La Garita Mountains

The La Garita Mountains are a high mountain range in the San Juan Mountains, a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains. The mountains are located in Saguache and Mineral counties in southwestern Colorado and are almost entirely managed as public land within the Gunnison National Forest and the Rio Grande National Forest.[3]

Meadow in the La Garita Mountains wilderness area
La Garita Mountains
San Luis Peak
Highest point
PeakSan Luis Peak
Elevation14,014[1] ft (4,271 m)
Coordinates37°59′12″N 106°55′53″W[2] 
Geography
La Garita Mountains
CountryUnited States
StateColorado
CountiesSaguache and Mineral
Parent rangeSan Juan Mountains, Rocky Mountains

The La Garita Mountains lie within the La Garita Wilderness, one of Colorado's lesser known, but more picturesque, wilderness areas. "La Garita means "the lookout" in Spanish, and this wilderness amply deserves the name. From the summit of this wilderness's single fourteener (14,014 foot San Luis Peak), climbers can gaze across the upper Rio Grande Valley and down the long stretch of the San Luis Valley. About 35 miles of the Continental Divide lie well above a sprawling forestland that provides ideal habitats for huge numbers of elk and mule deer.[4]

Geology

During the Oligocene epoch, a series of caldera building eruptions of titanic proportions, some as large as VEI-8, devastated what is now Colorado and raised up the mountain chain, part of the San Juan Mountains. The La Garita supervolcano's mega-colossal eruption created 5000 km3 of tephra, the largest eruption known. The volcanic area has been extinct for tens for millions of years and is of no danger to anyone.

Mountains

According to the U.S. Geological Survey, the following peaks are part of the La Garita Mountains:[3]

La Garita Mountains
PeakGNIS Feature IDLocation
Stewart Peak19015438°01′24″N 106°55′24″W
San Luis Peak19046337°59′13″N 106°55′53″W
Mesa Mountain18950637°54′16″N 106°38′05″W
Pool Table Mountain18957037°49′47″N 106°41′31″W
Bowers Peak18951137°57′03″N 106°35′22″W
Lookout Mountain18952537°59′13″N 106°28′46″W
Lake Mountain19019438°00′37″N 106°23′56″W
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See also

References
  1. "San Luis Peak, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  2. "San Luis Peak". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  3. "La Garita Mountains". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 22 May 2020.
  4. "La Garita Wilderness". Wilderness Net. Retrieved 22 May 2020.


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