Carson Peak

Mountain · 1 route

Carson Peak

13,659 ft · Colorado

Photo: Jane Nearing, CC BY 2.0 (via Wikimedia Commons)

Summit
13,659 ft
Routes
1 way up
Managed by
Forest Service

Route up Carson Peak

  1. Carson PeakExpertFrom Cataract Gulch Trailhead · about 5,589 ft of climbing16.6 mi round tripSee the route
Map of the route up Carson Peak, with each route's start numbered and the summit marked
Carson Peak · starts at Cataract Gulch TrailheadMap © Mapbox © OpenStreetMap contributors

About Carson Peak

Carson Peak is a summit of about 13,659 feet in Hinsdale County, Colorado, on the Divide Ranger District of the Rio Grande National Forest. The Forest Service manages the land, and the nearest town is Lake City, about 12 miles away. A summit route leads to the top. West Lost Creek and Cataract Creek are both hikes about 2 miles away. Grizzly RT RV Park and Cataract Gulch campground sit a little farther out, each within about 3.5 miles.

Forecast on Carson Peak

Daily highs and lows, wind and the chance of precipitation at the summit and cataract gulch trailhead for the next 7 days, from the Open-Meteo model.

Questions about Carson Peak

How tall is Carson Peak?

13,659 ft (4,163 m).

How many routes go to the summit of Carson Peak?

One: Carson Peak.

Where do the routes up Carson Peak start?

Carson Peak starts at Cataract Gulch Trailhead.

Mountains nearby

More mountains in Colorado

Facts about this place

Where it is

Nearest town
Lake City, Colorado · 12 mi
Managed by
Forest Service

Source: USFS EDW boundaries; USGS PAD-US 4.1; USGS GNIS populated places

Conditions

Active alerts for Divide Ranger District as of Oct 9, 2026:

Source: USFS forest alerts

Nearby

Source: Roamze catalog (indexable pages within 10 miles, PostGIS distance)

Is Carson Peak open right now?

No closures listed

The Forest Service lists no closures for Rio Grande National Forest.

As of · Source: USFS · Rio Grande National Forest. Agencies don't list every closure — check before you go.