West Spanish Peak
West Spanish Peak from the south
Highest point
Elevation	13,631 ft (4,155 m)[1][2]
Prominence	3,686 ft (1,123 m)[2]
Isolation	20.49 mi (32.98 km)[2]
Listing	North America highest peaks 87th US highest major peaks 70th Colorado highest major peaks 35th Colorado county high points 23rd
Coordinates	37°22′32″N104°59′37″W / 37.3755699°N 104.9936101°W /37.3755699; -104.9936101[3]
Geography
West Spanish Peak Colorado
Location	Huerfano County and the high point ofLas Animas County,Colorado,United States[2]
Parent range	Culebra Range,Highest summit of theSpanish Peaks[2]
Topo map(s)	USGS 7.5' topographic map Spanish Peaks, Colorado[3]
Climbing
Easiest route	West Ridge: hike/scramble,class 2

West Spanish Peak is ahigh andprominentmountainsummit that is the higher of the twoSpanish Peaks in theRocky Mountains ofNorth America. Theprominent 13,631-foot (4,155 m) peak is located in theSpanish Peaks Wilderness ofSan Isabel National Forest, 9.1 miles (14.7 km) south (bearing 175°) of theTown of La Veta,Colorado,United States, on thedrainage divide betweenHuerfano andLas Animas counties. The summit of West Spanish Peak is thehighest point in Las Animas County, Colorado.^[1][2][3]

TheSpanish Peaks are two largeigneous stocks which form an eastern outlier of theCulebra Range, a subrange of theSangre de Cristo Mountains. West Spanish Peak is theeasternmost 4,000 meters (13,000 feet) mountain peak in the United States. Due to its position well east of the Culebra Range and on the edge of the eastern plains of Colorado, West Spanish Peak enjoys great local vertical relief in almost all directions. For example, it rises over 6,000 ft (1,800 m) in less than 6.5 miles (10.5 km) on both its north and south flanks. Though not afourteener, West Spanish Peak is the twelfth mosttopographically prominent peak in the state.

West Spanish Peak is an erosional remnant of a predominantly quartz syeniteigneousstock which formed 24.59 +/-0.13 million years ago. It is the focus of over 500 radiatingdikes.^[4]

The standard ascent route for West Spanish Peak starts atCordova Pass, a high pass (11,248 ft; 3,428 m) to the west of the peak. It follows a trail for about 2 miles (3.2 km) to treeline. From there, there's a rough path on talus (scree) up the southwest ridge of the peak for an additional 1.5 miles (2.4 km).^[5] The trail is very braided and has a tendency to "go to the right" (which is into loose scree). If climbers stay to the left and close to the ridge, the climbing is much easier. At about 13,000 feet (4,000 m) is a large shale buttress to the right that usually has a small pool of warm water at its foot. Once up on the main part of the top ridge, it's an easy hike to the actual summit. The top ridge tends to be 30–100 feet (9.1–30.5 metres) wide and is about 0.5 miles (0.80 km) long before beginning a significant downward trend on the east side of the mountain. To the north and south are very steep descents. At the summit is a large rock cairn with the usual PVC tube and "sign-in" sheet inside. This mountain is very unsafe when there is snow on the ground. Best time to climb: early June through late October. Thunderstorm and lightning activity can be high in July, August and September.

• 
  West Spanish Peak Seen From East Spanish Peak.
• 
  Igneous dikes, looking north from West Spanish Peak.
• 
  Sunset shot of some Bighorn sheep ewes with the West Spanish Peak in the background.
• 
  West Spanish Peak viewed from nearCordova Pass.

• List of mountain peaks of North America
  • List of mountain peaks of the United States
    • List of mountain peaks of Colorado
      • List of Colorado county high points

• West Spanish Peak on Summitpost

• Mountains of Huerfano County, Colorado
• Mountains of Las Animas County, Colorado
• San Isabel National Forest
• Sangre de Cristo Mountains

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