Wetterhorn Peak

Infobox Mountain
Name = Wetterhorn Peak
Photo = Wetterhorn_peak.jpg
Elevation = convert|14015|ft|m|0|lk=on
Location = Colorado, United States
Range = San Juan Mountains
Coordinates = coord|38|03|38|N|107|30|37|W|type:mountain_region:US
Topographic
USGS Wetterhorn Peak
Prominence = convert|1635|ft|m|0|abbr=on [http://www.listsofjohn.com/Colorado/CO14ERS/14ers.php Colorado Fourteeners on listsofjohn.com] ]
First ascent = 1906 by George Barnard, C. Smedley, W. P. Smedley, D. Utter (first recorded ascent) [http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=5838 Wetterhorn Peak on peakbagger.com] ] [http://www.summitpost.org/parent/150331/wetterhorn-peak-colorado.html Wetterhorn Peak on Summitpost] ]
Easiest route = Southeast ridge: exposed scramble (Class 3/4)

Wetterhorn Peak is a fourteen thousand foot mountain peak in the U.S. state of Colorado. It is located in the Uncompahgre Wilderness of the northern San Juan Mountains, in northern Hinsdale County, convert|9|mi|km|0|lk=on east of the town of Ouray. It lies convert|2.75|mi|km|1|abbr=on west of Uncompahgre Peak.

Wetterhorn Peak, and its neighbor Matterhorn Peak, convert|13590|ft|m|0|abbr=on, are named after the Wetterhorn and the Matterhorn, two famous peaks in the Swiss Alps. Both Colorado peaks are pointed rock spires (hence slightly resembling their namesake peaks), whose shapes contrast with the broad bulk of the higher Uncompahgre Peak.Louis W. Dawson II, "Dawson's Guide to Colorado's Fourteeners, Volume 2", Blue Clover Press, ISBN 0-9628867-2-6, pp. 115-121.]

The first recorded ascent of the peak was made in 1906 by George Barnard, C. Smedley, W. P. Smedley, and D. Utter, but a previous ascent by miners working in the area in the 19th century is likely.

The standard, and only common, route on Wetterhorn Peak is the southeast ridge, which is accessed via the Matterhorn Creek drainage on the south side of the mountain. The trailhead is on the Henson Creek Road, accessible from Lake City. The route involves convert|3535|ft|m|0|abbr=on of ascent from the trailhead and some exposed scrambling (Class 3/4) on the ridge itself. The nearby east face is considered a high-quality advanced snow climb or extreme ski descent.

ee also

*Colorado fourteeners
*Colorado mountain peaks
*Colorado mountain ranges
*Mountain peaks of North America
*Mountain peaks of the Rocky Mountains
*Mountain peaks of the United States

References

External links

* [http://terraserver.microsoft.com/image.aspx?T=2&S=14&Z=13&X=87&Y=1316&W=1 Topographic map from Terraserver]
* [http://distantpeak.com/web/mountains/n-america/uncompahgre_peak Wetterhorn Peak on Distantpeak.com]