Sunshine Peak climbs past Huron Peak on list of Colorado 14ers

Ever wondered how the towering peaks of Colorado’s San Juan, Sawatch, Sangre de Cristo, Elk, Gore, and Front Ranges got measured? Who exactly was in charge of deeming 14ers as 14ers, anyway?

How’d they ever determine that Mount Elbert (14,438 feet) was a mere 11 feet taller than it’s next-door neighbor Mount Massive (14,427 feet)? On top of all of that, hasn’t it been awhile – and haven’t we been through a whole lot of technological advancement – since the last time those numbers were taken as gospel?

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) and its National Geodetic Survey (NGS) arm perpetually ask those, and many similar questions. On Thursday, they released the most recent answers they’d uncovered while attempting to answer many of these specific questions, the results of which shook up the previously held statistics for those out here who hold 14er numbers sacred.

Whereas the previous measurements had been pinged by triangulating surveys based on other lower, known elevations, the NGS turned to much more accurate GPS and LiDAR (light detection and ranging) modeling to re-map the lot of Colorado’s 53 (or 58, depending on which specifications you follow) peaks that top 14,000 feet of elevation within state boundaries.

The end result? There are still 53 – or 58 – 14ers in the state of Colorado, and that’s music to the ears for all those who have made the effort to reach the summit of Hinsdale County’s Sunshine Peak (14,004.5 feet, at new measurement). For reference, I’ve got The Hiker’s Map of Colorado on the wall beside my desk that lists all the 14ers and bicentennial peaks within the state, and the data it used upon publishing in 2018 lists Sunshine Peak as the ‘shortest’ of the 53 14ers with enough prominence to count, sitting perilously close to less-esteemed ’13er’ status at just 14,001 feet.

That’s something that was not lost on Derek van Westrum, who spearheaded the efforts at the NGS. The Golden, Colorado native realized quickly when this re-map began that there was a chance a pre-agreed upon 14er would no longer be categorized as such, a downgrade that peak baggers everywhere would surely take personally. As Michael Booth of The Colorado Sun relayed, van Westrum felt ‘relief’ when Sunshine not only passed the 14,000 foot threshold, but also gained a couple of feet of height for good measure.

The new rankings actually show Sunlight having passed Huron Peak (now 14,004.1 feet) of the Collegiate Peaks and Sawatch Range, with Huron now owner of the title of ‘shortest’ 14er in the state.

The complete findings (and detailed descriptions of the ‘how’ and ‘why’ behind them) were released in the Journal of Geodesy earlier Thursday, and is free and available to read through. The data and charts show a fascinating reimagination of the peaks we’ve come to rank over the years, with Torreys Peak, Quandary Peak, and others shifting around in the rankings.

As it was before, it still is now, however – Mount Elbert, at 14,437.6 feet of elevation upon latest update, reigns supreme as Colorado’s tallest (and the second highest point in the lower 48 states).