4K Peaks
UpdatedJust like it's important for metrication advocates to know their own height in cm and weight in kg, it's important to develop a decent sense of the elevation in meters of the well-known mountain peaks in your country and region.
The Grand Teton is High
Highest U.S. Mountain Peaks by State
Mountain peaks rising to at least 4,000 m above sea-level are colloquially referred to as "four-thousanders". The highest peak in the U.S. is Denali (Mount McKinley) in Alaska, and at 6,190 m it qualifies as a "six-thousander" in the realm of extreme high-altitude mountaineering.
There are nine U.S. states with at least one "four-thousander".
U.S. States Home to 4K Peaks
| State | Highest Peak | Elevation | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alaska | Denali (Mount McKinley) | 6,190 m |
| 2 | California | Mount Whitney | 4,421 m |
| 3 | Colorado | Mount Elbert | 4,401 m |
| 4 | Washington | Mount Rainier | 4,394 m |
| 5 | Wyoming | Gannett Peak | 4,209 m |
| 6 | Hawaii | Mauna Kea | 4,207 m |
| 7 | Utah | Kings Peak | 4,123 m |
| 8 | New Mexico | Wheeler Peak | 4,013 m |
| 9 | Nevada* | Boundary Peak | 4,007 m |
*Boundary Peak at 4,007 m is the highest "natural point" in Nevada, but it is generally considered a "sub-peak" of California's Montgomery Peak at 4,097 m just barely over 1 km away.
Mt. Everest
Colorado's Four-Thousanders
Just over half of the 4K peaks in the U.S. are located in Colorado. The state has 55 peaks over 4,000 m with at least 500 m of topographic prominence.
Four-Thousander vs. Fourteener
Many ambitious outdoor and fitness enthusiasts in Colorado set a goal to summit all the highest peaks in the state. The cutoff to make the list is arbitrary depending on units used to measure elevation. 14,000 ft has traditionally been the threshold with such peaks being called "fourteeners".
The corresponding metric threshold of 4,000 m is a lower elevation, but a larger topographic prominence is typically used to qualify as a "four-thousander" peak. Consequently, there are roughly the same number of "four-thousanders" and "fourteeners" in Colorado, but the "four-thousanders" are more prominent and geographically spread out.