Pikes Peak Summit

This passed Sunday Chris and I both had the day off and decided to put hiking to the top Pikes Peak under our belt. We got up somewhat early to get a good start on the heat, and the possibility of getting hit with a storm. We decided to take the Barr Trail route to the top. We got to the trail head around 7:30 am and were greeted with this nice little sign.

Eight hours to the top?! What the hell am I getting into! Right from the start you are climbing some pretty steep switchbacks. This part was actually pretty crowded with people who were running down the trail towards the parking lot. The entire way up this had us puzzled. The people running down didn't look exactly like experienced trail runners and the trail was far from not being technical. We found out later that there is a group that will run up another trail, called the Incline, that is much shorter but steep and then connect to Barr Trail and run down. As we got higher the congestion got thinner. We still saw a decent number of people coming down the trail, but not too many that were heading our direction. This could be why:

Barr Trail elevation (taken from www.mymarathonpace.com)

As you can see, it's not easy! The trail head elevation is at about 6300 feet of elevation and the top of Pikes Peak is at 14,115 feet. As the sign said earlier, about 7300 feet of climbing! To add to that, this is the the course elevation for the infamous Pikes Peak Marathon. People actually RUN this. (Which, I will most likely be added to that list of people one day! hehe) We even passed a guy multiple times who ran to the top and back TWICE! The trail is definitely tough. It is literally going up the entire way. (Crazy thought, right?!) At about half way up the trail is Barr Camp. It is a small camp that provides shelter for those who want to do the trip in two days, or just want to hike in and camp for a night and then head back. We stopped here to eat a little snack, use the restroom and rest our legs. At this point we were at  10,200 feet elevation. 

The host at Barr Camp welcomed us and told us about the camp. She also told us that however long it took us to get to the camp, we should take that time and add one hour to get the time it would take us to get from there to the top. For us that would be 2 hours and 15 minutes + 1 hour = 3 hours and 15 minutes to the top. Of course, having the competitive nature that we do, we decided we would not be a statistic and would make it to the top faster than 3 hours and 15 minutes. 

After Barr Camp, the trail becomes a little more steep  for the next three or four miles. It was my favorite part of the hike, though. The trail winds through a very wooded area until you get to tree line. Once you are to tree line, the real challenge begins. The trail is at it's steepest  and you are walking through switch back after switch back. The trail gets very loose and there are a lot of bigger rocks you have to maneuver through.  The final climb is actually called The 16 Golden Steps. Its the last set of switch backs you have to hike until you reach the top. At this point I really started to feel the affects of the altitude. My breathing actually felt okay, but my movements were getting very slow and our pace slowed down quite a bit.[ Maybe the camp host was going to be right!] The wind was also blowing pretty hard and we had to put on a warm layer. Some of the loose gravel and sand would pelt your legs and leave a nice little sting.  We were still pushing pretty hard though and it felt like we were never going to actually reach the top! I even said to Chris that I was convinced that they had played a trick on us and that we were just going in circles. (haha)  

Part of the 16 Golden Steps

The Cirque sign that you see marked in this picture is where the rock is a sheer drop off down 1500 feet to a pit that was made by glaciers. I got a good picture of the rocks jetting up, but was sure as hell not going to get close enough to actually look down! 

You can just get a glimpse of Lake Moraine in the background. 

Alas, they did not play a trick on us and we did actually reach the top! Just to give you an idea of how tough the last climb was, from the sign that said 2 miles to go it took us 45 minutes. That's a 23:30 miles pace! Although we slowed a considerable amount, we managed to beat the predicted 3 hours and 15 minutes from Barr Camp to the top. We made it in 2 hours and 30 minutes and total time of 4 hours and 45 minutes!

As you crest the top you have this feeling of accomplishment and excitement that you just hiked 12.6 miles to the top of a 14,000ft mountain. However, some of that is taken away when you see the gobs of people that either drove or took the train to the top. You lose that time where you get to look out, take a quiet moment to yourself and really take in what you just did. When Chris and I climbed to the top of Yosemite Falls there was only one other guy who was at the top, who also hiked. We stood their in silence enjoying the view. Here, you are distracted by those who are commenting on how cold they are (maybe you shouldn't have worn a tank top and sandals at 14,000ft!), a crying baby or the guy who is puffing on his cigarette. 

I was happy to reach the top and take a little break. My legs were screaming at me and so was my stomach We stopped in the cafe/gift shop and ate our home made PB&J, refilled our hydration packs and took a quick look around before escaping the crowds to head back down. The hike down to tree line was no easier going down, than it was going up. Well, that is not entirely true. We were moving at a quicker pace but it was still a tough two miles to go down. Once we got to tree line, we at least had some shielding from the sun by all of the trees. The rest of the hike felt like a long waiting game to the parking lot. Our legs were starting to get pretty trashed. However, one look out at the view and you are instantly reminded of how amazing this trip really is. 

I would still recommend to anyone that they, at least once, hike to the top of Pikes Peak. (notice is said "hike"!) It was well worth the long day, the sunburn (Yes, MOM, I used sunscreen) and the very sore legs! 

The Rock arch

Getting close to tree line!

Part of the trail with Pikes Peak in the background

Just above tree line!

One of the many good views!

Quick Cliff Bar and photo opp 

View on the hike down. 

Until next time! :)