Sangre de Cristo Mountains

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This article is about the entire Sangre de Cristo Mountain range. For the northern-most portion with the same name, see Sangre de Cristo Range.

Sangre de Cristo Mountains
Range
Blanca Peak
Name origin: Sangre de Cristo (Spanish: Blood of Christ)

Country	United States
States	Colorado, New Mexico

Part of	Rocky Mountains
City	Santa Fe, New Mexico

Highest point	Blanca Peak
- location	East of Alamosa, Colorado
- elevation	14,351 ft (4,374 m)
- coordinates	37°34′39″N 105°29′08″W / 37.5775, -105.48556

Length	242 mi (389 km), north-south
Width	120 mi (193 km), east-west
Area	17,193 sq mi (44,530 km²)

The Sangre de Cristo Mountains (Spanish for "Blood of Christ") are the southernmost subrange of the Rocky Mountains. They are located in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado in the United States. The mountains run from Poncha Pass in South-Central Colorado, trending southeast and south, ending at a point southeast of Santa Fe, New Mexico. The mountains contain a number of fourteen thousand foot peaks in the Colorado portion, as well as all of the peaks in New Mexico which are over thirteen thousand feet.

The name, Spanish for "blood of Christ", is said to come from the red color of the range at some sunrises and sunsets, especially when the mountains are covered with snow, alpenglow. However the particular origin of the name is unclear, and the name in fact only dates back to the early 19th century. Before that time the terms "La Sierra Nevada", "La Sierra Madre", "La Sierra", and "The Snowies" (used by English speakers) were used.^[1] Sometimes the archaic Spanish spelling "Christo" is used.

1 Prominent peaks
2 Land management and recreation overview
3 Subranges
4 In culture
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Prominent peaks

The sun sets over New Mexico's Wheeler Peak in the Sangre de Cristo mountains.

The 18 Peaks of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains With At Least 500 Meters of Topographic Prominence
Rank	Mountain Peak	Subrange	Elevation	Prominence	Isolation
1	Blanca Peak^[2]	Sierra Blanca	4374.111 = 14,351 feet 4374 m	1623.365 = 5,326 feet 1623 m	00166.43 = 103.4 miles 166.4 km
2	Crestone Peak^[2]	Crestones	4358.572 = 14,300 feet 4359 m	1388.059 = 4,554 feet 1388 m	00044.07 = 27.4 miles 44.1 km
3	Culebra Peak^[2]	Culebra Range	4283.266 = 14,053 feet 4283 m	1471.270 = 4,827 feet 1471 m	00057.07 = 35.5 miles 57.1 km
4	West Spanish Peak^[2]	Spanish Peaks	4154.673 = 13,631 feet 4155 m	1123.188 = 3,685 feet 1123 m	00032.88 = 20.4 miles 32.9 km
5	Mount Herard^[2] PB	Sangre de Cristo Range	4061.576 = 13,325 feet 4062 m	0621.792 = 2,040 feet 622 m	00007.47 = 4.6 miles 7.5 km
6	Wheeler Peak^[3] NGS	Taos Mountains	4013.300 = 13,167 feet 4013 m	1039.063 = 3,409 feet 1039 m	00060.12 = 37.4 miles 60.1 km
7	Bushnell Peak^[2] PB	Sangre de Cristo Range	3996.141 = 13,111 feet 3996 m	0733.044 = 2,405 feet 733 m	00017.82 = 11.1 miles 17.8 km
8	Truchas Peak NGS	Santa Fe Mountains PB	3995.048 = 13,107 feet 3995 m	1219.505 = 4,001 feet 1220 m	00068.17 = 42.4 miles 68.2 km
9	Venado Peak^[2]	Taos Mountains	3882.973 = 12,739 feet 3883 m	0900.379 = 2,954 feet 900 m	00018.99 = 11.8 miles 19.0 km
10	East Spanish Peak^[2]	Spanish Peaks	3867.151 = 12,688 feet 3867 m	0726.338 = 2,383 feet 726 m	00006.78 = 4.2 miles 6.8 km
11	Santa Fe Baldy NGS	Santa Fe Mountains PB	3850.100 = 12,632 feet 3850 m	0610.210 = 2,002 feet 610 m	00017.69 = 11.0 miles 17.7 km
12	Baldy Mountain NGS	Cimarron Range	3793.300 = 12,445 feet 3793 m	0823.265 = 2,701 feet 823 m	00018.24 = 11.3 miles 18.2 km
13	Greenhorn Mountain NGS	Wet Mountains	3765.000 = 12,352 feet 3765 m	1151.230 = 3,777 feet 1151 m	00042.53 = 26.4 miles 42.5 km
14	Mount Zwischen^[2] PB	Sangre de Cristo Range	3660.910 = 12,011 feet 3661 m	0690.677 = 2,266 feet 691 m	00007.31 = 4.5 miles 7.3 km
15	Cerro Vista^[2] PB	Cerro Vista PB	3640.448 = 11,944 feet 3640 m	0767.791 = 2,519 feet 768 m	00022.83 = 14.2 miles 22.8 km
16	Mount Phillips^[2] PB	Cimarron Range	3579.985 = 11,745 feet 3580 m	0890.321 = 2,921 feet 890 m	00012.09 = 7.5 miles 12.1 km
17	Mount Mestas^[2] PB	Sierra Blanca	3527.603 = 11,574 feet 3528 m	0679.399 = 2,229 feet 679 m	00026.28 = 16.3 miles 26.3 km
18	Iron Mountain^[2] PB	Sierra Blanca	3479.509 = 11,416 feet 3480 m	0594.665 = 1,951 feet 595 m	00011.18 = 6.9 miles 11.2 km

[edit] Land management and recreation overview

Much of the mountains are within various National Forests: the Rio Grande and San Isabel in Colorado, and the Carson and Santa Fe in New Mexico. These publicly accessible areas are popular for camping, hiking, backpacking, climbing, and cross-country and downhill skiing.

The mountains include two large wilderness areas, the Sangre de Cristo Wilderness in Colorado and the Pecos Wilderness in New Mexico, as well as some smaller wilderness areas, such as Latir Peak Wilderness. The Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve lies on the southwest side of the mountains in Colorado.

[edit] Subranges

The Sangre de Cristo Mountains are divided into various subranges, described here from north to south. Use of the terms "Sangre de Cristo Range" and "Sangre de Cristo Mountains" is inconsistent and either may refer to either the northernmost subrange, the southernmost subrange, or the mountains as a whole.

[edit] Sangre de Cristo Range

Main article: Sangre de Cristo Range

The Sangre de Cristo Range, the largest and most northerly subrange of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, runs directly along the east side of the Rio Grande Rift, extending southeast from Poncha Pass for about 75 miles (120 km) through south-central Colorado to La Veta Pass, approximately 20 miles (32 km) west of Walsenburg. They form a high ridge separating the San Luis Valley on the west from the watershed of the Arkansas River on the east.

[edit] Culebra Range

The Culebra Range runs almost due north and south, with its northern limit at La Veta Pass in Colorado, and its southern limit at Costilla Creek, just south of Big Costilla Peak in New Mexico. Its highest point is Culebra Peak (14,047 feet/4,282 m), which is notable for being the only fourteener in Colorado which is on private land. Climbers wishing to ascend Culebra must pay a fee (currently US$100 per person), and the number of climbers per year is limited.^[4] Standing to the east of the main crest are the two prominent Spanish Peaks (West: 13,626 feet/4,153 m; East: 12,860 feet/3,920 m). Unlike the rest of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, these are volcanic, with conical shapes and prominent dikes radiating outward. These peaks were important landmarks on the mountain branch of the Santa Fe Trail.

[edit] Taos Mountains

The Taos Mountains span the western lobe of the range from Costilla Creek in the north, to Tres Ritos in the south.^[5] ^[6] They include the highest point in New Mexico, Wheeler Peak (13,161 feet/4,012 m), which is part of the small Wheeler Peak Wilderness. Other notable peaks include Pueblo Peak (12,305 feet/3,751 m), which rises dramatically above Taos Pueblo, and Latir Peak (12,708 feet/3,873 m). Taos Ski Valley lies just to the west of Wheeler Peak. Much of the central portion of the Taos Mountains are on Taos Pueblo land.

The southern portion of the Taos Mountains, between Palo Flechado Pass and Tres Ritos (US Route 64 and NM Route 518), is lower and less dramatic than the northern section, with its high point being Cerro Vista, 11,939 ft (3,639 m). The Fernando Mountains are a small subrange lying in this section, just south of US Route 64.

[edit] Cimarron Range

The Cimarron Range lies across the Moreno Valley to the east of the Taos Mountains. It is a lower range, with its highest point being Baldy Mountain (12,441 feet/3,792 m). The Philmont Scout Ranch lies on the east side of the Cimarron Range.

[edit] Rincon Mountains

This is a minor subrange, significantly lower than the rest of the Sangre de Cristos; it lies east of the southernmost portion of the Taos Mountains.

[edit] Santa Fe Mountains

Rounding out the Sangre de Cristo Mountains are the Santa Fe Mountains, which include all peaks south of NM Route 518.^[5] This group lies near Santa Fe and surrounds the Pecos Wilderness, which protects the source watershed of the Pecos River. The peaks include Truchas Peak (13,102 feet/3,994 m) as their highest point. Other notable peaks are Santa Fe Baldy (12,622 feet/3,847 m) and Jicarita Peak (12,835 feet/3,912 m). The Pecos Wilderness is crossed by many trails and is popular for backpacking and for fishing in its high alpine lakes.

[edit] In culture

The Sangre de Cristo Mountains are referenced in the Paul Simon song, Hearts and Bones.

Mike Tramp of the band White Lion wrote a song called 'Sangre De Cristo' as the opening track off the band's 2008 release 'Return of the Pride.'

[edit] See also

[edit] References

^ Robert Julyan, The Place Names of New Mexico, University of New Mexico Press, 1998.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m The elevation of this summit has been converted from the National Geodetic Vertical Datum of 1929 (NGVD 29) to the North American Vertical Datum of 1988 (NAVD 88). National Geodetic Survey
^ The summit of Wheeler Peak is the highest point of the State of New Mexico.
^ http://www.14ers.org/peaks/sdc_culebra.php
^ ^a ^b Butterfield, Mike, and Greene, Peter, Mike Butterfield's Guide to the Mountains of New Mexico, New Mexico Magazine Press, 2006, ISBN 978-0-937206-88-1
^ Some sources only include the region north of Palo Flechado Pass in the Taos Mountains; however they do not give a specific subrange name to the entire southern portion. See for example the 1:250,000 scale USGS maps.