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1963 Map of Wetterhorn Peak

Name: 1963 Topographic Map of Wetterhorn Peak
Creator: U.S. Geological Survey
Published: 1966
License: https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/mark/1.0/

USGS Topo · Published 1966

About this map

Wetterhorn Peak and the high basins of the Uncompahgre National Forest dominate this 1960s survey of the San Juan Mountains. The landscape is defined by its verticality, transitioning from the lower drainage of Cow Creek up through Wetterhorn Basin to the sharp summits of Coxcomb Peak and Blackwall Mountain. Evidence of early 20th-century exploration is scattered across the topography, including a Mine near Oben Creek and a Prospect in the high Porphyry Basin.

Transportation throughout this high-altitude terrain relies on a network of historical pack routes and rugged tracks. The Green Mountain Trail (Pack) and the Wetterhorn Trail (Pack) follow the ridges and creek beds, while the Bear Cr Trail (Jeep) skirts the American Flats near the southern border. These trails provide a record of how this remote area was accessed for mining and grazing before many modern improvements reached the high country.