A col in
geomorphology is the lowest point on a mountain
ridge between two
peaks.[1] It may also be called a
gap.[1] Particularly rugged and forbidding cols in the terrain are usually referred to as notches. They are generally unsuitable as
mountain passes, but are occasionally crossed by
mule tracks or climbers' routes. Derived from the French col ("collar, neck") from
Latincollum, "neck",[2] the term tends to be associated more with mountain than hill ranges.[3] The distinction with other names for breaks in mountain ridges such as
saddle,
wind gap or notch is not sharply defined and may vary from place to place. Many
double summits are separated by prominent cols.
The height of a summit above its highest col (called the
key col) is effectively a measure of a mountain's
topographic prominence.
Cols lie on the line of the
watershed between two
mountains, often on a prominent ridge or
arête. For example, the highest col in Austria, the Obere Glocknerscharte ("Upper Glockner Col", 3,766
m (AA)) lies between the
Kleinglockner (3,783 m above sea level (AA)) and
Grossglockner (3,798 m above sea level (AA)) mountains, giving the Kleinglockner a minimum prominence of 17 metres.[4]
The Peuterey Ridge on the
Mt. Blanc massif. From left to right Aiguille Noire de Peuterey (3773 m), Brèche-sud (3429 m), the Dames Anglaises (3601 m), Brèche-central, L'Isolée, Brèche-nord (3491 m), Aiguille Blanche de Peuterey (4112 m) and Col de Peuterey (3934 m)
The
South Col of
Mt. Everest, at 7,906 m (25,938 ft) the upper staging point for assaults on its summit.
See also
Arête – Narrow ridge of rock which separates two valleys
A col in
geomorphology is the lowest point on a mountain
ridge between two
peaks.[1] It may also be called a
gap.[1] Particularly rugged and forbidding cols in the terrain are usually referred to as notches. They are generally unsuitable as
mountain passes, but are occasionally crossed by
mule tracks or climbers' routes. Derived from the French col ("collar, neck") from
Latincollum, "neck",[2] the term tends to be associated more with mountain than hill ranges.[3] The distinction with other names for breaks in mountain ridges such as
saddle,
wind gap or notch is not sharply defined and may vary from place to place. Many
double summits are separated by prominent cols.
The height of a summit above its highest col (called the
key col) is effectively a measure of a mountain's
topographic prominence.
Cols lie on the line of the
watershed between two
mountains, often on a prominent ridge or
arête. For example, the highest col in Austria, the Obere Glocknerscharte ("Upper Glockner Col", 3,766
m (AA)) lies between the
Kleinglockner (3,783 m above sea level (AA)) and
Grossglockner (3,798 m above sea level (AA)) mountains, giving the Kleinglockner a minimum prominence of 17 metres.[4]
The Peuterey Ridge on the
Mt. Blanc massif. From left to right Aiguille Noire de Peuterey (3773 m), Brèche-sud (3429 m), the Dames Anglaises (3601 m), Brèche-central, L'Isolée, Brèche-nord (3491 m), Aiguille Blanche de Peuterey (4112 m) and Col de Peuterey (3934 m)
The
South Col of
Mt. Everest, at 7,906 m (25,938 ft) the upper staging point for assaults on its summit.
See also
Arête – Narrow ridge of rock which separates two valleys