Hello, fellow hiking Pios and future hiking enthusiasts. This summer, I will be hiking a new Colorado trail each week and giving you a taste of some great hikes available in this lovely state.

To give you a bit of background, I will readily admit that I’ve never been a very outdoorsy person, and my hiking experience is minimal to say the least. Being a Colorado native, I have certainly dabbled in the activity, but never gave it much real thought. To be perfectly honest, I’ve always thought of hiking as a fancy term for walking through a place with scenery, as if a walk anywhere could be called a “hike” if it was surrounded by trees and had some dirt on the path. But, alas, I have changed my tune. I want to understand hiking as a way to challenge yourself physically while enjoying nature and embrace colorful Colorado and all it has to offer in the way of hiking opportunities.

I decided to start out strong in my endeavour with a trail that I’m relatively familiar with and is certainly not for the faint of heart—the Manitou Incline and Barr Trail. The two are very different in intensity and characteristics, so I’ll begin with the first part of the hike, the Incline.

The best way that I can describe this monstrous trail is that it is like walking to the fourth floor of Sturm 100 times. The path, which is essentially a staircase up the side of a section of Pikes Peak, is only a mile. However, it rises 2,000 vertical feet in that mile, and you will feel it.

The beginning is not too difficult, but don’t be fooled and overexert yourself right off the bat, as you’ll need to reserve your energy for when the trail increases in difficulty as you ascend. The best piece of advice that I can offer is to go at your own pace. Don’t try to keep up with the people racing up the trail, as it will only cause you to be miserable and exhausted. For those coming from low altitudes, also keep in mind that the trail begins at 6,500 feet in elevation.

Halfway up, the stairs intersect with a section of the Barr Trail, so anyone who isn’t feeling the Incline can bail off and go up or down this other, much less extreme trail. Otherwise, those who continue on will soon come to what appears to be the summit, but don’t be fooled; this is only an illusion, there is still a quarter of the trail left afterwards, which always seems to be the most challenging. However, once you fight your way to the top, the feeling can’t be beat.

For one, the view is astounding. The entirety of Colorado Springs can be seen from the top, along with sights of the surrounding mountain range. The feeling of accomplishment (and probably relief) at conquering this intense fitness challenge is an additional rush all in itself.

Some opt to go back down the Incline, although I’m not one of these people for two reasons: I know I would fall and roll down the stairs and I would also miss the beauty of Barr Trail. This popular hiking path is readily accessible from the summit of the Incline and offers a nice, easy route to return to the trailhead after the intense hike up. While the Incline itself has beautiful views, I often find that I don’t seem to notice them while I try to will my burning legs up another stair, and so going down Barr trail gives me time and mental energy to stop and take in the beauty of Pikes Peak. Just be wary of the loose gravel on this trail, as one person from any group I go with always falls before we make it to the bottom (spoiler alert: it’s always me).

Overall, if you’re looking for a fitness challenge and some amazing Colorado scenery, the Manitou Incline and Barr trail can’t be beat. Take lots of water, be prepared to take your time and take plenty of breaks if needed, make sure to go early so that the sun isn’t beating down on you and get ready for a rewarding day on the trail. And some really sore calves.