Snowmass Mountain

Last updated
Snowmass Mountain
Hagerman Peak and Snowmass Mountain.jpg
Snowmass Mountain, July 2007
Highest point
Elevation 14,099 ft (4,297 m) [1] [2]
Prominence 1,152 ft (351 m) [3]
Isolation 2.34 mi (3.77 km) [3]
Listing Colorado Fourteener 31st
Coordinates 39°07′08″N107°03′59″W / 39.1187546°N 107.0664579°W / 39.1187546; -107.0664579 Coordinates: 39°07′08″N107°03′59″W / 39.1187546°N 107.0664579°W / 39.1187546; -107.0664579 [1]
Geography
USA Colorado relief location map.svg
Red triangle with thick white border.svg
Snowmass Mountain
Location of Snowmass Mountain in the state of Colorado
Location Gunnison and Pitkin counties, Colorado, United States [4]
Parent range Elk Mountains [3]
Topo map USGS 7.5' topographic map
Snowmass Mountain, Colorado [1]
Climbing
First ascent August 7, 1873 by William Byers, James Gardner and W. Rideling [5]
Easiest route East Slopes: Scramble, class 3 [6]

Snowmass Mountain is a 14,099-foot-high (4,297 m) mountain in the U.S. state of Colorado, and the thirty-fourth highest mountain peak in the state. Located in the Elk Mountains within the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness of the White River National Forest, it lies along the border between Pitkin and Gunnison counties, west of Aspen and southwest of the town of Snowmass Village.

Contents

Snowmass Mountain is named for the large snowfield that lies on its eastern slopes. Snowmass Mountain should not be confused with the Snowmass ski area, located outside Snowmass Village; nor with nearby Snowmass Peak, a lower but more visually striking peak that towers over Snowmass Lake. Hagerman Peak sits between Snowmass Mountain and Snowmass Peak and is also often mistaken for Snowmass Mountain.

Hiking/climbing

The route most commonly used to climb Snowmass Mountain is the Snowmass Creek approach. The route to the summit starts at Snowmass Lake, which is itself an 8.1-mile (13.0 km) hike up Snowmass Creek from the parking area. Most people hike to the lake, camp the night and then proceed to the top. This route is recommended in the spring and early summer when the snowfield still covers much of the route; however an ice axe and crampons are recommended for travel on the snowfield. Later in the summer there is more travel on talus (scree) and more danger from rockfall. An alternative in snow-free conditions is to hike up to the saddle between the peak and Hagerman Peak. From that point there are climbers' trails which proceed on the opposite (west) side of the ridge to the summit.

A different and much less used route climbs the west side of Snowmass Mountain from Geneva Lake, which is accessed from the North Fork of the Crystal River. [7]

Historical names

See also

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Snowmass Peak in the U.S. state of Colorado dominates the view from Snowmass Lake. It is often mistaken for Snowmass Mountain, the thirty-fourth highest mountain peak in the state, as well as for Hagerman Peak. Snowmass Peak is not really a peak but the lower end of Hagerman Peak's east ridge. Natural forced perspective causes the optical illusion that Snowmass Peak is higher than Hagerman Peak though it is actually 221 ft shorter than Hagerman's summit. This illusion combined with its striking rise behind Snowmass Lake justifies it being a named point on USGS topographical maps. It is located in the Elk Mountains, within the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness of the White River National Forest. It lies along the border between Pitkin and Gunnison counties, west of Aspen and southwest of the town of Snowmass Village.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "SNOWMASS". NGS Data Sheet. National Geodetic Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce . Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  2. The elevation of Snowmass Mountain includes an adjustment of +1.980 m (+6.50 ft) from NGVD 29 to NAVD 88.
  3. 1 2 3 "Snowmass Mountain, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved October 22, 2014.
  4. 1 2 "Snowmass Mountain". Geographic Names Information System . United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior . Retrieved November 13, 2014.
  5. "Snowmass Mountain, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 2011-02-22.
  6. "Snowmass Mountain Routes". 14ers.com.
  7. Louis W. Dawson II (1994). Dawson's Guide to Colorado's Fourteeners, Volume 1 . Blue Clover Press. ISBN   0-9628867-1-8.