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Trip reports, gear reviews, and how-tos from the Outdoors team. Plan smarter, explore further.
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Mount Lincoln: The Mosquito Range's high crown and the DeCaLiBron loop
Mount Lincoln tops the Mosquito Range at 14,293 feet — the eighth-highest peak in Colorado, anchoring the famous DeCaLiBron loop that links four 14ers in a single 7-mile day.
Mount Sherman: The gentlest 14er in Colorado
Mount Sherman has the smallest elevation gain of any standard 14er route in Colorado. The trail starts at an old mining road at 12,000 feet and tops out 2,100 feet later — making it the most-recommended introductory peak in the state.
Wetterhorn Peak: A Swiss-named Class 3 in the San Juans, and the Yellow Dirt that promotes you
Wetterhorn rises in jagged, vertically-banded volcanic rock above the Matterhorn Creek basin. The standard route ends in the famous "Yellow Dirt" Class 3 summit pitch — often paired with Uncompahgre next door for a heck of a San Juan double.
Mount of the Holy Cross: The 1873 Jackson photograph, the cross, and the meanest descent on a Sawatch 14er
Holy Cross is named for the snow-filled cross on its east face — captured by William Henry Jackson in 1873 in a photograph that helped birth the National Park movement and turned this peak into a religious pilgrimage. Y'all, the climb is no joke either.
La Plata Peak: The Sawatch silver mountain, and a quieter alternative to Elbert
La Plata is Colorado's fifth-highest peak — eight miles south of Elbert on the same Sawatch spine. The Spanish name (la plata, "the silver") goes back to the early mining-era assays that turned Twin Lakes into one of Colorado's first silver districts. Heck of a quieter day than Elbert.
Uncompahgre Peak: The highest summit in the San Juans, and a sneaky-easy big day
Uncompahgre is the highest point in the San Juan Mountains and the sixth-highest in Colorado, but y'all, the standard South Ridge is a gentle Class 2 walk-up. Heck of a 360-degree summit for the effort.
Blanca Peak: Sisnaajiní, the southern Sangres' high crown, and the meanest 4WD road in the state
Blanca is the fourth-highest summit in Colorado and the southern anchor of the Sangre de Cristos. To the Diné (Navajo) it is Sisnaajiní — Sacred Mountain of the East. Y'all, the climbing's straightforward; the road to the trailhead is the actual story.
Crestone Needle: The most-loved Class 3 in Colorado, period
Y'all, ask any Colorado climber which Class 3 they would climb again first and the answer is almost always Crestone Needle. Sustained, joyful scrambling on the grippiest rock in the state. Heck of a day.
Crestone Peak: The Sangres' rough-rock crown, and the best-gripping conglomerate on any Colorado 14er
Y'all, Crestone Peak rises 14,300 feet out of the Sangre de Cristos on a ridge of Precambrian conglomerate that grips your boots like sandpaper. Heck of a different climbing experience than Maroon Formation peaks. The standard South Face Class 3 route is one of the great days in the state.
Capitol Peak: The Knife Edge, and the most committing standard 14er in Colorado
Y'all, Capitol is the one. The Knife Edge — 100 feet of Class 4 ridge maybe three feet wide, with thousand-foot drops on either side — is the crux of a 17-mile day deep in the Elk Mountains, and there is no easier way to the top.
Mount Sneffels: The San Juans' jagged showpiece, and the V-notch that promotes you to Class 3
Y'all, Mount Sneffels is the most-photographed peak in the Sneffels Range — that aspen-and-alpine-flower mountain looming over Yankee Boy Basin above Ouray. The standard route ends in a 50-foot Class 3 chimney called the V-notch. Heck of a finish.
Maroon Peak: The Deadly Bells, and the most-photographed 14er in Colorado you should not climb casual
Maroon Peak is the south Bell of the Maroon Bells — arguably the most-photographed mountains in North America and absolutely among the most dangerous in the state. Y'all, that "Deadly Bells" sign at the trailhead is not decoration.