Our Hike To The Top...of Pikes Peak

The summer of my sixteenth year, a not very flattering picture of me, on a day I remember, like it was yesterday. Kind of parched looking...actually, very parched looking, with a white beard (a very old slide gives one a white beard, I guess), and a canteen that looks like a shoulder bag. If it had been a shoulder bag, it would have held, among other things, a lipstick and hair brush...not something one needs when hiking to the top. I wore blue cords, a double layer of sweatshirts, and red Keds...probably not the best hiking apparel.  I do have to say, though, it kind of beat the sweaters my brothers wore.😉 My bag held water, and from the looks of it, maybe not quite enough. When one runs low on water on a mountain, you can just eat a little snow. And, so we did.

I remember the day well, as for us, at least, it was a once in a lifetime experience. My grandparents moved, from Iowa, to Colorado Springs when my grandpa retired, and from their front yard, one looked out at Pikes Peak. Every summer, she beckoned and dared, so we finally took her up on it. (If I'm going to anthropomorphize Pike Peak, she's going to be a she).

Our cousin, who lived in the area as well, had made the hike to the top numerous times, so he became our guide, and led us to the top, via the Barr Trail. The trail meandered back and forth (and back and forth), as one doesn't just walk straight up a mountain with an elevation of over 14,000 feet. As you can see, that would be a pretty steep climb. Honestly, I've tried to picture it, and it makes me laugh...every time.

I treasure this day, as it's full of so many memories. Nuanced memories, where one remembers the little things that one typically, would forget. Every few steps taken above timberline (tree line), were an accomplishment...we were getting closer, but there isn't a lot of air up there, and the trail had turned from dirt, into rocks, boulders, and rocks and boulders.

Anyway, my brother located these slides, and for all of us, the memories came flooding back. Good memories, of spending the day with family, accomplishing something that was kind of a big deal, and wishing one had it within, to do it again...

The top of Pikes Peak...it was a good 13 mile, 9 hour hike, but we were relieved it was over. The line running through the decades-old slide makes my eye look a little odd, but my brother's exhaustion is still on full display, lol. A memorable day, and a 14er...a pretty nice accomplishment.