Wheeler Peak (New Mexico)
| Wheeler Peak | |
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 Wheeler Peak at sunset. |
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| Elevation | 13,161 ft (4,011 m) NAVD 88[1] |
| Prominence | 3,409 ft (1,039 m) [2] |
| Listing | U.S. state high point |
| Location | |
 Wheeler Peak
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| Range | Taos Mountains |
| Coordinates | 36°33′24.68″N 105°25′01.01″W / 36.5568556°N 105.4169472°WCoordinates: 36°33′24.68″N 105°25′01.01″W / 36.5568556°N 105.4169472°W[1] |
| Topo map | USGS Wheeler Peak |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | North Ridge |
Wheeler Peak is, at 13,161 ft, the highest peak in the U.S. state of New Mexico. It is located northeast of Taos in the northern part of the state, and just 2 miles southeast of the ski slopes of Taos Ski Valley. It lies in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, the southernmost subrange of the Rocky Mountains.
Formerly named Taos Peak, after the nearby town of Taos, New Mexico, it was renamed Wheeler Peak in 1950.[3] A plaque at the summit states that the mountain was:
Named in honor of Major George Montague Wheeler (1842–1905) who for ten years led a party of surveyors and naturalists collecting geologic, biologic, planimetric and topographic data in New Mexico and six other southwestern states.
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[edit] Nearby peaks and features
Just north of Wheeler Peak is Mount Walter. At 13,141 feet (4,005 m) it is the second highest named summit in New Mexico, but it is not usually considered an independent peak as it has only about 80 feet (24 m) of topographic prominence. It is sometimes mistaken for Wheeler Peak, since it is along the standard route to Wheeler. Lake Fork Peak at 12,881 feet (3,926 m) lies just across Williams Lake and to the west of Wheeler Mountain.
The Taos Ski Valley lies to the northwest of Wheeler Peak, while both the town of Taos and Taos Pueblo are about 15 miles (24 km) to the southwest.
Wheeler Peak is the focus of the 19,661-acre (79.57 km2) Wheeler Peak Wilderness area in the Carson National Forest. Much of the mountain area just south of the peak is on Taos Pueblo land. Some 48,000 acres (190 km2) was returned to the pueblo from the Carson National Forest in 1970[4] and another 764 acres (3.09 km2) in 1996.[5]
[edit] Climbing
The standard route on Wheeler Peak is along the north ridge. The route starts at the parking lot for Taos Ski Valley, and proceeds east along an old road to a broad saddle at Bull-of-the-Woods Meadow. It then turns south and winds its way among minor peaks and small valleys to gain Wheeler Peak from the north, going over the summit of Mount Walter along the way. This is a practical route, even in winter, due to low (but nonzero) avalanche exposure.
An alternate route, but now the most popular, is to hike south from Taos Ski Valley to Williams Lake, then take a newly constructed switchback trail to the top. This trail was completed in 2011 by a Forest Service trail crew from the Gallatin National Forest, 8 people working 12 hours per day, building 4 miles of new trail with hand tools to the top in 14 days. Wheeler Peak has a summit register as do many major western peaks.
[edit] See also
- Outline of New Mexico
- Index of New Mexico-related articles
- 4000 meter peaks of North America
- 4000 meter peaks of the United States
- Culebra Range
- List of U.S. states by elevation
- Mountain peaks of North America
- Mountain peaks of the Rocky Mountains
- Mountain peaks of the United States
- Southern Rocky Mountains
- Taos Mountains
[edit] References
- ^ a b "Wheeler". NGS data sheet. U.S. National Geodetic Survey. http://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=GM0779. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ "Wheeler Peak, New Mexico". Peakbagger.com. http://www.peakbagger.com/peak.aspx?pid=5937. Retrieved 2008-12-21.
- ^ "Wheeler Peak". Geographic Names Information System, U.S. Geological Survey. http://geonames.usgs.gov/pls/gnispublic/f?p=gnispq:3:::NO::P3_FID:928839. Retrieved 2008-12-22.
- ^ Julyan, Bob; Tom Till (1999). New Mexico's Wilderness Areas: The Complete Guide. Westcliffe Publishers. p. 73. ISBN 1-56579-291-2.
- ^ "Public Law 104-333". http://bulk.resource.org/gpo.gov/laws/104/publ333.104.pdf. Retrieved 2008-07-19.
[edit] External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Wheeler Peak |
- "Wheeler Peak". SummitPost.org. http://www.summitpost.org/show/mountain_link.pl/mountain_id/287. Retrieved 2008-12-28.
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