Manitou Springs, CO The Manitou Incline offers a unique challenge that many, yours truly included, find irresistible. An incline is a form of railroad that enable a railway type car to ascend a vertical grade. One of these railways used to operate here. Over time it's operations ceased and the track was removed leaving the ties behind. This incline operated at about 68 percent grade at it's steepest section. The top is just under one mile from the starting point. This sounds easy enough until you also take in the 2000 foot rise in elevation to get there.
Standing at the base of the trail, looking up, reminded me of the feeling of standing on the edge of the high dive board at the Y for the first time. It had similar physical effects as well. The thought of doing a Chevy Chase Yeah, That's great! moment took serious hold but was chased away by oh, so many choices are possible here, ignorance, stupidity, careless disregard for personal safety. It might have been the look the 9ish year old boy threw me, one I havent seen since the lunch line in elementary school, as he pushed past wondering what I was stopping for. I'm unsure exactly what exactly won the day, but something came from the depths and enabled that first step.
When you read about the Incline, you learn that is was originally built as a cable car to carry materials to build pipelines on Pikes Peak America's Mountain. Once that work was complete it became a popular tourist attraction. In 1990 a rock slide damaged a section of the track and brought the demise of the railway. The rails were removed and the incline was closed.
Then, some locals began using it as a workout spot and from there it grew to what it istoday. In 2013 the Manitou Incline Trail was opened to the public and the legend was born. Now, parking is available (get there
early!) and the City has made offerings to make access easier and enabled improvements and maintenance to the trail to occur. Several stores in Manitou Springs offer various I conquered the Incline T-Shirts and you will feel you earned it by the time you are done.
So, back to that first step. It was of course followed by a second and third step, in fact I made it to 20 steps in a row before stopping to contemplate my decision making skills. The words 68 percent grade do not really mean anything until you are on one. It is very much like climbing a ladder that is almost a mile high. There are many places where you will use your arms in the same manner as a ladder, as the trail is that steep. Put another way, in 20 steps, there was already a two story gain in elevation.
You are not alone on this quest. Many people visit the incline very day, some multiple times per day as a fitness or personal challenge. The frequency record is over 1700 round trips in a single year, around 17 minutes for the fastest ascent and 26 inclineathons (an inclineathon =13 or more per 24 hour period). Apparently, the average time to ascend the incline is about an hour. Our ascent time of 2 hours and 45 minutes set a new personal best that we are quite proud of. During our ascent I'd estimate 75 people per hour passed us on the incline, and wonderfully many offered encouragement and praise for our efforts! You're doing it!, Give it hell!, Great job,Let go of my backpack! We soon found this was a thing on the Incline, words of encouragement came with the experience from your fellow hikers.
A pace of walk 20 steps, pause, walk 20 steps was adopted. This worked but we discovered after the fact is not the best approach. A better approach is slow steady progress with infrequent breaks. Our method did provide for many opportunities to turn around and enjoy the view we were earning. Manitou Springs and Colorado Springs are visible. As you ascend.the horizon seems to expand and you can see across the plains for many many miles. Extraordinary views.
The trail is rough, it is, after all, an abandoned railway track. Much wonderful work has been done to maintain and improve the trail but it is left as it was intended, a challenge. Good shoes, sensible clothing, lots of water are all required items for this trip. Proper prep should not be bypassed as this is a serious trail with limited access for emergency personnel. Know your limits.
There is a bail out trail, called The Barr Trail, about of the way up, it is used for those that no longer wish to continue the trek to the summit. Going down the Incline is very strongly NOT recommended. This is because it is very easy to lose control as you descend the steep path. The risk of impalement is high as well as the risk to other folks hiking up. Given the popularity of the trail, a human snowball could result from a misstep from someone attempting to go down the trail.
Once the top is gained, you can look back over the path and the view is worth the effort. The sense of personal accomplishment is also quite satisfying. The desire to do it again.....I'll let you know if that ever turns up.