39°35′18″N105°38′38″W / 39.5883°N 105.6438°W / 39.5883; -105.6438 (Mount Blue Sky)[1]
Geography
Mount Blue Sky
Colorado
Location
Clear Creek County, Colorado, United States[3]
Parent range
Front Range
Topo map
USGS 7.5' topographic map Mount Blue Sky, Colorado[1]
Climbing
First ascent
disputed: 1863 by Albert Bierstadt 1872 by Judge Lunt
Easiest route
West Ridge from Summit Lake: Hike, class 2[4]
Mount Blue Sky (formerly Mount Evans) is the highest peak in the Mount Evans Wilderness in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The prominent 14,271-foot (4,350 m) fourteener is located 13.4 miles (21.6 km) southwest by south (bearing 214°) of Idaho Springs in Clear Creek County, Colorado, United States, on the drainage divide between Arapaho National Forest and Pike National Forest.[1][2][3]
The peak is one of the characteristic Front Range peaks, dominating the western skyline of the Great Plains along with Pikes Peak, Longs Peak, and nearby Mount Bierstadt. Mount Blue Sky can be seen from over 100 miles (160 km) to the east, and many miles in other directions. Mount Blue Sky dominates the Denver metropolitan area skyline, rising over 9,000 feet (2,700 m) above the area. Mount Blue Sky can be seen from points south of Castle Rock, up to (65 miles (105 km) south) and as far north as Fort Collins (95 miles (153 km) north), and from areas near Limon (105 miles (169 km) east).
Due to the negative associations of Territorial Governor John Evans with the Sand Creek Massacre, changing the name of Mount Evans was discussed over several years. On September 15, 2023, the United States Board on Geographic Names officially changed the mountain's name to Mount Blue Sky.
^ abcd"Blue Sky". NGS Data Sheet. National Geodetic Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, United States Department of Commerce. Retrieved January 2, 2016. Note: The summit of Mount Blue Sky is +1.80 m (5.9 ft) higher than NGS station EVANS.
^ abc"Mount Evans, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved January 2, 2016.
^ ab"Mount Blue Sky". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved October 29, 2014.
MountBlueSky (formerly Mount Evans) is the highest peak in the Mount Evans Wilderness in the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The...
maintaining blue color in the evening sky. There is essentially no direct sunlight under an overcast sky, so all light is then diffuse sky radiation. The...
recorded summit of the mountain in 1863. Mount Bierstadt is located 1.4 miles (2.2 km) west by south of MountBlueSky and 43.8 miles (70.5 km) west by south...
Colorado, and rises nearly 10,000 feet above the Great Plains. Longs Peak, MountBlueSky, and Pikes Peak are its most prominent peaks, visible from the Interstate...
area is named after MountBlueSky's former name, Mount Evans The first efforts to protect the Mount Evans (now known as MountBlueSky) area involved the...
feet (4,310 m) of elevation near the 14,271-foot (4,350 m) summit of MountBlueSky, making it the highest paved road in North America (beating the 14,115-foot...
The Sawtooth is a jagged arête joining Mount Bierstadt to (eventually) MountBlueSky in the Front Range of central Colorado. The three points along this...
Mountains. Mount Antero is the highest peak of the Southern Sawatch Range. MountBlueSky is the highest peak of the Northern Front Range. Mount Wilson is...
Mountains. The summit of Mount Antero is the highest point of the southern Sawatch Range. The summit elevation of MountBlueSky includes a vertical offset...
upper terminus at 14,140 feet (4,310 m) elevation near the summit of MountBlueSky and its lower terminus at 10,650 feet (3,246 m) elevation at State Highway...
Mountains. Notable peaks of the Rocky Mountains include Longs Peak, MountBlueSky, Pikes Peak, and the Spanish Peaks near Walsenburg, in southern Colorado...
views of the surrounding Rockies, including the nearby peaks of MountBlueSky and Mount Bierstadt. The pass is easily traversable by most vehicles, never...
stand in contrast to the higher peaks of the Front Range to the north (MountBlueSky) and south (Pikes Peak). The Rampart Range is a anticlinal horst raised...
fourteener in Colorado. It has nearly the same elevation as Castle Peak and MountBlueSky. It lies in Summit County and within the White River National Forest...
locations in Colorado. Soule was among the proposed names when Mount Evans was renamed MountBlueSky. A creek in Chaffee County (whose name previously included...
The Mount Evans Crest House is a building, now in ruins, located at the summit of MountBlueSky in Colorado. It is notable for both its significant architectural...
Mountains. The summit of Mount Antero is the highest point of the southern Sawatch Range. The summit elevation of MountBlueSky includes a vertical offset...
and 18 days for another blue moon to occur. Or approximately once in 32.5 months on an average. Using the common 1946 Sky & Telescope misunderstanding...
The Bob Cook Memorial Mount Evans Hill Climb or Mount Evans Hill Climb is a bicycle race situated on MountBlueSky near Idaho Springs, Colorado. Begun...
areas throughout the United States, including Hueco Tanks in Texas, MountBlueSky in Colorado, The Appalachian Mountains in The Eastern United States...
Montana, US Summit Lake cirque, and others on MountBlueSky, Colorado, US Great Basin and others on Mount Katahdin, Maine, US Great Gulf, New Hampshire...
"MountBlueSky". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. "MountBlueSky". Peakbagger...
well as a historic farm and homestead. Mt. Goliath, on the route to MountBlueSky, is an alpine wildflower garden (along hiking trails). The Denver Botanic...
Global Information
