mount McKinley, its former official name) is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. With a topographic prominence of and a topographic isolation of , Denali is the thir ...

in Alaska is the

Isthmus of Rivas The Nicaraguan Canal ( es, Canal de Nicaragua), formally the Nicaraguan Canal and Development Project (also referred to as the Nicaragua Grand Canal, or the Grand Interoceanic Canal) was a proposed shipping route through Nicaragua to connect th ...

in Nicaragua, away.This article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of

, and a major summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence. All summits in this article have at least 500 meters of topographic prominence. An

ultra-prominent summit An ultra-prominent peak, or Ultra for short, is a mountain summit with a topographic prominence of or more; it is also called a P1500. The prominence of a peak is the minimum height of climb to the summit on any route from a higher peak, or fro ...

is a summit with at least of topographic prominence. #The

topographic isolation The topographic isolation of a summit is the minimum distance to a point of equal elevation, representing a radius of dominance in which the peak is the highest point. It can be calculated for small hills and islands as well as for major mountain ...

(or radius of dominance) of a summit measures how far the summit lies from its nearest point of equal elevation.The

of a summit is the

great-circle distance The great-circle distance, orthodromic distance, or spherical distance is the distance along a great circle. It is the shortest distance between two points on the surface of a sphere, measured along the surface of the sphere (as opposed to a ...

to its nearest point of equal elevation. __TOC__

Northernmost high summits

Southernmost high summits

Easternmost high summits

Westernmost high summits

Gallery

Denali Mt McKinley.jpg,

in Alaska is the highest summit of the United States and all of North America. Mt Saint Elias.jpg,

Mount Saint Elias Mount Saint Elias (also designated Boundary Peak 186), the second-highest mountain in both Canada and the United States, stands on the Yukon and Alaska border about southwest of Mount Logan, the highest mountain in Canada. The Canadian side of ...

is the second highest summit of both Canada and the United States. MountForaker.jpg,

Mount Foraker Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

is the second highest major summit of the

Alaska Range The Alaska Range is a relatively narrow, 600-mile-long (950 km) mountain range in the southcentral region of the U.S. state of Alaska, from Lake Clark at its southwest endSources differ as to the exact delineation of the Alaska Range. ThBoar ...

. Fairweather.jpg,

Mount Fairweather Mount Fairweather (officially gazetted as Fairweather Mountain in Canada but referred to as Mount Fairweather), is the highest mountain in the Canadian province of British Columbia, with an elevation of . It is located east of the Pacific Ocean ...

lies on the Alaska-British Columbia international border. Mount Whitney 2003-03-25.jpg,

Mount Whitney Mount Whitney (Paiute: Tumanguya; ''Too-man-i-goo-yah'') is the highest mountain in the contiguous United States and the Sierra Nevada, with an elevation of . It is in East–Central California, on the boundary between California's Inyo and Tu ...

highest summit of the

Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...

and California. Mt. Elbert.jpg,

Mount Elbert Mount Elbert is the highest summit of the Rocky Mountains, the highest point in the U.S. state of Colorado, and the second-highest summit in the contiguous United States (after Mount Whitney). The ultra-prominent fourteener is the highest pea ...

is the highest summit of Colorado and the

Rocky Mountains The Rocky Mountains, also known as the Rockies, are a major mountain range and the largest mountain system in North America. The Rocky Mountains stretch in straight-line distance from the northernmost part of western Canada, to New Mexico in ...

. Pikes Peak CO.jpg,

Pikes Peak Pikes Peak is the List of mountain ranges of Colorado#Mountain ranges, highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, in North America. The Ultra-prominent peak, ultra-prominent fourteener is located in Pike National Forest ...

in Colorado was the inspiration for ''

America the Beautiful "America the Beautiful" is a patriotic American song. Its lyrics were written by Katharine Lee Bates and its music was composed by church organist and choirmaster Samuel A. Ward at Grace Episcopal Church in Newark, New Jersey. The two neve ...

''. Mount Hayes.jpg,

Mount Hayes Mount Hayes is the highest mountain in the eastern Alaska Range, in the U.S. state of Alaska. Despite not being a fourteener, it is one of the largest peaks in the United States in terms of rise above local terrain. For example, the Northeast Fa ...

is the highest summit of the eastern

. KeckObservatory.jpg,

Mauna Kea Mauna Kea ( or ; ; abbreviation for ''Mauna a Wākea''); is a dormant volcano on the island of Hawaii. Its peak is above sea level, making it the highest point in the state of Hawaii and second-highest peak of an island on Earth. The peak is ...

on the

Island of Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii ) is the largest island in the United States, located in the state of Hawaii. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of volcanic islands in the North Pacific Ocean. With an area of , it has 63% of th ...

is the tallest mountain on Earth as measured from base to summit. Aa channel flow from Mauna Loa.jpg,

Mauna Loa Mauna Loa ( or ; Hawaiian: ; en, Long Mountain) is one of five volcanoes that form the Island of Hawaii in the U.S. state of Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. The largest subaerial volcano (as opposed to subaqueous volcanoes) in both mass and ...

on the

is the most voluminous mountain on Earth. Haleakalā, Peak Shadow.jpg,

Haleakalā Haleakalā (; Hawaiian: ), or the East Maui Volcano, is a massive shield volcano that forms more than 75% of the Hawaiian Island of Maui. The western 25% of the island is formed by another volcano, Mauna Kahalawai, also referred to as the West ...

is the highest summit of the

Island of Maui The island of Maui (; Hawaiian: ) is the second-largest of the islands of the state of Hawaii at 727.2 square miles (1,883 km2) and is the 17th largest island in the United States. Maui is the largest of Maui County's four islands, which ...

. Shishaldin.jpg,

Mount Shishaldin Shishaldin Volcano, or Mount Shishaldin (), is a moderately active volcano on Unimak Island in the Aleutian Islands chain of Alaska in the United States.

Unimak Island Unimak Island ( ale, Unimax, russian: Унимак) is the largest island in the Aleutian Islands chain of the U.S. state of Alaska. Geography It is the easternmost island in the Aleutians and, with an area of , the ninth largest island in the U ...

Alaska Alaska ( ; russian: Аляска, Alyaska; ale, Alax̂sxax̂; ; ems, Alas'kaaq; Yup'ik: ''Alaskaq''; tli, Anáaski) is a state located in the Western United States on the northwest extremity of North America. A semi-exclave of the U.S., ...

is the highest summit of the

Aleutian Islands The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a cha ...

. MountVsevidof.jpg,

Mount Vsevidof Mount Vsevidof ( or ; russian: Вулкан Всевидова) is a stratovolcano in the U.S. state of Alaska. Its summit is the highest point on Umnak Island, one of the eastern Aleutian Islands. Its symmetrical cone rises abruptly from its su ...

is the highest summit of

Umnak Island Umnak ( ale, Unmax, Umnax; russian: Умнак) is one of the Fox Islands of the Aleutian Islands. With of land area, it is the third largest island in the Aleutian archipelago and the 19th largest island in the United States. The island is home ...

and the Fox Islands in the

. Mount Mitchell 640x480.jpg,

Mount Mitchell Mount Mitchell, known in Cherokee as Attakulla, is the highest peak of the Appalachian Mountains and the highest peak in mainland eastern North America. It is located near Burnsville in Yancey County, North Carolina in the Black Mountain subra ...

is the highest summit of North Carolina and the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. They ...

. Mt. Washington from Bretton Woods.JPG,

Mount Washington Mount Washington is the highest peak in the Northeastern United States at and the most topographically prominent mountain east of the Mississippi River. The mountain is notorious for its erratic weather. On the afternoon of April 12, 1934 ...

is the highest summit of the White Mountains and New Hampshire. Tanaga2003.jpg,

Tanaga Volcano Tanaga ( ale, Kusuuginax̂) is a 5,924-foot (1,806 m) stratovolcano in the Aleutian Range of the U.S. state of Alaska. There have been three known eruptions since 1763. The most recent was in 1914 and produced lava flows. It sits west of ano ...

is the highest summit of

Tanaga Island Tanaga Island ( ale, Tanax̂ax; russian: остров Танага) is an island in the western Andreanof Islands, in the southwest part of the Aleutian Islands, Alaska. The island has a land area of , making it the 33rd largest oceanic island i ...

and the

Andreanof Islands The Andreanof Islands ( ale, Niiĝuĝim tanangis, russian: Андреяновские острова) are a group of islands in the Aleutian Islands in southwestern Alaska. They are located at about 52° North and 172°57' to 179°09' West. Geogr ...

in the

. Frederic Edwin Church - Mount Katahdin from Millinocket Camp.jpg, Katahdin is the highest summit of the

Longfellow Mountains The Longfellow Mountains are a subrange of the Appalachian Mountains System, located within the North Maine Woods region of northwestern Maine. They extend across the state from northern New Hampshire northeastward to the Canadian provinces of New ...

and the U.S. State of Maine. GareloiSouthFlank.jpg, Gareloi Volcano is the apex of

Gareloi Island Gareloi (russian: Горелый) or Anangusook ( ale, Anangusix̂) is a volcanic island in the Delarof Islands of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is located between the Tanaga Pass and the Amchitka Pass Amchitka Pass is a strait in Alask ...

in the

. Kiska Island volcano.jpg,

Kiska Volcano Kiska ( ale, Qisxa, russian: Кыска) is one of the Rat Islands, a group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is about long and varies in width from . It is part of Aleutian Islands Wilderness and as such, special permission is require ...

is the apex of

Kiska Island Kiska ( ale, Qisxa, russian: Кыска) is one of the Rat Islands, a group of the Aleutian Islands of Alaska. It is about long and varies in width from . It is part of Aleutian Islands Wilderness and as such, special permission is required ...

in the

. Buldir Volcano_east.jpg,

Buldir Volcano Buldir Volcano is an dormant volcano, inactive stratovolcano located on Buldir Island in the Aleutian Islands of Alaska, once described as "the westernmost volcanic center of the present Pleistocene to Recent Aleutian volcanic front."Wood and Kie ...

is the apex of

Buldir Island Buldir Island (also sometimes written Buldyr; ale, Idmaax; russian: Булдырь) is a small island in the western Aleutian Islands of the U.S. state of Alaska. It is long and wide with an area of . Buldir is farther from the nearest lan ...

in the

Notes

References

External links

United States Geological Survey (USGS)

Geographic Names Information System @ USGSUnited States National Geodetic Survey (NGS)

Geodetic Glossary @ NGS

NGVD 29 to NAVD 88 online elevation converter @ NGS

Survey Marks and Datasheets @ NGSBivouac.comPeakbagger.comPeaklist.orgSummitpost.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Extreme Summits Of The United States *Extreme Extreme Summits

Northernmost high summits

Southernmost high summits

Easternmost high summits

Westernmost high summits

Gallery

See also

Notes

References

External links