Now that I am more awake, what kind of gear did you have to use/bring with? I did the Incline on my third day there so I could acclimate to the elevation. Turns out I didn't need to, didn't have any issues with the lungs during the climb. I was totally over-prepared for it, carrying way too much stuff (extra sweatshirt, camera gear, jacket), and was wearing jeans and hiking boots. I knew I was in trouble when 20 minutes in an old dude that had to be every day as old as 80 went flying past me wearing jogging shorts, light t-shirt, running shoes, and a small bottle of water. However the jeans and boots helped on the way down when it started to rain and then snow.this was my first climb ever, and quite possibly my last. HA! my knees and legs are still killing me. Barr Trail is a 13 mile trail each way, probably wasn't the best choice for my first ever climb. Not to mention i worked thursday night (6p-6a) after leaving work fri morning, i drove straight to the airport to catch the plane. so the first 6 miles was on 0 sleep, then i slept like shit in the tent friday night.
I did look at the map before I did my climb and saw you can continue the Incline straight into the Barr trail and then on up to the top of Pikes Peak. Looks like it comes out just on the north end of peak, where the cog railway turns and straightens out.
We cheated and drove to the top of the peak, lol. Which, surprisingly I didn't have any physical issues with. I went in the corner on the cafeteria side and even did a dozen push ups. My g/f looked like she wanted to pass out and all she did was walk from the car to the store.
I will say, there is some kind of a draw to the area. I have zero climbing experience, and the incline is marked as "extreme". I did zero physical prep. Really a few weeks on a stair climber first would have been a good idea. For the last 12-14 months I have been thinking about doing what you did, just to do the incline again, and maybe some other areas, but I'd drive out cause flying is too painful for my ears. I thought I was a little crazy, guessing not