On September 2 I climbed Mount Peale in the La Sal Mountains east of Moab, Utah. Mount Peale is an “ultra prominence peak” with 6161 feet of prominence. With 12721 feet of elevation it is the highest point of the La Sal Mountains.
In early September I was driving to Durango, Colorado, through Utah to meet up with some friends there. We planned to hike into the Chicago Basin and summit a few Colorado Fourteeners together. But the weather forecasts kept deteriorating and we eventually decided to go our own ways.
At that point I was in Spanish Fork, Utah. I had maps and route information for several Utah prominence peaks with me and a week to work with. I had driven through Utah many times. But the only Utah peak I had previously visited was Kings Peak in the High Uinta Mountains. So I eagerly decided to spend the week hiking several Utah prominence peaks. In this way I could sample several Utah mountain ranges I had not yet visited.
