Pikes Peak

The mountain carries many names. The Ute people, whose homeland this was, are recorded as calling it Tava-Kaavi, roughly 'Sun Mountain', while the Arapaho and Pawnee had their own names for it. Spanish explorers referred to it as El Capitán. In November 1806, Lieutenant Zebulon Pike saw it from the plains, called it the 'Highest Peak', and turned back well short of the summit in deep snow. Later expedition maps used other names before 'Pike's Peak' took hold and the U.S. Board on Geographic Names dropped the apostrophe in 1890. Edwin James, a botanist with Stephen Long's expedition, made the first documented ascent on July 15, 1820, and Julia Archibald Holmes is credited as the first European-American woman to reach the top, in August 1858.

The peak is made of pink Pikes Peak granite, whose color comes from abundant potassium feldspar. The granite is dated to roughly 1.05 billion years ago, among the older rock exposed in the Front Range. Weathering has left broken boulder fields and tundra above treeline, and the same mountain forms the backdrop to the red sandstone fins of Garden of the Gods, a short drive from the base.

In the summer of 1893, Katharine Lee Bates, an English professor at Wellesley College, was teaching a summer course in Colorado Springs and made the trip to the summit. The view across the plains inspired a poem that was first published in a church magazine on July 4, 1895, and later set to music as 'America the Beautiful'. A plaque on the summit commemorates the connection. The uppermost portion of the mountain, the 28 acres above 14,000 feet, is a designated National Historic Landmark, listed on July 4, 1961 according to the National Park Service's Historic American Landscapes Survey record.

The Manitou and Pike's Peak Railway is a cog railway, meaning a toothed rack in the track engages a gear on the train so it can climb steep grades. The company formed in 1889, limited service began in 1890, and the first train reached the summit on June 30, 1891, covering roughly nine miles. The line is recognized as an American Society of Mechanical Engineers landmark. It closed for a lengthy rebuild in 2017 and resumed service in May 2021; check the operator for the current schedule.

The Pikes Peak Highway is a 19-mile toll road that climbs from Cascade, a few miles up Ute Pass, and its paving was completed in 2011. It is the route of the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb, a motor race held since 1916, and the mountain also hosts the Pikes Peak Marathon, a trail race held since 1956.

The Barr Trail is the classic hiking route from Manitou Springs. It is graded Class 1, meaning no scrambling, but it gains close to 8,000 feet over about 13 miles one way, so most people treat it as a serious full-day or overnight effort.

• The summit is far colder and thinner-aired than Colorado Springs, so weather can change quickly and altitude effects such as headache or breathlessness are common, especially for visitors arriving from sea level.
• Mornings are generally clearer than afternoon thunderstorm season.
• Road and railway operation, ticket needs, and reservations vary by season and conditions, so check the operators and the City of Colorado Springs for current hours and access before you travel.

Pikes Peak pairs naturally with Garden of the Gods and the town of Manitou Springs, with its historic mineral springs, all within a short drive of each other. From Denver the mountain is roughly an hour and a half south by road. A private tour with a driver means one person is free to look at the scenery on the way up rather than watch the road, and the pickup can be arranged door to door for your group.