Hunts Peak is set 17 miles (27 km) east of the Continental Divide in the Sangre de Cristo Range which is a subrange of the Rocky Mountains.

Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 1,726 feet (526 m) above Hunts Lake in 0.57 mile (0.92 km).

The mountain's toponym was officially adopted in 1906 by the United States Board on Geographic Names,[5] and has been reported in publications since at least 1892,[7] if not earlier.

[6][8] Alexander Cameron Hunt (1825–1894) was the fourth governor of the Territory of Colorado (1867–1869) who would later own land in the adjacent San Luis Valley.

[10] Due to its altitude, it receives precipitation all year, as snow in winter, and as thunderstorms in summer, with a dry period in late spring.