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Everyone knows Mt. Everest is the highest point in the world. The next 100 highest mountains are also located in the Himalaya mountain range. But what of the other continents? Here is the list of the highest point on each of the seven continents, starting from the lowest.
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7th: Carstensz Pyramid, Oceania |
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 Also known as Puncak Jaya, or Victory Peak, the Carstensz Pyramid is the highest island peak in the world.
- Location: Papua New Guinea, Indonesia
- Height: 16,023 Feet
Although not the most physically demanding of the seven summits, it does hold the highest technical rating for climbers. It requires a 4 to 5 day, 100km hike to its base camp from Timika, the nearest town with an airport.
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6th: Vinson Massif, Antarctica |
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 Located on the most inhospitable continent on Earth, Vinson Massif is the highest mountain of Antarctica.
- Location: Ellsworth Mt’s
- Height: 16,066 Feet
It stretches thirteen miles long and eight miles wide. Climbing Vinson is not considered technically difficult, but Antarctica’s extreme climate makes ascending Vinson a serious undertaking.
 Mount Elbrus (meaning twin peaks) is located in the western Caucasus mountains, in Kabardino-Balkaria, Russia, near the border of Georgia.
- Location: Russia
- Height: 18,510 Feet
Elbrus is a dormant volcano with about 50 glaciers that feed Baksan and Kuban rivers among others. It is not technically difficult, but is physically challenging due to the high elevation, permanent icecap and strong winds.
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4th: Mt. Kilimanjaro, Africa |
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 The world’s highest free-standing mountain, Kilimanjaro stands on Tanzania’s northern border with Kenya.
- Location: Tanzania
- Height: 19,340 Feet
Kilimajaro is composed of 3 extinct volcanoes, and supports 5 major eco-zones: rain forest, heath, moorland, alpine desert and glaciers. Although at present it is believed to be loosing its glaciers due to global warming.
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3rd: Denali, North America |
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 Denali is Athabaskan for ‘The High One’. It was renamed to Mt McKinley in 1896, but changed back to its original name in 1980.
- Location: Alaska
- Height: 20,320 Feet
Denali is the highest point near the Arctic Circle. The intense cold is comparable only to the Antarctic ranges, ranging from -20 to -40 degrees on a summers day. The Himalaya tropical by comparison. It has been estimated that on Denali a person is reduced to roughly 50% of their mental capacity.
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2nd: Mt. Aconcagua, South America |
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 Located near the Argentine Andes, on the border with Chile. Its name comes from the Quechua words for ‘White Sentinel’.
- Location: Argentina
- Height: 22,834 Feet
Aconcagua is the highest point in the Western and Southern hemisphere. It has two summits, joined by a one kilometer ridge. While the first climb to the summit is credited to a Swiss climber in 1897, there are traces of Inca civilization and culture near the summit.
 Located in the Himalaya mountain range, straddling the border of Nepal and Tibet, Everest is the highest mountain in the world.
- Location: Tibet-Nepal
- Height: 29,035 Feet
Formed about 60 million years ago, Mt. Everest actually rises a few millimeters each year due to geological forces. It got its name from Sir George Everest who was the first person to record its height and location. Not to underestimate just how dangerous it is to climb to its summit, there remains around 120 corpses on Everest.
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