Purple Peak is a mountain summit in Gunnison County, Colorado, United States.
| Purple Peak | |
|---|---|
 North aspect in winter | |
| Highest point | |
| Elevation | 12,800 ft (3,901 m)[1][2] |
| Prominence | 160 ft (49 m)[3] |
| Parent peak | Mount Owen (13,070 ft)[3] |
| Isolation | 0.31 mi (0.50 km)[2] |
| Coordinates | 38°54′45″N 107°07′13″W / 38.9125799°N 107.1202953°W[4] |
| Geography | |
  Purple Peak Location in Colorado  Purple Peak Purple Peak (the United States) | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Colorado |
| County | Gunnison County |
| Protected area | Raggeds Wilderness |
| Parent range | Rocky Mountains Elk Mountains Ruby Range[1] |
| Topo map | USGS Oh-be-joyful |
| Climbing | |
| Easiest route | class 2 hiking[3] |
Description
editPurple Peak, elevation 12,800-feet (3,901 m), is situated in the Elk Mountains which are a subrange of the Rocky Mountains.[2] The peak is located nine miles (14 km) northwest of the community of Crested Butte in the Raggeds Wilderness on land managed by Gunnison National Forest. It is set on the crest of the Ruby Range between Afley Peak to the north and line parent Mount Owen to the southwest. Precipitation runoff from the mountain's northeast slope drains into Oh-be-joyful Creek which is a tributary of the Slate River, and the west and south slopes drain into Silver Creek and Ruby Anthracite Creek, thence North Fork Gunnison River. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 1,760 feet (536 m) above Blue Lake in one-half mile (0.80 km). The landform's toponym was officially adopted in 1965 by the United States Board on Geographic Names.[5] This landform should not be confused with Purple Mountain, five miles to the north.
Climate
editAccording to the Köppen climate classification system, Purple Peak is located in an alpine subarctic climate zone with cold, snowy winters, and cool to warm summers.[6] Due to its altitude, it receives precipitation all year, as snow in winter, and as thunderstorms in summer, with a dry period in late spring.
See also
edit
References
edit- ^ a b Scott Warren (2002), Exploring Colorado's Wild Areas, Mountaineers Books, ISBN 9780898867848, p. 139.
- ^ a b c "Purple Peak, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
- ^ a b c "Purple Peak - 12,820' CO". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
- ^ "Purple Peak". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
- ^ Decisions on Geographic Names in the United States, Decision List 6501, (1965), United States Board on Geographic Names, Department of the Interior, p. 20.
- ^ Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11. ISSN 1027-5606.
External links
edit- Purple Peak: weather forecast