MANITOU SPRINGS, Colo. — While some people might think of hiking 2,744 steep steps up a mountain as a form of punishment, others are genuinely upset that the Manitou Incline has been closed due to social distancing concerns amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
So, they’re doing the obvious thing, and hiking the notoriously steep and difficult hiking trail that gains 2,000 feet of elevation in just under a mile in protest.
While other attractions around the state are reopening, there are no concrete plans in place yet for the Incline to reopen. It's located just west of Colorado Springs in the charming town of Manitou Springs.
"I ask that this demonstration be accomplished with kindness and respect to other incliners and especially to the local neighborhoods," Mark Rickman said in a post to a social media group that’s organizing the protest on Thursday (this was first reported by 9NEWS partner KRDO).
Don’t worry: protesters said they’ll practice social distancing, and even wear masks when they can.
The mayor of Manitou Springs told KRDO that this group of athletic and peaceful protesters likely won’t get a strict response from the city’s health department.
For what it’s worth, officials are trying to eventually reopen the Incline. That plan includes a reservation system that staggers the Incline’s use to 90 hikers per hour.
Since it closed in mid-March, the Incline has relied on people to voluntarily comply with the closure. KRDO reports that’s mostly worked, except for one person who wanted to hike the notoriously steep and difficult trail so badly he pulled out a gun on someone who tried to stop him.
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