Manitou City Council Discussing Incline IGA Tonight
Manitou Springs city council is discussing the Inter-Governmental Agreement with Colorado Springs for the Manitou Incline in a work session tonight at 7 PM. They could move it to a February 28 vote or scuttle it for now. The work session is open to the public.
Colorado Springs city council considered it yesterday and moved it to a February 28th vote without much discussion. It isn’t expected to be such clear sailing tonight in Manitou. Last month Manitou’s Parking Authority Board voted to ask council to wait to approve the IGA until there’s a parking plan in place. Council member Matt Carpenter who started the Incline Club and had a part in popularizing it doesn’t seem to want it legalized at all since he thinks it has gotten to be too popular of a hike.
A packet including the IGA and supporting documents is posted on the Manitou Incline website if you want to see the details.
D’Vine Wine Supports the Incline Friends
D’Vine Wines in Manitou Springs is supporting the nonprofit Incline Friends with 2 of their wines. The Incline Friends is the group working toward legalization of the popular Incline and its maintenance.
If you love hiking the Manitou Incline and enjoy a nice bottle of wine, check out D’Vine Wine’s selection. D’Vine Wines will contribute $3 for every bottle of Manitou Incline Malbec and white Manitou Incline Viognier
D’Vine Wines is in the historic old Spa Building within sight of the Manitou Incline at 934 W. Manitou Ave. It is on the side of the building toward the park behind Adam’s Mountain Cafe.
Colorado Springs at Night from Incline Summit
Ever wonder what the Manitou and Colorado Springs lights look like at night from the summit of the Incline? The photo above is from the top of the Incline on February 2, 2012 as light snow fell. The photo below is from December 11th, 2008 on a moonlit evening.
Unfortunately once the Manitou Incline becomes legal to hike, the management plan has a rule for it only to be open from dawn to dusk.
Photos Benefit the Incline
Last fall firefighters from Tri Lakes/Monument fire station hiked up the Manitou Incline in full gear to commemorate their fallen comrades and all who died on 9/11. The firefighters figured each step represented one person who had died that day, and the total height was the same as climbing both of the Twin Towers.
Photographer Ed Barth was shooting photos that day of the Incline and captured the firefighters. He’s selling 2 different photos. One is with the firefighters at the bottom and another as they were making their way up the Incline.
Ed specializes in big prints and has these available from 2 feet tall to 6 1/2 feet tall. He had them on display at the Incline Friends membership drive and they have great detail. He’s donating 50% of sales of these 2 photos to the Incline Friends through February 5th.
Top of Incline Still Icy
With barely any snow since before Christmas, most of the Manitou Incline is clear of snow except above the false summit. The photos are from last weekend on January 22nd, 2012 but conditions were similar on Thursday night.
There still is some ice below where the ties split around halfway but it isn’t too bad. Above the false summit is still very icy. The ties are melted off but slippery ice fills in between them.
With care the upper part can be climbed without traction devices but coming back down the top of the Incline is treacherous. The photo above shows an Incline regular running back down but she’s wearing Kahtoola MicroSpikes and is very experienced on hiking the Incline in winter.
The social trail from the top of the Incline down to Barr Trail is mostly clear of ice. Barr Trail is also mostly clear but icy patches still exist. Some of them are hidden under a thin layer of dirt but are still slippery. The dirt access road to the water intake above Upper Ruxton would be better for bobsledding than for hiking so avoid that and stay on Barr Trail.
Incline Friends Membership Drive a Success
The Incline Friends held a successful membership drive Wednesday evening at Phantom Canyon Brewery. About 150 people joined the Incline Friends and received their Incline Friends tech t-shirt.
Money raised by the Incline Friends will go toward matching grants, trailhead construction and trail-building projects. If you didn’t make it to the membership drive at Phantom Canyon, you can join the Incline Friends online here.
Incline Friends Membership Drive
Currently the legalization of the Manitou Incline is moving forward well and the Incline could be legal by summer. The Incline Friends is the group that is raising funds to help implement the Manitou Incline Site Development and Management Plan. They are having a membership drive 6 PM to 9 PM. Wednesday, Jan. 25, at Phantom Canyon Brewery.
Members of the Incline Friends committee will be on hand to provide updated information about the legalization process and where the project currently stands.
Community members are encouraged to join Incline Friends, the nonprofit organization dedicated to raising funds, public education and volunteer coordination for the Manitou Incline. Membership cost is $35 per year. All who join will receive a new Incline Friends tech T-shirt. And Phantom Canyon has promised to buy a beer for the first 50 who join.
If you can’t make it to the membership drive at Phantom Canyon, you can donate to the Incline Friends online.
Councilman Tim Leigh Trespasses on the Incline
A couple days ago we asked whether you thought it was OK to trespass on the Manitou Incline. This was because one of Colorado Springs’ councilmen makes no secret that he regularly hikes the Incline.
Now local musician Chuck Snow is calling for a citizen arrest of Tim Leigh. “It is NOT currently legal to trespass on The Manitou Incline, and here we have one of our city council members (Tim Leigh) shamelessly breaking the law,” Chuck Snow wrote in an email to his friends.
Tim Leigh says it could be turned into fundraiser for the Incline Friends. “Let’s say the fine is $150 per time. Let’s use this piece to challenge other Incliner’s to bail me out by making a donation to the ‘Bail-out Tim Campaign’ for the benefit of the Friends of the Incline,” Leigh wrote in an email to The Gazette.
You can read the rest of the story on the Gazette.
Here’s a funny video of Gazette reporter Wayne Laugesen interviewing Leigh about his Manitou Incline trespassing. The video talks about Tim Leigh breaking Colorado Springs laws. The Incline is in Manitou Springs so he wouldn’t be breaking Colorado Springs laws.
Should People Be Trespassing on the Incline?
The Gazette spoke with City Councilman Tim Leigh yesterday about trespassing on the Incline since he makes no secret that he trespasses on it. Here’s his response.
“I’m heading there now to break the law,” Leigh said. “I know it’s illegal to do right now, but it is so pervasively used. It’s like one of those laws that’s so commonly broken, how do you feel bad about it? I know it’s a horrible thing to say. I’m totally wrong. I got that. I should not go. But it has been featured in the New York Times and Sports illustrated. It is nationally acclaimed as an endurance-sports venue.”
Head over to the Gazette to read the rest of the article.
What are your thoughts? Do you think people should be trespassing? Do you yourself trespass on the Incline?
Manitou Incline Trail Conditions Mid January 2012
The sunny, warm days have continued to melt the snow from before Christmas off the Incline. There are still some snowpacked and icy spots though.
Here are the Incline trail conditions on Thursday, January 12th 2012. Most of the lower part of the Incline was clear. The Incline was snowpacked halfway up where the tracks split where it doesn’t get much sun. Once above that section, it was mostly clear until the false summit. Above the false summit, it was snowpacked and icy.
The social trail to Barr trail only had a couple small icy spots. There were some icy spots on Barr Trail but it wasn’t too bad. The worst is some of the icy spots have a thin layer of dirt & gravel over top so it’s hard to tell that it’s icy. There were a couple big shoe slide marks on those so pay attention.
Currently experienced hikers should be able to hike the Manitou Incline without traction devices as long as caution is used on the icy sections. Coming down the top section of the Incline could be tricky though. Carrying Kahtoola MicroSpikes, YakTrax, or Stabilicers Lite would still be a good idea.
