Apache Peak

CountryUnited StatesStateColoradoCountyBoulder / GrandProtected areaIndian Peaks WildernessParent rangeRocky Mountains
Front Range^[5]Topo mapUSGS Monarch LakeGeologyAge of rockPrecambrian^[7]Type of rockGranite^[6]ClimbingEasiest routeHiking class 2^[3]

Apache Peak is a 13,441-foot (4,097 m) mountain summit on the boundary shared by Boulder County and Grand County, in Colorado, United States.^[4]

Apache Peak is set on the Continental Divide in the Front Range which is a subrange of the Rocky Mountains.^[5] The mountain is located 21 miles (34 km) west of Boulder in the Indian Peaks Wilderness, on land managed by Arapaho National Forest and Roosevelt National Forest. It is the second-highest summit in the wilderness and third-highest in Grand County.^[3] Precipitation runoff from the mountain's east slope drains into headwaters of South St. Vrain Creek, whereas the west slope drains to Monarch Lake thence Lake Granby via Cascade and Arapaho creeks. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 2,840 feet (866 m) above Wheeler Basin in one mile (1.6 km) and 2,460 feet (750 m) above Triangle Lake in one-half mile. An ascent of the peak involves hiking 12.5 miles (20.1 km) (round trip) with 3,400 feet (1,036 m) of elevation gain.^[8] The mountain was named by Ellsworth Bethel,^[9] and the toponym was officially adopted in 1914 by the United States Board on Geographic Names.^[4]

According to the Köppen climate classification system, the mountain is located in an alpine subarctic climate zone with cold, snowy winters, and cool to warm summers.^[10] 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. This climate supports the Fair Glacier in the peak's northwest cirque and the Isabelle Glacier on the northeast slope.

Established climbing routes on Apache Peak:^[2]

• East slope – class 3
• Apache Couloir – class 3
• East Ledges – class 3
• Fair Glacier – class 3
• South Ridge – class 3
• Queens Way – class 2

• Thirteener
• Mountains portal

• Apache Peak: weather forecast
• Apache Peak climbing: Mountainproject.com