So here in Colorado there is kind of a famous trail that Olympic athletes, firemen, policemen and everyday joes and janes hike up and down on a fairly regular basis to test their endurance and strength. It’s called the Manitou Springs Incline and I’m lucky enough to live about 15 minutes from it. It’s about 1 mile in length and incorporates a 2000 foot increase in elevation ending at about 8500 feet. Two Wednesdays ago, I gave it my first try and made it all the way to the top! It was a really challenging cardiovascular workout, and was so much fun! The view above is from the start of the Incline. What looks like the summit, is actually a false summit, that takes a lot of people by surprise each year. Luckily, I’d done my homework up front and knew about it going in. Once you get up to the false summit there is still about 1/4 way to go. It took me a little over an hour to get up to the top the first hike, but I went a little bit quicker this past week when I climbed it again! You have the choice at the top to either take the steps back down to the bottom, or hike down on the Barr Trail. It’s a pretty long hike to go that route, but it’s a bit safer if you have balance issues, are afraid of heights or aren’t very sure footed. I made the mistake of just wearing my cross trainers both times and fell once or twice. The Incline is actually illegal to climb because it’s on private land, but because so many people train on it the law is never enforced. There’s been talk over the last few years about legalizing it, so that necessary improvements can be made, but so far, that hasn’t come to pass.
Anyway, I’m trying to climb this thing on a weekly basis through the fall. My goal is to be able to get up and back down in just over an hour and a half. Right now it takes me just over 2 hours to do it all. I’ll keep you posted.
The View from the Top!
