El Diente Peak

El Diente Peak
El Diente Peak
	El Diente Peak from Mount Wilson
Highest point
Elevation	14,165 ft (4,317 m)
Prominence	239 ft (73 m)
Parent peak	Mount Wilson
Isolation	0.75 mi (1.21 km)
Coordinates	37°50′22″N 108°00′19″W / 37.8394383°N 108.0053474°W
Naming
English translation	The Tooth
Language of name	Spanish
Geography
	El Diente Peak Colorado
Location	Dolores County, Colorado, U.S.
Parent range	San Juan Mountains
Topo map	USGS 7.5' topographic map; Dolores Peak, Colorado
Climbing
Easiest route	South Slopes: Scramble, class 3

El Diente Peak is a high summit in the San Juan Mountains range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The 14,165-foot (4,317 m) peak is located in the Lizard Head Wilderness of San Juan National Forest, 10.5 miles (16.9 km) north by east (bearing 8°) of the Town of Rico in Dolores County, Colorado, United States. "El Diente" is Spanish for "The Tooth", a reference to the shape of the peak.^[1]^[2]^[3]

Climbing

The topographic prominence of El Diente Peak is only 239 feet (73 m), so by a strict 300-foot (91 m) cutoff rule, it would not be counted as a separate peak from its higher neighbor Mount Wilson. However, the 3/4 mile (1.2 km) connecting ridge is a significant climbing challenge (Class 4/5), making El Diente more independent than its prominence would indicate.^[5]Hence, it is often regarded as a full-fledged fourteener.

El Diente is one of the more dramatic peaks in Colorado in terms of local relief and steepness. As a result, it is one of the most challenging climbs among Colorado's fourteeners. All routes involve at least class 3 scrambling on loose talus, and poor route-finding can expose the climber to more difficult and dangerous terrain.