Amherst Mountain

{{Infobox mountain

| name = Amherst Mountain

| photo = Amherst Mountain.jpg

| photo_caption = Northwest aspect, centered
(Organ Mountain to left)

| elevation_ft = 13165

| elevation_ref ={{cite peakbagger|pid=16671|title=Amherst Mountain, Colorado|access-date=April 8, 2023}}

| prominence_ft = 1211

| prominence_ref ={{cite web|url=https://listsofjohn.com/peak/636|title=Amherst Mountain - 13,164' CO|website=listsofjohn.com|access-date=April 8, 2023}}

| isolation_mi = 1.58

| isolation_ref =

| parent_peak = Mount Valois (13,173 ft)

| etymology =

| country = United States

| state = Colorado

| region = La Plata County

| region_type = County

| part_type = Protected area | part = Weminuche Wilderness

| range = Rocky Mountains
San Juan Mountains
Needle Mountains

| map = Colorado#USA

| map_caption = Location in Colorado

| coordinates = {{coord|37.5651020|N|107.5594069|W|type:mountain_region:US-CO_scale:100000|format=dms|display=inline,title}}

| coordinates_ref ={{cite gnis|id=188026|name=Amherst Mountain|access-date=April 8, 2023}}

| topo = USGS Columbine Pass

| rock =

| age =

| first_ascent =

| easiest_route = {{YDS|2}}

}}

Amherst Mountain is a {{convert|13165|ft|0|adj=on}} summit in La Plata County, Colorado, United States.

Description

Amherst Mountain is situated in the Needle Mountains which are a subrange of the San Juan Mountains. The remote mountain is located {{convert|30|mi|km}} northeast of the community of Durango and set in the Weminuche Wilderness on land managed by San Juan National Forest. Precipitation runoff from the mountain's slopes drains to Vallecito Creek which is a tributary of the Los Pinos River. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises {{convert|4165|ft|0}} above Vallecito Creek in {{convert|2|mi|km}} and nearly {{convert|3000|ft|0}} above Johnson Creek in {{convert|1|mi|km}}. The mountain's toponym has been officially adopted by the United States Board on Geographic Names, and has been recorded in publications since at least 1906.Henry Gannett, United States Geological Survey (1906), A Gazetteer of Colorado, US Government Printing Office, p. 15.

File:Organ and Amherst mountains.jpg (center) and Amherst Mountain (right)]]

Climate

According to the Köppen climate classification system, Amherst Mountain is located in an alpine subarctic climate zone with cold, snowy winters, and cool to warm summers.{{cite journal | author = Peel, M. C. |author2=Finlayson, B. L. |author3=McMahon, T. A. | year = 2007 | title = Updated world map of the Köppen−Geiger climate classification | journal = Hydrol. Earth Syst. Sci. | volume = 11 | issn = 1027-5606}} 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.