Fourteener

In the mountaineering parlance of the Western United States, a fourteener (also spelled 14er) is a mountain peak with an elevation of at least 14,000ft (4267m). The 96 fourteeners in the United States are all west of the Mississippi River. Colorado has 53 fourteeners, the most of any single state. Alaska has 29, the second most of any single state. Many peak baggers try to climb all fourteeners in the contiguous United States, or in one particular state, or in another region.

Qualification criteria

The summit of a mountain or hill may be measured in three principal ways:

1. Topographic elevation is the height of the summit above a geodetic sea level.
2. Topographic prominence is how high the summit rises above its surroundings.
3. Topographic isolation (or radius of dominance) is how far the summit lies from its nearest point of equal elevation.

Not all summits over 14,000 feet qualify as fourteeners. Summits that qualify are those considered by mountaineers to be independent. Objective standards for independence include topographic prominence and isolation (distance from a higher summit), or a combination of the two. However, fourteener lists do not always use such objective rules consistently.[citation needed]

A rule commonly used by mountaineers in the contiguous United States is that a peak must have at least 300ft (91m) of prominence to qualify. By this rule, Colorado has 53 fourteeners, California has 12, and Washington has 2.

According to the Mountaineering Club of Alaska, the standard in Alaska uses a 500-foot (150m) prominence rule rather than a 300-foot (91m) rule. By this rule, Alaska has at least 19 peaks over 14,000ft (4,267m) and is home to all 9 US peaks exceeding 15,000ft (4,572m).

Fourteeners

The following table lists the 96 mountain peaks of the United States with at least 14,000ft (4267m) of topographic elevation and at least 300ft (91.44m) of topographic prominence. Of these, 53 rise in Colorado, 29 in Alaska, 12 in California and 2 in Washington. The 22 highest fourteeners are all found in Alaska.

Topographic prominence

The table above uses a minimum topographic prominence criterion of 300ft (91.44m) and includes 96 peaks. The number of peaks included depends upon the minimum topographic prominence criterion. A criterion of 100m (328.1ft) includes 90 peaks, 500ft (152.4m) includes 77 peaks, 1,000ft (304.8m) includes 63 peaks, and 500m (1,640ft) includes 46 peaks.

The following U.S. summits have 14,000ft of elevation, but have less than 300ft of topographic prominence:

• Denali, Browne Tower, 14,530, Alaska: Prominence = 25–125 feet (7.6–38.1m). Why this became included on some fourteener lists is unclear.
• Mount Cameron, 14,238, Colorado: Prominence = 118 feet.
• El Diente Peak, 14,159, Colorado: Prominence = 239 feet. On many fourteener lists.
• Point Success, 14,158, Washington: Prominence = 118 feet.
• Polemonium Peak, 14,080+, California: Prominence = 160–240 feet.
• Starlight Peak, 14,080, California: Prominence = 80–160 feet.
• North Conundrum Peak, 14,040+, Colorado: Prominence = 200–280 feet.
• North Eolus, 14,039, Colorado: Prominence = 159–199 feet.
• North Maroon Peak, 14,014, Colorado: Official Prominence = 234 feet. On many fourteener lists, partially due to analysis with higher-resolution topographic data suggesting its true prominence is greater than 300 feet.
• Thunderbolt Peak, 14,003, California: Prominence = 223 feet.
• Sunlight Spire, 14,001, Colorado: Prominence = 195–235 feet.

Gallery

• Mount Saint Elias, Alaska
• Mount Foraker, Alaska
• Mount Blackburn, Alaska
• Mount Sanford and Mount Wrangell, Alaska
• Mount Elbert, Colorado
• Mount Williamson, California
• White Mountain Peak, California
• Longs Peak, Colorado
• Mount Shasta, California
• Maroon Bells (Maroon Peak and North Maroon Peak), Colorado
• Pikes Peak, Colorado
• Blanca Peak, Colorado
• Wilson Peak, Colorado

See also

• List of mountain peaks of North America List of mountain peaks of Greenland List of mountain peaks of Canada List of mountain peaks of the Rocky Mountains List of mountain peaks of the United States List of the highest major summits of the United States List of the most prominent summits of the United States List of the most isolated major summits of the United States List of extreme summits of the United States List of mountain peaks of Alaska List of mountain peaks of California List of mountain peaks of Colorado List of mountain peaks of Hawaiʻi List of mountain peaks of Montana List of mountain peaks of Nevada List of mountain peaks of Utah List of mountain peaks of Washington (state) List of mountain peaks of Wyoming List of mountain peaks of México List of mountain peaks of Central America List of mountain peaks of the Caribbean
• United States of America Geography of the United States Geology of the United States Category:Mountains of the United States commons:Category:Mountains of the United States
• Physical geography
• Eight-thousander, peak with at least 8,000 m. elevation

Notes

External links

63°04′08″N 151°00′23″W/63.0690°N 151.0063°W/ 63.0690; -151.0063(Denali)