In
mountaineering
Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, a ...
in the United States, a thirteener (abbreviated 13er) is a
mountain
A mountain is an elevated portion of the Earth's crust, generally with steep sides that show significant exposed bedrock. Although definitions vary, a mountain may differ from a plateau in having a limited Summit (topography), summit area, and ...
that exceeds
above mean sea level
Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''.
The comb ...
, similar to the more familiar "
fourteener
In the mountaineering parlance of the Western United States, a fourteener is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least . The 96 fourteeners in the United States are all west of the Mississippi River. Colorado has the most (53) of any single ...
s," which exceed . In most instances, "thirteeners" refers only to those peaks between 13,000 and 13,999 feet in elevation.
The importance of thirteeners is greatest in
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
, which has the majority of such peaks in
North America
North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...
with over 600 of them. Despite the large number of peaks, over 20
peak baggers have reported climbing all of Colorado's thirteeners. Thirteeners are also significant in states whose
highpoints
Highpointing is the activity of ascending to the point with the highest elevation within a given area (the "highpoint"). Examples include: climbing the highest point of each U.S. state; reaching the highest point of each county within a specific ...
fall between 13,000 and 13,999 feet. For example, the Wyoming thirteeners are the highest peaks within the state, and only 5 individuals have reported climbing all 35 peaks, likely due to a combination of technical difficulty and remoteness.
Not all summits over 13,000 feet qualify as thirteeners, but only those summits that
mountaineers
Mountaineering or alpinism, is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending tall mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas. Indoor climbing, sport climbing, an ...
consider to be independent. Objective standards for independence include
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 ...
and isolation (distance from a higher summit), or a combination. However thirteener lists do not always consistently use such objective rules. A rule commonly used by mountaineers in 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 ...
is that a peak must have at least of prominence to qualify. According to th
Mountaineering Club of Alaska it is standard in
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., ...
to use a prominence rule rather than a 300-foot rule. These are the standards applied for the lists below. Regarding whether or not peaks in excess of 13,999 feet should be considered as "thirteeners", this article will count them as such for statistical purposes, but concentrate its focus on those peaks less than 14,000 feet since the higher peaks are already covered in the
fourteener
In the mountaineering parlance of the Western United States, a fourteener is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least . The 96 fourteeners in the United States are all west of the Mississippi River. Colorado has the most (53) of any single ...
s list.
List of United States thirteeners by state
Thirteeners are found in nine U.S. states. This table summarizes their numbers based on each state's prominence criteria:
Colorado
By the most detailed count,
Colorado
Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It encompasses most of the Southern Rocky Mountains, as well as the northeastern portion of the Colorado Plateau and the western edge of t ...
has 637 peaks that exceed and meet the prominence criteria, of which
53 are fourteeners. The highest of them less than 14,000 feet are as follows (the rank includes higher peaks):
Grizzly Peak is not only the name of Colorado's highest thirteener, but the state has four other Grizzly Peaks plus one Grizzly Mountain on the list:
Other notable Colorado thirteeners include:
California
California
California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...
has the second greatest number of thirteeners with 149 of them, of which
12 are fourteeners. The highest under 14,000 feet are as follows (the rank includes higher peaks):
Other notable California thirteeners include:
Alaska
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., ...
has at least 41 thirteeners that meet its more stringent prominence criteria of 500 ft, of which 20 are also fourteeners. Different sources list varying numbers of 13,000+ ft peaks in the state, mainly because many of the peaks (especially those that are sub-peaks of a higher mountain) are unnamed and have no spot elevations given on the USGS topographical maps. Using a 300' interpolated prominence criterion, there are 61 13,000+ ft peaks in Alaska. The following list may miss a few peaks that should be included:
Wyoming
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a U.S. state, state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the south ...
has 35 thirteeners with at least 300 ft of interpolated prominence, but no fourteeners. 31 of the 35 are located in the rugged and remote
Wind River Range
The Wind River Range (or "Winds" for short) is a mountain range of the Rocky Mountains in western Wyoming in the United States. The range runs roughly NW–SE for approximately . The Continental Divide follows the crest of the range and inclu ...
. Several of the Wyoming thirteeners require glacier travel and/or
rock climbing
Rock climbing is a sport in which participants climb up, across, or down natural rock formations. The goal is to reach the summit of a formation or the endpoint of a usually pre-defined route without falling. Rock climbing is a physically and ...
up to the 5.4
YDS difficulty level to reach the summit, and most climbers spend multiple days
backpacking
Backpacking may refer to:
* Backpacking (travel), low-cost, independent, international travel
* Backpacking (hiking), trekking and camping overnight in the wilderness
* Ultralight backpacking, a style of wilderness backpacking with an emphasis on ...
to reach most of these peaks. The highest of them are:
Other notable Wyoming thirteeners include:
Utah
Utah
Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...
has 17 thirteeners with at least 300 ft of prominence, but no fourteeners. All of them are located in the remote
Uinta Mountains
The Uinta Mountains ( ) are an east-west trending chain of mountains in northeastern Utah extending slightly into southern Wyoming in the United States. As a subrange of the Rocky Mountains, they are unusual for being the highest range in the con ...
near the Wyoming border. The highest of the thirteeners are:
New Mexico
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
has 3 thirteeners, all located within about of each other in the
Sangre de Cristo Mountains
)
, country= United States
, subdivision1_type= States
, subdivision1=
, parent= Rocky Mountains
, geology=
, orogeny=
, area_mi2= 17193
, range_coordinates=
, length_mi= 242
, length_orientation= north-south
, width_mi= 120
, w ...
.
Hawaii
Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...
has two thirteeners, the great
shield volcanoes
A shield volcano is a type of volcano named for its low profile, resembling a warrior's shield lying on the ground. It is formed by the eruption of highly fluid (low viscosity) lava, which travels farther and forms thinner flows than the more vi ...
which comprise the bulk of the
Big Island of Hawaii
Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii ) is the List of islands of the United States by area, largest island in the United States, located in the U.S. state, state of Hawaii. It is the southeasternmost of the Hawaiian Islands, a chain of High island, volcanic ...
.
Nevada
Nevada
Nevada ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, Western region of the United States. It is bordered by Oregon to the northwest, Idaho to the northeast, California to the west, Arizona to the southeast, and Utah to the east. N ...
has only a single thirteener that meets the threshold for inclusion,
Wheeler Peak in
Great Basin National Park
Great Basin National Park is an American national park located in White Pine County in east-central Nevada, near the Utah border, established in 1986. The park is most commonly entered by way of Nevada State Route 488, which is connected to U. ...
with an impressive of prominence. However, the highest point in the state is
Boundary Peak, which is a sub-peak of California's
Montgomery Peak
Montgomery Peak is a mountain in the White Mountains of California, USA. It is less than from Boundary Peak, the highest point in Nevada; and it is taller than Boundary Peak. Boundary Peak has a prominence of less than 300 feet. Montgomery ca ...
with only of prominence.
Washington
Mount Rainier
Mount Rainier (), indigenously known as Tahoma, Tacoma, Tacobet, or təqʷubəʔ, is a large active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest, located in Mount Rainier National Park about south-southeast of Seattle. With a s ...
is the only mountain in
Washington
Washington commonly refers to:
* Washington (state), United States
* Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States
** A metonym for the federal government of the United States
** Washington metropolitan area, the metropolitan area centered on ...
state that exceeds , and it has two summits that meet the prominence criteria,
both of which are included on the list of
fourteener
In the mountaineering parlance of the Western United States, a fourteener is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least . The 96 fourteeners in the United States are all west of the Mississippi River. Colorado has the most (53) of any single ...
s.
See also
*
Outline of the United States
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the United States of America:
General reference
*Pronunciation:
*Abbreviations: USA or US
*Common English country name: United States
*Official English country nam ...
*
Index of United States-related articles
The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to the United States of America:
General reference
*Pronunciation:
* Abbreviations: USA or US
*Common English country name: United States
*Official English country n ...
*
Fourteener
In the mountaineering parlance of the Western United States, a fourteener is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least . The 96 fourteeners in the United States are all west of the Mississippi River. Colorado has the most (53) of any single ...
*
Mountain peaks of Alaska
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a major summit as a susexxleast of topographic prominence. All summits i ...
*
Mountain peaks of California
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a major summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence. All ...
*
Mountain peaks of Colorado
This is a list of major mountain peaks in the U.S. State of Colorado.
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a m ...
*
Mountain peaks of the Rocky Mountains
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a major summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence. All ...
*
Mountain peaks of the United States
This article comprises three sortable tables of major mountain peaksThis article defines a significant summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence, and a major summit as a summit with at least of topographic prominence. All su ...
References
{{reflist, 2
External links
listsofjohn.com(Full listing of US 13ers excluding Alaska)
Peak Lists by Gerry Roach(Lists of thirteeners in several states)
13ers.com - Home of Colorado's Thirteeners (Mountains Between 13,000 and 14,000 feet)Climb13ers.com - Peakbagging Info (including routes, maps & photos) for Colorado 13ersSunlitSummit.com - Photos and Trip Report for all of the Wyoming 13ers
Mountains
Lists of mountains
Peak bagging in the United States