Gladstone Peak, Mountain summit in San Miguel Mountains, Colorado, US
Gladstone Peak is a 13,919-foot (4,243 m) summit in the San Miguel Mountains of the Rocky Mountains, within the Lizard Head Wilderness about 11.2 miles southwest of Telluride, Colorado. It stands on the drainage divide between San Juan National Forest and Dolores County on one side and Uncompahgre National Forest and San Miguel County on the other.
The peak was named after British Prime Minister William Gladstone, reflecting the historical ties between North America and Britain. This naming occurred during the surveying and mapping of the mountain region in the 1800s.
The name honours William Gladstone, British prime minister four times between 1868 and 1894, a detail recorded in the peak's own toponymy rather than in any local tradition. The summit lies on the drainage divide where San Juan National Forest and Dolores County meet Uncompahgre National Forest and San Miguel County, so a climber crosses administrative lines without any marker on the rock.
The starting point is at the Rock of Ages Trailhead where the round trip hike covers about 8 miles. Visitors should prepare for steep climbing and carry plenty of water and weather protection.
The summit lies exactly on the drainage divide separating San Juan National Forest and Dolores County from Uncompahgre National Forest and San Miguel County. Its 1929 elevation figure was later converted to the 1988 North American vertical datum, giving 4,242.59 m in German sources.
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