The CLIMB

Manitou Incline in Colorado Springs  is the remains of a 1 mile cable car built straight up the mountain. It was constructed in 1907 to support a hydroelectric plant and water line.  It was burned down and plagued by rock slides and eventually fell into disrepair.  It has become a popular workout spot despite it being private land.  We saw people run up the 2000 ft incline but coming from sea level, it was all I could do to walk up the killer incline.

Prepping for basic training by getting used to the altitude

 

We were so happy to make it to the top!  It was 7 more miles up to base camp or 4 miles down Barr Trail to the car.  We opted for the later.

I tried my hand at running while taking pictures on the go.  (Saw it in a movie once).  Surprisingly I got good action shots with my point and click camera while jumping over tree roots and rocks and descending the trail.  It's a miracle I didn't bite it or sprain an ankle.  I just kept running and clicking away, even turning behind me to get shots of Heidi.  I was thrilled everything wasn't blurry.

Just like the family rafting trip down the Payette River, the boys were grinning after this and thought this was one of the best vacation days ever!  I wiped the sweat from my face, stomped the dirt off my shoes and had to concur wholeheartedly.