“Fill your life with adventures, not things. Have stories to tell, not stuff to show.”
Unknown
This last weekend was the first Easter in my life that I have spent away from home in my entire life. It was weird to not have anything to do or family to spend the day with. But being at an internship with other interns who are also a long way from home can make for some really fun times.
While most Easter weekends are spent with family, I spent this past weekend with Bri who is another intern at Denver Rescue Mission. We decided to make the most of the weekend and do both the Manitou Incline and go to a Rockies game. These were both really fun and very “Denver” things to do.
The Manitou Incline is a staircase that goes up the side of the mountain and consists of 2,768 steps and goes up about 2,000 feet in elevation. This was not an easy thing to do by any stretch of the imagination. In order to prevent over usage and too many people going up at one time, they require reservations. It is important to do this in advance a little bit, especially if there is a specific time you would like to start climbing. One of the biggest things to overcome with this hike is the initial view of the incline. Driving to the incline you can see the path on the mountain and it is extremely intimidating from a distance – let alone when you get closer and are looking straight up all of the steps.
At the beginning it seemed like it was going to be pretty easy. But that assumption was very wrong. Once we got to about step 2,000, the elevation really started to have an impact. From this point on every 100 steps we would stop for 30 seconds to a minute to catch our breath and turn around to see the view. That was a big motivator of the whole thing. While it is a really difficult climb to do, it is very worth it. Once you get to the top and see the stairs from the top, it is incredible. It is also nice to think about how many steps you just went up.
When I was looking into the Manitou Incline when we first decided to do it, I learned that someone ran up the whole thing in around 17 minutes and holds the record for the fastest climb. That alone is crazy. It took us a little over an hour to get to the top, but once we made it the view was gorgeous and it was worth it! And the 3.5 mile hike on Barr trail that brings you back down to the bottom (because it is not safe to go back down the stairs even though people do it) was beautiful! And one cool thing about the Barr trail is that it connects at one point to a 14er. Which is one of the things that I just will not have time to do in the time that is left. Just in case you do not know what a 14er is, it is a mountain that is 14,000 feet or taller.
After going to church on Sunday and celebrating Easter, Bri and I went to the Rockies game. Neither of our families typically watch sports, especially on holidays, but we decided to go. Even though the Denver Rockies are not a great team, everyone I have talked to has said that going to these games is a staple to most people’s spring and summer when they live in Denver.
After taking the bus to the stadium and meeting up with Bri, we walked around the whole thing to see what all was there before the game started. I think it surprised me at how many concession stations and restaurants there were. In all honesty though, the game was really fun and I am glad that I know baseball well enough to understand what is going on. Although I have to admit there were a few calls and things that happened that I had zero clue what was going on.
Overall, Easter weekend was good, and I enjoyed hanging out with Bri and coming up with things to do. I would highly recommend doing the Manitou Incline at some point in your life. It is hard and there were times when I wanted to quit and take the bailout points that are throughout the climb, but the motivation comes from what you know is at the end! A gorgeous view and a beautiful hike down the mountain.
Thanks for reading, until next time,
Aurora Franzon 2024