Uploaded January 2025 | Updated September 2026, 3 days ago
In November 2024 I finished climbing all of the 13,000-foot tall mountains in Colorado’s premier mountain destinations, Rocky Mountain National Park and the Indian Peaks Wilderness. I figured I would use the knowledge I’ve gained to provide a ranking and a guide for these peaks for anyone interested in the high peaks of this area of the state. Hope you enjoy!
I created videos for my climbs of every one of these peaks in this playlist. Just be aware that the earlier ones are more “variable” in quality :) : youtube.com/watch?v=ZcW4_M_ChQU&list=PLY3dM86OmI6tx--iDuiw8TBruHmfIqsoJ
Timestamps for each peak/set of peaks I cover:
00:00 Intro
08:23 James Peak 13ers Loop
16:30 Old Baldy
18:27 South Arapaho Peak
19:46 North Arapaho Peak
23:08 “Forbidden Fruit” Interlude
25:43 Brainard Lakes Area Intro
27:30 Navajo Peak
32:52 Apache Peak
36:26 Paiute Peak
41:11 Mt. Audubon
44:18 Ogalalla Peak
52:37 Copeland Mountain
56:38 Isolation Peak
1:01:03 Mount Alice
1:05:27 Chiefs Head Peak
1:10:03 Pagoda Mountain
1:16:47 Longs Peak
1:19:38 Mount Meeker
1:25:20 McHenrys Peak
1:29:58 Powell + Taylor Peaks
1:36:20 Mount Lady Washington
1:41:12 Mount Chiquita
1:44:35 Ypsilon Mountain
1:48:22 Fairchild Mountain
1:51:10 Mummy Mountain
1:53:50 Hagues Peak
1:57:18 S Tier, Final Thoughts
Final tier list:
S: Longs Peak, McHenrys Peak, North Arapaho Peak
A: Navajo Peak, Pagoda Mountain, Mt. Meeker
B: James Peak Loop, South Arapaho Peak, Chiefs Head Peak, Mt. Alice, Taylor Peak, Powell Peak, Mummy Mountain, Hagues Peak
C: Old Baldy, Apache Peak, Mt Audubon, Mt Lady Washington, Ypsilon Mountain, Fairchild Mountain
D: Paiute Peak, Ogalalla Peak, Copeland Mountain, Isolation Peak, Mt Chiquita
Thumbnail is from the summit of Chiefs Head Peak in RMNP. 13ers Pagoda Mountain and Mount Meeker and 14er Longs Peak are visible in the background.
In November 2024 I finished climbing all of the 13,000-foot tall mountains in Colorado’s premier mountain destinations, Rocky Mountain National Park and the Indian Peaks Wilderness. I figured I would use the knowledge I’ve gained to provide a ranking and a guide for these peaks for anyone interested in the high peaks of this area of the state. Hope you enjoy!
I created videos for my climbs of every one of these peaks in this playlist. Just be aware that the earlier ones are more “variable” in quality :) : youtube.com/watch?v=ZcW4_M_ChQU&list=PLY3dM86OmI6tx--iDuiw8TBruHmfIqsoJ
Timestamps for each peak/set of peaks I cover:
00:00 Intro
08:23 James Peak 13ers Loop
16:30 Old Baldy
18:27 South Arapaho Peak
19:46 North Arapaho Peak
23:08 “Forbidden Fruit” Interlude
25:43 Brainard Lakes Area Intro
27:30 Navajo Peak
32:52 Apache Peak
36:26 Paiute Peak
41:11 Mt. Audubon
44:18 Ogalalla Peak
52:37 Copeland Mountain
56:38 Isolation Peak
1:01:03 Mount Alice
1:05:27 Chiefs Head Peak
1:10:03 Pagoda Mountain
1:16:47 Longs Peak
1:19:38 Mount Meeker
1:25:20 McHenrys Peak
1:29:58 Powell + Taylor Peaks
1:36:20 Mount Lady Washington
1:41:12 Mount Chiquita
1:44:35 Ypsilon Mountain
1:48:22 Fairchild Mountain
1:51:10 Mummy Mountain
1:53:50 Hagues Peak
1:57:18 S Tier, Final Thoughts
Final tier list:
S: Longs Peak, McHenrys Peak, North Arapaho Peak
A: Navajo Peak, Pagoda Mountain, Mt. Meeker
B: James Peak Loop, South Arapaho Peak, Chiefs Head Peak, Mt. Alice, Taylor Peak, Powell Peak, Mummy Mountain, Hagues Peak
C: Old Baldy, Apache Peak, Mt Audubon, Mt Lady Washington, Ypsilon Mountain, Fairchild Mountain
D: Paiute Peak, Ogalalla Peak, Copeland Mountain, Isolation Peak, Mt Chiquita
Thumbnail is from the summit of Chiefs Head Peak in RMNP. 13ers Pagoda Mountain and Mount Meeker and 14er Longs Peak are visible in the background.
