Mount Nimbus

Mount Nimbus
East aspect
Highest point
Elevation12,721 ft (3,877 m)[1]
Prominence623 ft (190 m)[1]
Parent peakMount Cumulus (12,729 ft)[1]
Isolation1.14 mi (1.83 km)[1]
Coordinates40°23′48″N 105°54′15″W / 40.3967585°N 105.9040416°W / 40.3967585; -105.9040416[2]
Naming
EtymologyNimbus cloud
Geography
Mount Nimbus is located in Colorado
Mount Nimbus
Mount Nimbus
Location in Colorado
Mount Nimbus is located in the United States
Mount Nimbus
Mount Nimbus
Mount Nimbus (the United States)
CountryUnited States
StateColorado
CountyGrand County
Protected areaRocky Mountain National Park
Never Summer Wilderness
Parent rangeRocky Mountains
Never Summer Mountains
Topo mapUSGS Mount Richthofen[3]
Geology
Type of rockGranite and Gneiss[4]
Climbing
Easiest routeclass 2[1]

Mount Nimbus is a 12,721-foot-elevation (3,877-meter) mountain summit in Grand County, Colorado, United States.

Description[edit]

Mount Nimbus is set along the Continental Divide and is the fifth-highest peak of the Never Summer Mountains which are a subrange of the Rocky Mountains.[5] The mountain is situated on the western boundary of Rocky Mountain National Park and is visible from Trail Ridge Road within the park. The west side of the peak is in the Never Summer Wilderness, on land managed by Arapaho National Forest. Precipitation runoff from the mountain's lower northwest slope drains into headwaters of the South Fork Michigan River and all other slopes drain into tributaries of the Colorado River except a portion which is diverted by the Grand Ditch. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 3,700 feet (1,100 meters) above the Kawuneeche Valley in three miles (4.8 km) and 1,700 feet (520 meters) above Baker Gulch in one-half mile.

Mt. Nimbus (left) and Mt. Cumulus (right)

Etymology[edit]

The mountain's toponym was applied in 1914 by James Grafton Rogers,[6] and was officially adopted in 1932 by the United States Board on Geographic Names.[2][7] Rogers also named Mount Cirrus and Mount Cumulus, with the three names referring to different types of common clouds. As President of the Colorado Geographic Society, Chairman of the Colorado Geographic Board, and President of the American Alpine Club, Rogers participated in naming many of Colorado's mountains.[8] He also drafted legislation to create Rocky Mountain National Park.

Climate[edit]

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Mount Nimbus is located in an alpine subarctic climate zone with cold, snowy winters, and cool to warm summers.[9] Due to its altitude, it receives precipitation all year, as snow in winter, and as thunderstorms in summer, with a dry period in late spring.

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Nimbus, Mount - 12,721' CO". listsofjohn.com. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  2. ^ a b "Mount Nimbus". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved 2023-04-21.
  3. ^ "Mount Nimbus, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  4. ^ Geologic map of the Mount Richthofen quadrangle and the western part of the Fall River Pass quadrangle, Grand and Jackson Counties, Colorado, J.M. O'Neill, U.S. Geological Survey, 1981.
  5. ^ "Mount Nimbus, Peakvisor.com". Retrieved April 21, 2023.
  6. ^ William Bright (2004), Colorado Place Names, Johnson Books, ISBN 9781555663339, p. 38.
  7. ^ Decisions of the United States Geographic Board No. 27, (June 30, 1932), US Government Printing Office, p. 6.
  8. ^ Stephen H. Hart (1972), James Grafton Rogers, 1883–1971, Americanalpineclub.org
  9. ^ Peel, M. C.; Finlayson, B. L.; McMahon, T. A. (2007). "Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification". Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. 11. ISSN 1027-5606.

External links[edit]