In the

mountaineering Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become mounta ...

parlance of the

Western United States The Western United States (also called the American West, the Western States, the Far West, the Western territories, and the West) is List of regions of the United States, census regions United States Census Bureau. As American settlement i ...

, a fourteener (also spelled 14er) is a

mountain peak A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topography, topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used ...

with an elevation of at least . The 96 fourteeners in the United States are all west of the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the main stem, primary river of the largest drainage basin in the United States. It is the second-longest river in the United States, behind only the Missouri River, Missouri. From its traditional source of Lake Ita ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

has 53 fourteeners, the most of any single state.

Alaska Alaska ( ) is a non-contiguous U.S. state on the northwest extremity of North America. Part of the Western United States region, it is one of the two non-contiguous U.S. states, alongside Hawaii. Alaska is also considered to be the north ...

has 29, the second most of any single state. Many peak baggers try to climb all fourteeners in the

contiguous United States The contiguous United States, also known as the U.S. mainland, officially referred to as the conterminous United States, consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the District of Columbia of the United States in central North America. The te ...

, one particular state, or another region.

Qualification criteria

The

summit A summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. The topographic terms acme, apex, peak (mountain peak), and zenith are synonymous. The term (mountain top) is generally used only for ...

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

Topographic elevation The elevation of a geographic ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § ...

is the height of the summit above a geodetic sea level.All elevations in the 48

include an elevation adjustment from the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 ( NGVD 29) to the

North American Vertical Datum of 1988 The North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88) is the vertical datum for orthometric heights established for vertical control surveying in the United States based upon the General Adjustment of the North American Datum of 1988. It superse ...

( NAVD 88). For further information, please see this

United States National Geodetic Survey The National Geodetic Survey (NGS) is a List of federal agencies in the United States, United States federal agency based in Washington, D.C. that defines and manages a national geographic coordinate system, coordinate system, providing the fou ...

br>note
If the elevation or prominence of a summit is calculated as a range of values, the

arithmetic mean In mathematics and statistics, the arithmetic mean ( ), arithmetic average, or just the ''mean'' or ''average'' is the sum of a collection of numbers divided by the count of numbers in the collection. The collection is often a set of results fr ...

is shown. #

Topographic prominence In topography, prominence or relative height (also referred to as autonomous height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contour line encircling ...

is how high the summit rises above its surroundings.The

topographic prominence In topography, prominence or relative height (also referred to as autonomous height, and shoulder drop in US English, and drop in British English) measures the height of a mountain or hill's summit relative to the lowest contour line encircling ...

of a summit is the

topographic elevation The elevation of a geographic ''location'' is its height above or below a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface (see Geodetic datum § ...

difference between the summit and its highest or key col to a higher summit. The summit may be near its key col or quite far away. The key col for

Denali Denali (), federally designated as Mount McKinley, is the highest mountain peak in North America, with a summit elevation of above sea level. It is the tallest mountain in the world from base to peak on land, measuring . On p. 20 of Helm ...

is the Isthmus of Rivas in

Nicaragua Nicaragua, officially the Republic of Nicaragua, is the geographically largest Sovereign state, country in Central America, comprising . With a population of 7,142,529 as of 2024, it is the third-most populous country in Central America aft ...

, away. #

Topographic isolation The topographic isolation of a summit is the minimum geographical distance, horizontal distance to a point of equal elevation, representing a radius of dominance in which the peak is the highest point. It can be calculated for small hills and is ...

(or radius of dominance) is how far the summit lies from its nearest point of equal elevation.The

topographic isolation The topographic isolation of a summit is the minimum geographical distance, horizontal distance to a point of equal elevation, representing a radius of dominance in which the peak is the highest point. It can be calculated for small hills and is ...

of a summit is the

great-circle distance The great-circle distance, orthodromic distance, or spherical distance is the distance between two points on a sphere, measured along the great-circle arc between them. This arc is the shortest path between the two points on the surface of the ...

to its nearest point of equal elevation. Not all summits over 14,000 feet qualify as fourteeners. Summits that qualify are those considered by

mountaineers Mountaineering, mountain climbing, or alpinism is a set of outdoor activities that involves ascending mountains. Mountaineering-related activities include traditional outdoor climbing, skiing, and traversing via ferratas that have become sports ...

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. A rule commonly used by mountaineers in the contiguous United States is that a peak must have at least 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

uses a prominence rule rather than a rule. By this rule, Alaska has at least 21 peaks over and its 12 highest peaks exceed .

Fourteeners

The following table lists the 96 mountain peaks of the United States with at least of

and at least of topographic prominence. Of these, 53 rise in Colorado, 29 in Alaska, 12 in California, and 2 in Washington (Liberty Cap is part of the crater atop Mt Rainier). The 22 highest fourteeners all rise in Alaska.

Topographic prominence

The table above uses a minimum topographic prominence criterion of and includes 96 peaks. The number of peaks included depends upon the minimum topographic prominence criterion. A criterion of includes 90 peaks, includes 77 peaks, includes 63 peaks, and includes 46 peaks. The following U.S. summits have 14,000 ft of elevation, but have less than 300 ft of topographic prominence: *

, Browne Tower, 14,530, Alaska: Prominence = . 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

Mt Saint Elias, South Central Alaska.jpg,

Mount Saint Elias Mount Saint Elias (Was'eitushaa also designated Boundary Peak 186), the second-highest mountain in both Canada and the United States, stands on the Yukon and Alaska border about southwest of Mount Logan, the highest mountain in Canada. The Cana ...

, Alaska Mount foraker.jpg, Mount Foraker, Alaska MtBlackburn-KennicottGlacier.jpg, Mount Blackburn, Alaska MountSanford.jpg, Mount Sanford and Mount Wrangell, Alaska Elbert.JPG,

Mount Elbert Mount Elbert is the highest summit of the Rocky Mountains of North America. With an elevation of , it is also the highest point in the U.S. state of Colorado and the second-highest summit in the contiguous United States after Mount Whitney, w ...

, Colorado Mount Williamson.jpg, Mount Williamson, California White Mountain CA.JPG, White Mountain Peak, California Longs.JPG,

Longs Peak Longs Peak is a mountain in the northern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The fourteener is located in the Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness, southwest by south ( bearing 209°) of the Town of Estes Park, Colorado, ...

, Colorado Mount Shasta 1.jpg,

Mount Shasta Mount Shasta ( ; Shasta people, Shasta: ''Waka-nunee-Tuki-wuki''; Karuk language, Karuk: ''Úytaahkoo'') is a Volcano#Volcanic activity, potentially active stratovolcano at the southern end of the Cascade Range in Siskiyou County, California. A ...

, California Maroon Bells (11553)a.jpg, Maroon Bells (Maroon Peak and North Maroon Peak), Colorado Pikes Peak by David Shankbone.jpg,

Pikes Peak Pikes Peak is the List of mountain ranges of Colorado#Mountain ranges, highest summit of the southern Front Range of the Rocky Mountains in North America. The Ultra-prominent peak, ultra-prominent fourteener is located in Pike National Forest, ...

, Colorado BLANCA.JPG, Blanca Peak, Colorado San Miguel Mountains.jpg, Wilson Peak, Colorado

Notes

References

External links

United States Geological Survey (USGS)

Geographic Names Information System @ USGSUnited States National Geodetic Survey (NGS)

Geodetic Glossary @ NGS

NGVD 29 to NAVD 88 online elevation converter @ NGS

Survey Marks and Datasheets @ NGSColorado 14ers on 14ers.comBivouac.comPeakbagger.comPeaklist.orgSummitpost.org
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fourteeners, List Of United States Mountains of the United States *Fourteener United States Fourteeners, List Of Peak bagging in the United States Colorado culture