Activities in Colorado Springs
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Manitou & Pikes Peak Cog Railway
Travelers have been making the trip to the summit of Pikes Peak (14,110ft) on the Pikes Peak Cog Railway since 1891, when Spencer Penrose built it. Katherine Lee Bates was so impressed by her 1893 trip to the summit that she was inspired to write 'America the Beautiful.' Diesel-powered, Swiss-built trains smoothly make the round-trip in three hours and 10 minutes, which includes 40 minutes at the top.
The train makes no official stops, but engineers will drop hikers at Mountain View, where you can hike the 1.5 mile to the six-mile mark of the Barr Trail at Barr Camp (9,500ft), which makes for a 7.5-mile hike up. It's the best way to day hike Pikes Peak, and you may as…
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Barr Trail
The main trail to Pikes Peak is a popular 12.8-mile trudge from the trailhead near the Manitou Springs Depot at 6600ft. That makes for an elevation gain of 7510ft to the summit at 14,110ft. Many hikers split the trip into two days, stopping to overnight at Barr Camp at the halfway point (10,200ft).
Although you can't buy one-way tickets on the Cog, you may choose to buy a round-trip and use it to get to Barr Camp. You'll have to ask the engineer to stop for you. You'll be let out onto a spur trail 1.5 miles from Barr Camp where you can join the main trail to the summit. Then you can take the train down. That makes the trip a fun 7.5-mile day hike. Also, many hikers leave…
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Red Rock Canyon Park
Red Rock Canyon is one of the region's newest and best slices of open space. A former quarry, and part of a red-rock vein that runs through Colorado Springs to the Garden of the Gods, this 787-acre park was nearly developed into a golf course and townhouses.
Thanks to committed residents who fought the good fight, Red Rock Canyon is, and will remain, open to all, including hikers, runners, cyclists and equestrians. Trails from Red Rock connect to Bear Creek Regional Park and North Cheyenne Canyon Park. Rock climbers have access to over 80 bolted climbing routes, but they must register at the Garden of the Gods Visitors Center first or risk a $500 fine. Some trails are for…
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Pikes Peak Highway
From the town of Divide, west of Manitou Springs on US Hwy 24, you can drive the Pikes Peak Toll Road to the summit. It's sometimes closed in winter due to bad weather. If it's open, and you have a set of skis or a snowboard and at least three people - one driver and two riders - there is some great (and free, after you pay the toll) backcountry powder skiing with easy drop-in and pick-up points along the serpentine road.
The locals would kill us for listing mile-markers, so you'll have to drive the highway and look for tracks. The drive itself is a beautiful one-hour snaking drive through boulder fields to the wide blue sky. This highway (and the cog railway) were built…
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New Santa Fe Regional Trail
Eighteen miles each way, this wide open, gravel and earth trail rises gently from the southern end of the Air Force Academy to the Palmer Lake Recreation Area. You'll gain about 1000ft over the course of the ride, which isn't nothing, but it isn't too painful, and the ride back down will be fun. It's a great beginner mountain-bike ride, and if you like, you can link up with the paved Pikes Peak Greenway Trail at the academy and take it all the way into town.
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Pikes Peak Greenway Trail
Colorado Springs' primary paved bike path follows Monument Creek south from the Air Force Academy (where you can link with the New Santa Fe Regional Trail) for 14 miles into the city where it links with the rest of the Front Range Trail System an additional 20-plus miles of trails that connect Colorado Springs, Old Colorado City and Manitou Springs.
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Challenge Unlimited
An Old Colorado City-based outfitter who for 20 years has lead cyclists on the lovely, fully supported downhill ride from the Pikes Peak summit into Manitou Springs. There are rides twice a day - in the morning and afternoon. Advance reservations are a must. They have a handful of other Colorado cycling itineraries too.
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Midland Trail
A two-mile stretch of the Front Range Trail System that branches off the Pikes Peak Greenway at America The Beautiful Park (formerly Confluence Park) and heads into Old Colorado City.
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CS West Bikes
Based in Old Colorado City, they rent high-quality mountain bikes, do repairs and will suggest the best mountain bike trails in the area. A terrific resource.
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Quandary Peak
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