What’s a 14’er?

Colorado, Hiking, OUTDOOR TRAVEL, USA Destinations

Oh, hey. So, you’ve been around some outdoorsy folks and heard them tallying up how many 14’ers they’ve done, or maybe you keep seeing 14’er mentioned and hash-tagged on social media by people you know are more than 14 years old. Now, you’re wondering: WHAT IS A FOURTEENER?

What the heck is a 14’er?

A 14’er, sometimes written out “fourteener” is a mountain that is over 14,000 feet tall. Really one that’s in the 14,000 – 14,999 foot range, because as soon as someone hits 15,000 feet, you better believe they’re going to be claiming they climbed a 15’er…and I would too.

Where are the most 14ers in the US?

In the United States, Colorado is the state with the most 14’ers. It has 58 fourteeners, and summiting (reaching the highest point) of all of them is a right of passage for many alpine athletes. Alaska is a close second in number of high peaks with 29 peaks above 14,000 feet but it wins for really high mountains as many of those are well above 14,000 feet (15,000 – 20,000 feet).

What’s the highest 14’er in the US?

The highest peak in the continental US is a 14’er, Mt. Whitney in California…and if you want to hike that one, you’re going to need to apply for a Mt. Whitney hiking permit…and getting a permit is competitive. The highest mountain in the entire US is Denali in Alaska (formerly, and sometimes still known as Mt. McKinley)

What about other countries?

The REALLY big mountains in the world? They’re called eight-thousanders, which sounds smaller, but isn’t because it’s a reference to 8,000 meters tall (that’s over 26,000 feet).