One of Colorado’s most beautiful, difficult and dangerous fourteeners is Crestone Needle, in the Sangre de Cristos. The strenuous climb to the pointed summit is on a steep trail of loose rocks and scree, and often, ice. Nearby, jagged Crestone Peak is almost as tough to climb.
These two fourteeners are in a group called The Crestones. Another is Kit Carson Mountain – which the citizens of the Town of Crestone had long called Mt Crestone. They tried to get Kit Carson officially renamed, but the US Board on Geographic Names voted it down unanimously, worried about the confusion if yet another mountain had “Crestone” in its name.
Two of Kit Carson’s subpeaks memorialize space shuttle incidents – Columbia Point and Challenger Point. Then there’s Mount Humboldt, a little easier to climb, but even it has had its share of fatalities … a reminder of the great danger amid the spectacular group of fourteeners called the Crestones.
About Colorado Postcards
Colorado Postcards are snapshots of our colorful state in sound. They give brief insights into our people and places, our flora and fauna, and our past and present, from every corner of Colorado.
