# What's the highest elevation you've ever been? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 3, 2011, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606 "2011-05-03T19:24:31Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![MareIt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ea666f/32.png) [@MareIt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MareIt)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/41 "2011-05-04T01:35:34Z")
I am pretty sure that the highest I’ve been is 4,482 m (14704.724feet) at this place [Chile-Bolivia Border Station near San Pedro De Atacama](http://www.loupiote.com/photos/4934435472.shtml) If I’ve been higher, I plead ignorance. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/42 "2011-05-04T01:44:03Z")
> [@Darth\_Sensitive](#): > > I’ve made it up to 12,183 along the Trail Ridge Road at Rocky Mountain National Park This is my answer. ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 2:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/43 "2011-05-04T02:08:40Z")
The summit of Cirque Peak [Cirque Peak : Climbing, Hiking & Mountaineering : SummitPost](http://www.summitpost.org/cirque-peak/152203) not far from Mount Whitney. 12,900 ft. Not too tough a hike other than due to the altitude itself. Next highest unrelated climb was the summit of Mt. Haleakala on Maui. [Haleakala : Climbing, Hiking & Mountaineering : SummitPost](http://www.summitpost.org/haleakala/153077) says 10,023 ft Those were both a long time ago. They’d be a real struggle these days sad to say. Past time for me to get serious about getting back in shape. ---
**Author:** ![emmaliminal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7bcc69/32.png) [@emmaliminal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emmaliminal)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/44 "2011-05-04T02:29:21Z")
Oops – I chose “15-20” going by memory of a Colorado Rockies backpacking trip when I was 16 whose highest point I remembered being close to 16,000, but reading some of the posts now that seems, um, unlikely to have been remembered accurately. I don’t remember the names of the peaks or the area. It was high enough that the day we crossed the high-point pass on the way in, my mom, normally logical and steady, threw an epic temper-tantrum like a four-year old – we figured it was altitude sickness. And the stars at night were so sharp and many it was a little scary; kind of hallucinatory. And I soaked a boot stepping in a streamlet while staring at those stars when I got up for a pee. ---
**Author:** ![rowrrbazzle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rowrrbazzle/32/414_2.png) [@rowrrbazzle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rowrrbazzle)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 2:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/45 "2011-05-04T02:51:48Z")
Another one for 12,183 ft., driving on Trail Ridge Road (US 34) in Colorado. ---
**Author:** ![Arrogance\_Ex\_Machina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/arrogance_ex_machina/32/192_2.png) [@Arrogance\_Ex\_Machina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arrogance_Ex_Machina)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/46 "2011-05-04T03:02:55Z")
Just over 10k feet at [Kitzsteinhorn](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitzsteinhorn) - we didn’t go to the summit but the funicular’s end station was around 10k feet. Found [this](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kaprun_disaster) in Wikipedia when I went looking for the elevation numbers. No more funicular. :eek: We were there in early '90s so it’s not like we just barely missed horrible fiery death, but it’s still creepy to read about a devastating accident in a place you’ve been to. ---
**Author:** ![mack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mack)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/47 "2011-05-04T03:03:56Z")
My highest point was Quandary Peak (14,265) in Colorado. It was wintry but I can’t remember how deep into winter it was. The woman I went with became an alpine guide with some trips to Antarctica and would camp out at altitude in a blizzard for fun. I’ve done a lot of lower peaks in the summertime and fall but I don’t remember anything as stark and awesome as that winter view from the top of Quandary. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 3:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/48 "2011-05-04T03:05:11Z")
Fun thing I re-learned today is that the Trail Ridge Road is the highest paved through-highway in America. You’d think that there’d be a paved road that _went_ somewhere (other than just around a mountain like [Colorado 5](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Colorado_State_Highway_5)) that was higher than 12K. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 3:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/49 "2011-05-04T03:44:34Z")
> [@MsWhatsit](#): > > This is my answer. Apparently, it’s now my answer, too. I hadn’t realized that Trail Ridge Road was higher in elevation than Jungfraujoch. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/50 "2011-05-04T03:57:54Z")
Would have to be in the Rockies, so I ticked “10,001-15,000 ft.,” but I suppose it could have been up into the next category? I checked the elevation of Kathmandu and was surprised to find it’s only 4600 feet; since I’m no mountain climber, it’s not amid the Himalayas then, as I would not have gone much higher than that. ---
**Author:** ![whiterabbit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/cab0a1/32.png) [@whiterabbit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whiterabbit)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 4:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/51 "2011-05-04T04:03:11Z")
Unless there’s somewhere I went as a kid that I forget, the highest I think would be 9150 feet (according to Wikipedia, anyway) at the top of Bald Mountain in Idaho. Weird thing? I don’t ski. It’s lovely in the summer as well. Niiiice views. I live reasonably high, at about 5800 feet. After moving up here I found that when I flew for the first time, while the air on the plane still smelled weird, it didn’t feel thin anymore. This made sense when I found out they usually pressurize planes to somewhere around 5000 to 6000 feet. ---
**Author:** ![aruvqan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aruvqan/32/2891_2.png) [@aruvqan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aruvqan)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 4:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/52 "2011-05-04T04:17:34Z")
We went through Colorado to get to Fresno for a visit, and I picked the one level higher than Denver because I seem to remember the pass we used was higher than Denver. And that was an experience I am loath to repeat. I have serious issues with altitude sickness. Classic migraine, nausea, blurred vision, trouble breathing, and that was just sitting in a car driving. I would probably be dead if I was doing something physically active. ---
**Author:** ![Rick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/9f8e36/32.png) [@Rick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/53 "2011-05-04T04:50:14Z")
> [@Darth\_Sensitive](#): > > I’ve made it up to 12,183 along the Trail Ridge Road at Rocky Mountain National Park Ditto. Got out and hiked, got tired so quickly. At one point I wanted to take some close up pictures on the growth on the rocks along the trail. Got down on my stomach to take some closeup pictures and then did not want to get back up. When I finally got back to the car, I was getting altitude sickness, so I drove to the thick air at the visitors center (10,300 IIRC) had some soup and coffee. Felt better after awhile. When I did drive down to about 7,000 feet I pulled over and took a looooong nap. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/54 "2011-05-04T05:19:35Z")
Mt. Whitney . ---
**Author:** ![Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hilarity_n.suze/32/6223_2.png) [@Hilarity\_N.Suze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hilarity_N.Suze)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 6:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/55 "2011-05-04T06:39:23Z")
Yay, fourteeners! When I was young we used to hike up one and celebrate at the top with tuna sandwiches, oranges, and a celebratory joint. The joint has some kick at 14,000 feet. The last time I hiked up a 14er was with my kid. Had to make do with tuna sandwich & orange on that one. (San Luis Peak, Labor Day 2008) For me, anything up to 13,000 is not too much of a strain, and anything after that is really hard. San Luis was a 6-mile hike, and the last mile took me almost as long as the previous 5 (my kid beat me to the summit by, like, 30 minutes). ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 6:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/56 "2011-05-04T06:57:03Z")
Just shy of 7000 at Flagstaff AZ. I may have been higher but I don’t remember. ---
**Author:** ![appleciders](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85f322/32.png) [@appleciders](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/appleciders)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 7:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/57 "2011-05-04T07:08:37Z")
Just barely over 15,000 on Cayambe. We drove up past 14,000 and climbed up as just past the snow line. I could not have gone much further; I had been at 8,000 for a week and sea level before that and I just wasn’t acclimated. I was dizzy, entirely out of breath, and my vision was starting to fade. ---
**Author:** ![enipla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/54ee81/32.png) [@enipla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/enipla)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/58 "2011-05-04T13:08:56Z")
Mount Bross, Colorado. 14,178. It’s right across the valley from my house. [As seen from my deck](http://i143.photobucket.com/albums/r148/enipla/01060002-1.jpg) ---
**Author:** ![BigDadWolf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aeb1de/32.png) [@BigDadWolf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigDadWolf)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 1:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/59 "2011-05-04T13:10:13Z")
I got to the top of Mount Lincoln in Colorado at 14,293 when I was much younger. ---
**Author:** ![UncleRojelio](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unclerojelio/32/3160_2.png) [@UncleRojelio](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleRojelio)\ **Post date:** [May 4, 2011, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606/60 "2011-05-04T13:30:39Z")
> [@N9IWP](#): > > Pikes Peak (14, 115ft) - a few times - while visiting a friend in COS > > Brian +1 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606.md?page=2) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-highest-elevation-youve-ever-been/580606.md?page=4)