Mount of the Holy Cross
Mount of the Holy Cross, 2009
Highest point
Elevation	14,011 ft (4270.5 m)[1] NAVD88
Prominence	2113 ft (644 m)[2]
Isolation	18.41 mi (29.6 km)[2]
Listing	North America highest peaks 59th US highest major peaks 45th Colorado highest major peaks 25th Colorado fourteeners 52nd Colorado county high points 20th
Coordinates	39°28′01″N106°28′54″W / 39.4668287°N 106.4816869°W /39.4668287; -106.4816869[1]
Geography
Mount of the Holy Cross Colorado
Location	High point ofEagle County, Colorado, United States[2]
Parent range	Sawatch Range[2]
Topo map(s)	USGS 7.5' topographic map Mount of the Holy Cross, Colorado[3]
Climbing
First ascent	August 1873 James Gardner and W.H. Holmes[2]
Easiest route	North Ridge: Hike,class 2[4]

Mount of the Holy Cross is ahigh andprominentmountainsummit in the northernSawatch Range of theRocky Mountains ofNorth America. The 14,011-foot (4270.5 m)fourteener is located in theHoly Cross Wilderness ofWhite River National Forest, 6.6 miles (10.7 km) west-southwest (bearing 244°) of theTown of Red Cliff inEagle County, Colorado, United States. The summit of Mount of the Holy Cross is thehighest point in Eagle County and the northern Sawatch Range.^[1][2][3]

Mount of the Holy Cross was named for the distinctive cross-shaped snowfield on its northeast face.^[5] On May 11, 1929.President Herbert Hoover designated the area surrounding the mountain asHoly Cross National Monument underUnited States Forest Service administration.^[6] The monument was transferred to theNational Park Service in 1933.^[7] The mountain's remote location made tourism difficult, and on August 3, 1950,President Harry Truman signed an act abolishing the national monument and returning the area toWhite River National Forest. The former national monument is now a part of theHoly Cross Wilderness.

This mountain has been the subject of painters, photographers and even a poem byHenry Wadsworth Longfellow, ("The Cross of Snow"). The first publicly available photograph was published inNational Geographic magazine.Thomas Moran depicted the mountain in an oil painting, which now is part of the collection of the Museum of the American West, part of theAutry National Center inLos Angeles, California.^[8] It is still much photographed but it is not as well known today as it was in the past.^[9]

Nearby features include Bowl of Tears Lake, directly under the east face of the peak, Tuhare Lakes, in acirque that lies south of a significant subpeak, and several other lakes. Notable locations within 35 mi (56 km) include theDotsero volcano (nearInterstate 70),Vail andAspen.US 24 runs near the peak throughGilman.

The first recorded ascent of Holy Cross was in 1873, byF. V. Hayden and photographerW. H. Jackson during one ofHayden's geographical surveys. However, the peak may well have been ascended previously byminers orAmerican Indians.^[10] The first winter ascent of the peak was made in 1943 by Russel Keene and Howard Freedman of the10th Mountain Division, then stationed atCamp Hale.^[10]

Themining town ofHoly Cross City was established in 1880 to serve the growing mining operations around the region. In 1883, theHoly Cross City Trail was built to the town, but the town was depopulated from a peak of 600 people the next year.^[11]

Holy Cross can be climbed by at least four different routes, with the easiest and most common route being the North Ridge, which involves 5,000 feet (1,500 m) of vertical gain over 11.5 mi (18.5 km) and is ratedYDS Class 2 for moderatescrambling. The Cross Couloir route forms the vertical portion of the famous cross feature, and provides an advanced snow climb orextreme ski descent.^[10]

Mount of the Holy Cross has a history of endangering the lives of many hikers. Although the summit on Mount of the Holy Cross is frequently reached on a long day hike, hikers have become stranded or lost through missing the right turn down the ridgeline, heading straight down and into the wilderness; research and planning of the route is important to prevent tragedies.^[12] Efforts to improve safety have been made by the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative.^[13]

Mount of the Holy Cross is accessible from Tigiwon Road, south of Minturn, Colorado. TheHalf Moon Pass Trail is the standard route to the summit of Mount of the Holy Cross via the North Ridge. Following the Fall Creek Trail to an ascent ofNotch Mountain Trail provides the best view of the Holy Cross snow feature fromNotch Mountain Ridge.^[14]

• Mount Holy Cross
• Mount of the Holy Cross – 1947^[3]

• 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
      • List of Colorado fourteeners

• "Mount of the Holy Cross". 14ers.com.

• Mountains of Eagle County, Colorado
• White River National Forest
• Holy Cross Wilderness
• Fourteeners of Colorado
• Four-thousanders of the United States

• Pages using gadget WikiMiniAtlas
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Use mdy dates from January 2025
• Coordinates on Wikidata
• Pages using Sister project links with default search