Nelson Peak (Utah)

Nelson Peak
Nelson Peak
	Southeast aspect
Highest point
Elevation	9,359 ft (2,853 m)
Prominence	1,699 ft (518 m)
Parent peak	Butterfield Peaks
Isolation	10.18 mi (16.38 km)
Coordinates	40°36′49″N112°11′15″W / 40.6137132°N 112.1874499°W
Geography
	Nelson Peak Location in Utah Nelson Peak Nelson Peak (the United States)
Country	United States
State	Utah
County	Tooele / Salt Lake
Parent range	Oquirrh Mountains ; Great Basin Ranges
Topo map	USGS Bingham Canyon
Geology
Mountain type	Fault block
Type of rock	Limestone
Climbing
Easiest route	class 1 hiking

Last updated June 22, 2024

Nelson Peak is a 9,359-foot-elevation (2,853-meter) mountain summit located on the common boundary that Tooele County shares with Salt Lake County in Utah, United States.

Description

Nelson Peak is located 19 miles (31 km) southwest of Salt Lake City and seven miles (11 km) northeast of Tooele in the Oquirrh Mountains which are part of the Great Basin Ranges. It is the highest point in the northern Oquirrh Mountains.^[5] Precipitation runoff from the mountain's slopes drains to the nearby Great Salt Lake.^[4] Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 4,400 feet (1,341 meters) above Tooele Valley in 3.5 miles (5.6 km). The east side of the mountain is private land owned by Rio Tinto, so hiking access to the summit is from Bates Canyon or Flood Canyon on the west side which is public land administered by the Bureau of Land Management.^[2] This mountain's toponym has been officially adopted by the United States Board on Geographic Names.^[3]

Climate

Nelson Peak is set within the Great Basin Desert which has hot summers and cold winters.^[6] The desert is an example of a cold desert climate as the desert's elevation makes temperatures cooler than lower elevation deserts. Due to the high elevation and aridity, temperatures drop sharply after sunset. Summer nights are comfortably cool. Winter highs are generally above freezing, and winter nights are bitterly cold, with temperatures often dropping well below freezing.

Related Research Articles

The Oquirrh Mountains is a mountain range that runs north–south for approximately 30 miles (50 km) to form the west side of Utah's Salt Lake Valley, separating it from Tooele Valley. The range runs from northwestern Utah County–central & eastern Tooele County, to the south shore of the Great Salt Lake. The highest elevation is Flat Top Mountain at 10,620 ft. The name Oquirrh was taken from the Goshute word meaning "wood sitting."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Great Salt Lake Desert</span> Large dry lake in northern Utah, United States

The Great Salt Lake Desert is a large dry lake in northern Utah, United States, between the Great Salt Lake and the Nevada border. It is a subregion of the larger Great Basin Desert, and noted for white evaporite Lake Bonneville salt deposits including the Bonneville Salt Flats.

Knolls is an unincorporated community in north-central Tooele County, Utah, United States.

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Cobb Peak is a 7,021-foot elevation (2,140 m) mountain summit located in Tooele County, Utah, United States.

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Lowe Peak is a 10,589-foot-elevation (3,228-meter) mountain summit located on the common boundary that Tooele County shares with Utah County in Utah, United States.

Kelsey Peak is a 10,373-foot-elevation (3,162-meter) mountain summit located on the common boundary that Tooele County shares with Utah County in Utah, United States.

References

1 2 3 4 5 "Nelson Peak - 9,359' UT". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
1 2 3 Want a tough hike? Nelson Peak is king of the Oquirrh Mountains, Tooele Transcript Bulletin, May 2, 2013.
1 2 "Nelson Peak". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved 2024-06-16.
1 2 "Nelson Peak, Utah". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
↑ Geology of the Oquirrh Mountains, Utah, Edwin W. Tooker, 1999, USGS, p. 14.
↑ Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11. ISSN 1027-5606.

External links

Nelson Peak: weather
National Geodetic Survey Data Sheet

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
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[loj-1] 1 2 3 4 5 "Nelson Peak - 9,359' UT". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2024-06-16.

[TTB-2] 1 2 3 Want a tough hike? Nelson Peak is king of the Oquirrh Mountains, Tooele Transcript Bulletin, May 2, 2013.

[gnis-3] 1 2 "Nelson Peak". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved 2024-06-16.

[peakbagger-4] 1 2 "Nelson Peak, Utah". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2024-06-16.

[5] Geology of the Oquirrh Mountains, Utah, Edwin W. Tooker, 1999, USGS, p. 14.

[Peel-6] Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11. ISSN 1027-5606.

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