Sawatch Range Sawatch Range The Sawatch Range is a high and extensive mountain range in central Colorado which includes eight of the twenty highest peaks in the Rocky Mountains, including Mount Elbert, at elevation, the highest peak in the Rockies. The range is oriented along a northwest-southeast axis, extending approximately from in the north to in the south. The range contains 15 peaks topping , also known as 14ers. The range forms a portion of the Continental Divide, and its eastern flanks are drained by the headwaters of the Arkansas River. The western side of the range feeds the headwaters of the
Mount Elbert head with the Mount Massive supporters building large piles of stones on the summit to boost its height, only to have the Mount Elbert proponents demolish them. The effort was ultimately unsuccessful and Mount Elbert has remained the highest peak in Colorado. The first motorized ascent of Elbert occurred in 1949, when a Jeep was driven to the summit, apparently to judge suitability for skiing development. The summit of Mount Elbert is an alpine environment, featuring plants such as "Phacelia sericea" (sky-pilot), "Hymenoxys grandiflora" (old-man-of-the-mountain), and "Geum rossii" (alpine avens). Also noted are "Carex atrata" var. "pullata", "Salix desertorum", "Platanthera