El Diente Peak


El Diente Peak is a high summit in the San Juan Mountains range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The peak is located in the Lizard Head Wilderness of San Juan National Forest, north by east 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.

Climbing

The topographic prominence of El Diente Peak is only, so by a strict cutoff rule, it would not be counted as a separate peak from its higher neighbor Mount Wilson. However, the 3/4 mile connecting ridge is a significant climbing challenge, making El Diente more independent than its prominence would indicate.
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.

Incidents

As with all high peaks, El Diente has risks for climbers and mountaineers.
  • In 2010, experienced climber John Arthur Merrill was killed in a rock slide on El Diente's south face while hiking with his dog.
  • In 2019, a climber was rescued after surviving a 600-foot fall from El Diente after landing in an avalanche chute. While seriously injured, the climber was rescued by helicopter after activating an emergency signal on his GPS device.
  • In 2020, climber Regina Stump fell 60 feet from El Diente after a boulder she was scrambling came loose. After breaking a wrist she was able to climb to safety.
  • In 2022, a climber fell from El Diente Peak and broke his leg. He was rescued after calling for help from his inReach device.

Historical names

  • El Diente
  • '''El Diente Peak'''