Illegal Hiking + Amusement: Colorado’s Manitou Incline’s Past

Today, the small mountain town of Manitou Springs is well-known for things like being a quintessential Colorado hippie town, the fact that you can drink spring water from drinking fountains downtown, and, of course, the Manitou Incline.

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However, while the Manitou Incline is widely known as a popular and highly challenging hike, it certainly didn't start out that way.

Colorado's Manitou Incline: The Early Days

The Manitou Incline was originally built in 1903 as a means to transport water and building materials up the mountain. However, just a few years later the pipeline became obsolete and by 1907, the steep mountain route had become a tourist attraction.

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The Mt. Manitou Scenic Incline served as a fun attraction for tourists and locals alike and gave train rides up the steep mountainside to roughly 30 people at a time.

Unfortunately, after nearly 80 years of operating as this fun attraction, neglect had caused the incline to deteriorate to such a state that it was deemed irreparable by 1990 and shut down for good.

Colorado's Manitou Incline: From Illegal Hiking to a Legitimate Destination

After the Mt. Manitou Scenic Incline shut down, groups of bold hikers would effectively trespass onto the land and climb the roughly 2,700 railroad ties to the top.

While this practice was initially frowned upon, the Manitou Incline that we all know and, if we're especially athletic, love, eventually evolved into the legitimate and, for all intents and purposes, legendary, hiking trail we simply refer to as, "The Incline."