Wetterhorn
Peak
The peak takes its name from the Wetterhorn in Switzerland's Bernese Alps, given for the resemblance between the two summits' pointed rock spires; neighboring Matterhorn Peak, a lower point on the same ridge, was named on identical logic. Both the Hayden and Wheeler geological surveys worked this stretch of the San Juans in 1874, and surviving accounts disagree on which team's men first pinned the Swiss names to the two peaks — a small rivalry repeated up and down the range that summer.
The first recorded ascent didn't come until 1906, when George Barnard, C. Smedley, W. P. Smedley and D. Utter reached the summit — more than three decades after surveyors had already mapped the peak from a distance. Nineteenth-century prospectors working claims in the surrounding mining district likely climbed it earlier, but left no written account, leaving the 1906 party's ascent as the earliest confirmed record.
SOURCE Wikipedia — Wetterhorn PeakNo fee or permit; Uncompahgre Wilderness (GMUG NF). Henson Creek Rd is the Lake City side of the seasonal Alpine Loop — Engineer Pass was closed the first two weeks of June 2026, but the Nellie Creek turnoff 5 mi from town opens earlier (alpineloop.info; 14ers.com route page). // Wetterhorn side: No fee or permit; Uncompahgre Wilderness. North Henson Rd is rougher than Henson Creek Rd but passable for most good-clearance vehicles (14ers.com, checked 2026-07); same Alpine Loop spring-opening caveat as Nellie Creek (alpineloop.info).