Mar 23 2024
Stretching across a vast swath of western China, the Kunlun Mountains form one of the great mountain systems of Central Asia. The range extends along the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau, separating its high, remote landscapes from the Tarim Basin and other arid regions farther north. The Kunlun are not as famous internationally as …
Mar 11 2024
Phoenix Mountains Rising abruptly from the floor of the Salt River Valley, the Phoenix Mountains form one of the most distinctive urban mountain landscapes in the American Southwest. The range runs through the heart of the Phoenix metropolitan area, placing rugged Sonoran Desert ridges, rocky summits, cactus-covered slopes, and miles of hiking trails within minutes …
Feb 15 2024
San Miguel Peak San Miguel Peak is a rugged 13,756-foot summit in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. Rising south of Telluride near Hope Lake and Lizard Head Pass, the mountain combines colorful alpine geology, sweeping high-country views, wildflower-filled approaches, and a challenging final ridge that places it firmly in the realm of experienced …
Feb 15 2024
Grizzly Peak Grizzly Peak is a rugged 13,753-foot summit in the western San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado. Straddling the boundary between Dolores and San Juan counties, the mountain rises above a remote landscape of alpine basins, steep rocky ridges, spruce-fir forest, lingering snowfields, and some of the most spectacular high-country scenery in the Colorado …
Feb 15 2024
Lavender Peak Lavender Peak is a rugged 13,234-foot summit in the La Plata Mountains of southwestern Colorado, rising immediately east of Hesperus Mountain in San Juan National Forest. Although separated from Hesperus by barely half a mile, Lavender is a distinct ranked thirteener with approximately 374 feet of topographic prominence. The mountain is particularly memorable …
Jan 22 2024
Mount Huntington Mount Huntington is one of the most striking mountains in Alaska’s central Alaska Range, rising as a steep pyramid of rock, snow, and ice within Denali National Park and Preserve. At approximately 12,240 feet (3,731 meters), it is considerably lower than nearby Denali and Mount Hunter, yet its dramatic relief and highly technical …
Jan 21 2024
Punta Maquignaz Punta Maquignaz, also known in French as Pointe Maquignaz, is a 3,801-meter (12,470-foot) alpine summit on the border between Italy and Switzerland. It rises along the dramatic east ridge of Dent d’Hérens in the Pennine Alps, only a few kilometers west of the Matterhorn. Rather than being an isolated mountain, Punta Maquignaz forms …
Jan 21 2024
Castor 🏔️ Overview Castor is a striking 4,223-meter (13,855-foot) mountain in the Pennine Alps, rising along the high Alpine frontier between Switzerland’s canton of Valais and Italy’s Aosta Valley. Together with nearby Pollux, it forms the famous pair of summits known as the “Twins,” named for Castor and Pollux of classical mythology. Of the two …
Jan 21 2024
Breithorn (Western Summit) Rising above the glaciers east of the Matterhorn, the Breithorn’s Western Summit is one of the most recognizable 4,000-meter peaks in the Pennine Alps. At 4,164 meters (13,661 feet), it is the highest point of the broad, heavily glaciated Breithorn ridge on the border between Switzerland and Italy. The mountain has an …
Jan 21 2024
Klein Matterhorn Klein Matterhorn is a dramatic high-Alpine summit above Zermatt in Switzerland’s canton of Valais. Rising beside the glaciers south of the village and immediately west of the Breithorn, the mountain is famous for something unusual: visitors can travel almost all the way to its summit by cable car. The tourist complex on the …
