Challenger Point

Challenger Point is a high mountain summit of the Crestones in the Sangre de Cristo Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The 14,087-foot (4,294 m) fourteener is located 5.0 miles (8.1 km) east by south (bearing 102°) of the Town of Crestone in Saguache County, Colorado, United States.[1][2][3] The summit is on the northwest shoulder of Kit Carson Mountain, and is a subpeak of the latter. It was renamed in memory of the seven astronauts who died when the Space Shuttle Challenger disintegrated shortly after liftoff on January 28, 1986.[3]

Challenger Point
Challenger Point seen from nearby Kit Carson Mountain.
Highest point
Elevation14,087 ft (4,294 m)[1][2]
Prominence301 ft (92 m)[2]
Parent peakKit Carson Mountain[2]
Isolation0.22 mi (0.35 km)[2]
ListingColorado Fourteener 34th
Coordinates37°58′49″N 105°36′24″W[3]
Geography
Challenger Point is located in Colorado
Challenger Point
Challenger Point
LocationSaguache County, Colorado,
United States[3]
Parent rangeSangre de Cristo Range, Crestones[2]
Topo mapUSGS 7.5' topographic map
Crestone Peak, Colorado[3]
Climbing
Easiest routeNorth Slope: Difficult Hike, class 2[4]

The Memorial

The proposal to name the summit Challenger Point was made by Colorado Springs resident Dennis Williams in 1986. The USGS Board of Geographic Names approved the application on April 9, 1987.

Local climber Alan Silverstein organized and led an expedition on the weekend of July 18, 1987 to place a 6 by 12 inches (15 by 30 cm) memorial plaque on the summit.
The plaque reads:

CHALLENGER POINT, 14080+'
In Memory of the Crew of Shuttle Challenger
Seven who died accepting the risk,
expanding Mankind's horizons
January 28, 1986  Ad Astra Per Aspera

The Latin phrase "Ad Astra Per Aspera" translates as "To the stars through adversity."

View from the summit

Climbing
  • Trailhead: Willow Creek Trailhead, 8,900 feet (2,713 m)

See also

References
  1. The elevation of Challenger Point includes an adjustment of +1.752 m (+5.75 ft) from NGVD 29 to NAVD 88.
  2. "Challenger Point, Colorado". Peakbagger.com. Retrieved October 19, 2014.
  3. "Challenger Point". Geographic Names Information System. United States Geological Survey, United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved October 19, 2014.
  4. "Challenger Point Routes". 14ers.com.
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