Mount Evans, located about 60 miles west of Denver, Colorado, is one of Colorado’s most iconic mountains. At 14,264 feet elevation, Mount Evans is one of Colorado’s famous 14ers and the highest peak in the Chicago Peaks mountain range. The Mount Evans Scenic Byway is also the highest paved road in North America, leading up to the Mount Evans summit.
With its soaring heights and scenic landscapes, Mount Evans makes for an excellent backdrop to some fun and challenging riddles! Let’s see if you can unravel the following riddles about various facts, geographical features, wildlife, history and more related to this amazing Colorado mountain.
Riddles about Mount Evans’ Geography and Landmarks
Mount Evans’ Height and Prominence
Q: At 14,264 feet tall, Mount Evans rises high into the Colorado sky. But do you know how prominent this peak is? That is, how much does its summit rise above the lowest point between it and higher peaks?
A: With a prominence of 6,502 feet, Mount Evans stands tall and isolated compared to other nearby peaks. The lowest point between its summit and the next higher mountains is at around 7,700 feet elevation.
Mount Evans Scenic Byway
Q: What Colorado highway leads you up Mount Evans, gaining over 7,000 feet in elevation as it winds to the summit?
A: The Mount Evans Scenic Byway, also known as Colorado State Highway 5, is the highest paved road in North America. This iconic byway climbs from Idaho Springs at 7,520 feet up to the Mount Evans summit at 14,264 feet.
Chicago Peaks
Q: What is the small mountain range Mount Evans presides over as the tallest peak?
A: The Chicago Peaks are a small range west of Denver that encompasses Mount Evans along with several other 14,000 foot peaks like Mount Spalding.
Alpine Vegetation
Q: What type of hardy ground cover manages to grow on Mount Evans despite harsh winds and cold temperatures?
A: Tundra vegetation like small willows, wildflowers and lichens manage to survive in patches along ridges and meadows on Mount Evans.
Mountain Goats
Q: Sure-footed mountain goats aren’t native to Colorado. So why are they frequently spotted scaling the steep cliffs of Mount Evans today?
A: Mountain goats were introduced for hunting and are not native. But they’ve adapted and thrived in Colorado peaks like Mount Evans, especially liking the craggy terrain.
Historic Riddles about Mount Evans
Mount Evans Name Origin
Q: This Colorado 14er was originally known by a different name given by early explorers. What was this original name?
A: Before it was renamed Mount Evans in 1895, early explorers had dubbed the peak Mount Rosa, after Paschal Beverly Randolph’s wife.
First Recorded Ascent
Q: Do you know when the first official recorded ascent of Mount Evans was made?
A: The first recorded climb to the summit came during the Hayden Survey in 1873, led by H.G. Parker and J.D. Hague.
Pike’s Peak Gold Rush
Q: Gold rush fever hit Colorado in 1859 with the discovery of gold near what famous 14er?
A: The Pikes Peak Gold Rush put Colorado on the map back in 1859, kickstarting Denver’s growth as miners flocked to the region.
Idaho Springs Origins
Q: Many travelers pass through the small town of Idaho Springs on their way up Mount Evans. How did this little mountain town get its start back in 1859?
A: Idaho Springs began as a prospecting camp along Chicago Creek during the early days of Colorado’s gold rush era.
Mount Evans Weather Station
Q: What extremely high-altitude weather station has managed to record data near the Mount Evans summit since 1946?
A: The Mount Evans Observatory weather station holds the record for the highest long-term weather monitoring site in North America at 14,148 feet elevation.
Natural History Riddles
Colorado Gold Ore
Q: Gold first attracted prospectors and miners to Colorado back in the 1800s. But what unique green mineral is often associated with Colorado gold ore?
A: Pyrite, also known as “fool’s gold”, is a metallic mineral often mixed with real gold ore found in Colorado.
Mountain Pine Beetles
Q: What tiny insects have devastated millions of pine trees across Colorado forests and peaks like Mount Evans over recent decades?
A: Unfortunately, tiny mountain pine beetles have destroyed huge swaths of pine forests across Colorado after thriving due to warmer winters.
Big Horn Sheep
Q: What large wild mountain sheep with curved horns are well adapted to climb the steep rocky slopes of peaks like Mount Evans?
A: Bighorn sheep often graze along ridges and climb cliffsides around Mount Evans and other alpine habitat in Colorado.
Pika Population Decline
Q: Climate change has put pressure on a tiny mammal that calls Mount Evans home. What baseball-sized furry creature is being threatened?
A: Pikas, small rabbit relatives that live among the boulder fields on high peaks, have declining numbers as warmer temperatures heat up their alpine homes.
Mount Evans Glaciers
Q: Glaciers and permanent snowfields cling to the slopes of this Colorado 14er. But scientists say they won’t last much longer as climate change accelerates. How many named glaciers are on Mount Evans?
A: Sadly Mount Evans had a total of five glaciers as of 2021, but they are shrinking rapidly in the warming climate and likely to disappear within decades.
Recreation Riddles about Mount Evans
Mount Evans Summit Trail
Q: Only one main hiking trail ascends to the summit of Mount Evans. What is the name of this popular route that begins near Summit Lake?
A: The Mount Evans Summit Trail climbs up from Summit Lake, gaining 800 feet of elevation in just under a mile.
Chicago Lakes Trail
Q: One of the most scenic areas on Mount Evans is accessed by the Chicago Lakes Trail. What alpine lakes does this path lead hikers to see?
A: The Chicago Lakes Trail leads to Upper Chicago Lake, Lower Chicago Lake and even Crystal Lake for those ambitious enough to keep going.
Summit Lake
Q: At just over 12,000 feet elevation partway up Mount Evans, what serene lake provides a nice recreation spot along the Mount Evans Scenic Byway?
A: Summit Lake offers a beautiful stopping point to fish, have a picnic or just enjoy the views partway up Mount Evans.
Mount Evans with No Guardrails
Q: Motorists driving the Scenic Byway are alarmed to realize this road has no guardrails despite extreme dropoffs. How much of the road up Mount Evans actually has guardrails installed?
A: Shockingly, only about the first 3 miles of the nearly 30-mile Scenic Byway has any guardrails protecting drivers from steep cliffs.
Mount Bierstadt
Q: Mount Evans towers above this other Colorado 14er that is frequently climbed along with Mount Evans in one long day. What’s this neighboring peak called?
A: Many hikers looking for a challenge take on Class 2 Mount Bierstadt and Class 3 Mount Evans in one grueling day.
Human History Riddles
Ute Tribe
Q: Mount Evans lies within the ancestral homeland of which Native American tribe that still has a reservation located in southwestern Colorado today?
A: The Ute Indian tribe inhabited areas like Mount Evans for centuries before settlers and prospectors arrived in Colorado.
Mount Evans Crest House
Q: This historic stone shelter near the summit once provided refuge for early mountaineers but was razed in 1979. What was it called?
A: Before it met an explosive demise decades ago, the Mount Evans Crest House provided shelter at 14,200 feet elevation on the peak.
Laramie Fox Farm
Q: Early last century this fox and mink farm called the Mount Evans area home before relocating elsewhere in Colorado in 1927. What was this operation called?
A: The pioneer-era Laramie Fox Farm raised foxes and mink for fur near Mount Evans before eventually moving locations to Larkspur.
Summit Lake Park
Q: Before roads or trails existed, an entrepreneurial couple built this early 1900s mountain resort at the site of what’s now Summit Lake. What was it originally called?
A: Anna and Ferdie Kuss first created what they named the Summit Lake Park resort way back in 1911-1912, spurring on early tourism interest in Mount Evans.
Mount Evans Fishing
Q: Mount Evans offers high mountain lakes that stock these popular cold water game fish for anglers each year. What species do they regularly stock?
A: The Colorado Division of Wildlife stocks high country trout like cutthroat, rainbow, brook and even Arctic grayling in lakes on Mount Evans.
Environmental Issues
Threatened Wildlife
Q: From pika rabbits to bumblebees and more, climate change threatens many species across Colorado’s alpine peaks like Mount Evans. Approximately how many are at risk statewide?
A: Unfortunately around 700 species across Colorado are at risk from the impacts of a warming climate and environmental changes.
Invasive Spore Mess
Q: What invasive fungus that has killed millions of bats across North America was discovered living in bat poop in the old Mount Evans Crest House building?
A: The devastating bat disease white-nose syndrome was found in traces of bat guano inside the deteriorating remains of the old Mount Evans shelter in 2018.
Melting Glaciers
Q: As climate change accelerates, scientists warn the few small glaciers on Mount Evans may disappear as early as when if serious decline continues?
A: Models suggest Mount Evans glaciers could sadly vanish completely by as early as 2050 as warming temperatures melt them away.
Bear Activity
Q: Mount Evans visitors in 2012 were surprised by an unusual increase in what type of bear activity not typical for high alpine zones?
A: Oddly, 2012 saw a sharp increase in black bear activity and attacks around Mount Evans campgrounds and summit house.
Forest Insect Infestations
Q: Over 6 million forested acres across Colorado have been plagued by insect infestations since 1996. What is the main destructive bug culprit?
A: Unfortunately pine beetles have ravaged over 6 million acres of Colorado forests, including those around peaks like Mount Evans.
Conclusion
I hope you enjoyed this lengthy batch of riddles testing your knowledge about Mount Evans! This iconic Colorado fourteener has an incredibly rich history and significance in the state, despite facing several environmental issues lately.
From early prospecting days to modern summer tourism, Mount Evans continues to captivate all who come to know her high alpine majesty. Though her remaining glaciers may fade in our warming climate, may her timeless rocky slopes stand tall for ages to come over the Denver landscape.
