DID YOU KNOW? Pikes Peak is over 14,115 feet tall, and known as America’s Mountain. It’s the most commonly visited mountain in North America and a popular destination for hikers, skiers, bikers, and sightseers. Every year, the Broadmoor Pikes Peak Hill Climb features a motor race up the final 12.5 miles of Pikes Peak highway. Founded in 1916 by Spencer Penrose, this race is strenuous on both the driver and the car. (Seven racers have died in this race) Drivers, reaching speeds of 130mph, must battle altitude, low oxygen, 156 turns, and losing 30% of their internal combustion engine power. In 2021, Paul Dallenbach set a new world record of 7 minutes, claiming the title King of the Mountain.
Sidenote: The song America the Beautiful was inspired by the view from the top of the peak and was actually considered for status as the national anthem, before being beat out by The Star-Spangled Banner.
On October 23rd, we took the Cog Railway from Colorado Springs to the top of Pikes Peak, gaining around 8,000 feet of altitude in about an hour and a half. This was a little concerning, since a number of us have been experiencing various minor effects on our body from high altitude out West…Dad, in particular, had been suffering fairly severe altitude sickness almost daily for several weeks. We weren’t sure what effect a major altitude gain in a short time would do to anyone. (It didn’t help that we came across information sharing that at least one person passes out at the top every day…staff are trained to watch for pale faces and other symptoms of oxygen deprivation.)
The ride was uneventful and the scenery was beautiful! Being on the edge of the mountain was a little unnerving to Mom, but the rest of us enjoyed it.
Upon arriving at the top, we were given approximately 40 minutes to unboard, find bathrooms, walk through the visitors center/cafeteria/gift shop, and take any pictures we wanted. Needless to say, it was pretty rushed for our family, but we were able to take a few pictures and try out the famous Pikes Peak donuts. These donuts follow a secret recipe, created in 1916, that only works at a 14,115 foot altitude or higher...preventing replication in any other location. They were very light, fluffy, and delicious, although not really worth their inflated cost.
All too soon, it was time to reboard the cog railway train and begin the descent. On the way down, the attendant explained that the reason their train stays at the top for only 40 minutes is due to the high-altitude sickness that quickly overcomes passengers who stay longer than that time. For example, earlier that year, the train somehow ended up stuck at the top and had to wait for another engine to come pull them down. According to the attendant, by the time the engine reached them two hours later, almost every passenger in the train was throwing up and suffering the affects of altitude-sickness. Thankfully, no one aboard our trip passed out or threw up, although by the time we reached the bottom, Dad was feeling pretty cruddy.
All in all, our trip to the top of America's mountain was mostly uneventful and a little boring, quite honestly. Considering all the hype about the mountain, our visit was slightly anti-climactic...but hey, at least we've got bragging rights now: we've been to the bottom of the Grand Canyon and the top of Pikes Peak!
Until next time, God bless!
Whoa... high!
(That guy with the sunglasses in that picture is staring right at the camera XD)