Mt. Whitney Portal Store & Hostel Forums General Mt. Whitney Portal Store Message Board Pike's Peak

Sorry for posting off topic. Forgive me, but this is Whitney related.

My permit for Whitney is August 24. Been doing plenty of hiking with elevation gains of 3,500-4,500+ ft. I want to do Pike's Peak in Colo. next week. The Barr trail is 13 miles to the summit and 7,200 elevation gain. Has anybody here done Pike's Peak? The trail looks to be in great condition. My #1 question is: I just want to go up, not interested in going down. They've got a cog railway, could I take that down? Is that feasible? Is it a great hike or a dud or someplace in between?

I liked it. Mid-June a few years ago, I started out in cold drizzle at the trailhead, but it was sunny & clear above treeline. Because the weather below was foggy & cloudy, there were plenty of seats on the train, so I had no problem buying a one-way ticket after getting to the top, saving my knees for another mountain. As with other 14'ers, especially the day after flying in from low elevation, the last coupla thousand feet were just slow. But the views were good. Some people buy a round-trip train ticket in advance to be sure they will have a seat after hiking to the top.
One thing that you might or might not like: hearing the train whistle and seeing the tourists at the top as you're trudging up a steep switchback. Also, the occasional acclimatized jogger breezing by - great training run.

Don't forget you can also hitch a ride down from the peak (if needed). Many people drive to the top rather than take the railway. I have never hiked it though, but did quite a bit of control survey work up on top in the early 80's. Sounds like a great training hike.

Scotty,

I've done Pike's Peak twice, and it's an incredible hike. It's nothing like Whitney because you have a Disneyland-type of atmosphere at the summit, with restaurant, flushing toilets, souvenir stands and parking lots. There's a road going up to the summit and they used to charge you $10 a car just to drive up there. As for hikers, there's not a lot of solitude on the trail either. On the way up the Barr Trail there are A-frame houses, "Barr Camp," which has an outhouse and people living there and many other signs of civilization.

The cog railway only runs at certain times, so you'll have to check and buy your ticket *before* you try the hike. It's not like the Palm Spring aerial tramway where you can do San Jacinto and if you're tired, just buy a ticket and glide on down. The cog railway might stop running at 6:00 pm (just a guess) and if you summit after that, you'll be out of luck. Also, watch out for the afternoon thunderstorms, which are severe in Colorado. There's even a warning sign at the beginning of the Barr trailhead about these sudden storms.

The trail conditions are much, much better than Whitney. A lot of it is over smooth trail, no rocks, very nice. It's steeper than Whitney, but there are also some sections of no elevation gain for awhile. Watch out for August 17, that's the day of the Pike's Peak marathon and no one can hike on that day, just the runners. Best of luck to you.

The Barr Trail is certainly a classic! The
gain is huge and you pass through many climate
zones on your way up. You can bum a ride from
a motorist once you get up there. The trail is
excellent but don't expect zillions of switch-
backs like in the Sierra.

The ascent has been done in just over 2 hours
from downtown Manitou Springs! But unless your
VO2Max is over 80 it will probably take you
longer.

We are in a typical monsoon pattern of strong
afternoon thunderstorms, so it would be good to
get an early start.

Peter
Boulder, CO

hey pbakwin, my sister and i are planning a hike up the peak next summer. do you know of any good links with pictures??