Crestones

Crestone Peak and Crestone Needle seen from the south

The Crestones are a group of four 14,000 foot (4,268 m) peaks (fourteeners) in the Sangre de Cristo Range above Crestone, Colorado, comprising:

• Crestone Peak (14,294 ft, 4,357 m)
• Crestone Needle (14,197 ft, 4,327 m)
• Kit Carson Mountain (14,165 ft, 4,317 m)
• Humboldt Peak (14,064 ft, 4,287 m)

(Sometimes Humboldt is not included in the term "The Crestones.")

Crestone Peak and Needle are rock scrambles (Class 3) with some exposure; Crestone Peak has significant rockfall danger. Kit Carson Mountain is a walk-up (Class 2), but only if the correct route is carefully followed; it has claimed more lives than Crestone Peak or Crestone Needle. Humboldt Peak is the easiest of the four, with a straightforward walk-up route.

Snow is usually mostly melted by early July. Climbers can expect afternoon rain, hail, and lightning from the seasonal monsoon in late July and August.

For climbing details, see the individual peak pages and the references therein. Note that Crestone Peak and Crestone Needle are somewhat more technical climbs than many Colorado fourteeners; caution is advised. About one person per year is killed on the Crestones; occasionally, they are skilled mountaineers.

Mount Adams (13,931 ft, 4246 m) is a notable peak just to the north of the Crestones, and is quite rugged. Broken Hand Peak, 13,573 ft (4,137 m), southeast of Crestone Needle, is included within the official name "Crestone Peaks".

External links

• The Crestones on TopoQuest
• U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Crestone Peaks or Crestone Group
• Well illustrated trip report of climbs of Crestone Needle and Crestone Peak via Broken Hand Pass