Uncompahgre Peak () is the sixth highest summit of 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 ...

of North America and the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sove ...

Colorado Colorado (, other variants) is a state in the Mountain states, 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 wes ...

. The prominent fourteener is the highest summit of the

San Juan Mountains The San Juan Mountains is a high and rugged mountain range in the Rocky Mountains in southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico. The area is highly mineralized (the Colorado Mineral Belt) and figured in the gold and silver mining industry ...

and the highest point in the

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

of the

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid watershed that encompasses parts of seven U.S. s ...

and the Gulf of California. It is located in the Uncompahgre Wilderness in the northern San Juans, in northern Hinsdale County approximately 7 miles (11 km) west of the town of Lake City. Uncompahgre Peak has a broad summit plateau, rising about above the broad surrounding alpine basins. The south, east and west sides are not particularly steep, but the north face has a

cliff In geography and geology, a cliff is an area of rock which has a general angle defined by the vertical, or nearly vertical. Cliffs are formed by the processes of weathering and erosion, with the effect of gravity. Cliffs are common on co ...

. Like all peaks in the San Juan Mountains, Uncompahgre is of volcanic origin, but is not a volcano. The rock is of poor quality for climbing, precluding an ascent of the north face. The most popular route for climbing Uncompahgre Peak is Uncompahgre National Forest Service Trail Number 239, which starts from the end of the Nellie Creek Road, east-southeast of the peak. The Nellie Creek Road is a

four wheel drive Four-wheel drive, also called 4×4 ("four by four") or 4WD, refers to a two-axled vehicle drivetrain capable of providing torque to all of its wheels simultaneously. It may be full-time or on-demand, and is typically linked via a transfer cas ...

road accessed from the Henson Creek Road, about west of Lake City. The trail to the summit is a strenuous hike rising in elevation in about . It accesses the summit in a winding ascent, starting from the east, passing over a south-trending ridge, and finishing on the west slopes of the summit plateau. The peak's name comes from the Ute word ''Uncompaghre'', which loosely translates to "dirty water" or "red water spring" and is likely a reference to the many hot springs in the vicinity of

Ouray, Colorado Ouray () is a home rule municipality that is the county seat of Ouray County, Colorado, United States. The city population was 1,000 as of the 2010 census. The Ouray Post Office has the ZIP Code 81427. Located at an elevation of , Ouray's cl ...

Historical names

*Mount Chauvenet - 1873 *Unca-pah-gre Mountain *Uncompahgre Mountain *Uncompahgre Peak – 1907

References

Notes

External links

Uncompahgre Peak on 14ers.comUncompahgre Peak on Distantpeak.com
{{Colorado Fourteeners of Colorado Mountains of Hinsdale County, Colorado San Juan Mountains (Colorado) North American 4000 m summits Uncompahgre National Forest Mountains of Colorado

Historical names

See also

References

Notes

External links