The forest returns briefly as the road enters the small settlement of Glen Cove (mile 13), which has another cafe and a gift shop, and used to be the site of Pikes Peak Ski Center, until this was closed in 1983 owing to lack of consistent snow. Trees fade away and the land is now quite bare, covered only by short grass and the occasional bush (part of the Alpine zone) so the views are rather more impressive - much of the journey so far has been through thick woodland which obscures the wider landscape. Just after the dam, a side track forks right towards two other lakes, North and South Catamount Reservoir, from where several hike/bike trails begin.įrom the reservoir, the main road climbs fairly gently through scrubby, mixed forest of pine, spruce, fir and aspen up to a second picnic area near mile 10 (half way to the summit), where the surface changes to gravel and the highway begins a major ascent, gaining 1,500 feet over the next 3 miles via a number of tight switchbacks, where the speed limit is reduced to 10 mph.
The gradient lessens a little as the road approaches Crystal Creek Reservoir, a sizeable artificial lake formed by an earthen dam - a popular location for fishing, and the site of one of three cafes along the road, as well as providing the first good view of the mountain, which rises above the waters to the south. There are no more buildings past the entrance, as the surroundings become forested and the road starts climbing, quite steeply at first, past two good viewpoints of the forested Fountain Creek canyon, with the city of Colorado Springs in the distance. Start of the Highway - Crystal Creek Reservoir The peak is visible from over 100 miles away across the flat plains of eastern Colorado, and even, on cloudless days, from places over the border in Kansas. The mountain is open year round since the road is regularly plowed in winter, and although heavy snowfall sometimes blocks access for a few days, Pikes Peak receives comparatively little snow owing to the easterly location at the edge of the Front Range - most precipitation is deposited further west. The peak allows visitors a rare opportunity to experience the tundra and Alpine scenery at this high elevation, a landscape usually only attained elsewhere in the Rockies by miles of strenuous hiking.
Because of its proximity to the Denver-Colorado Springs metropolitan area, the easily reached location at the very edge of the Rocky Mountains, and the paved toll road that leads all the way to the summit, 14,110 foot Pikes Peak is the most visited mountain in the USA - over half a million people make the trip each year, some via the alternative methods of hiking or riding the cog railway from Manitou Springs (now closed until 2021), but most by driving the 19 mile scenic drive (the Pikes Peak Highway), which climbs 6,650 feet to the summit.
0 kommentar(er)
