On March 1, rescue teams responded to a medical emergency at the top of the iconic Manitou Incline.

The Manitou Incline is commonly referred to as one of the most extreme and strenuous hikes in the country, consisting of 2,768 relentless steps that scale about 2,000 vertical feet in less than a mile. Found at the base of 14,115-foot Pikes Peak and just outside of Colorado Springs, incidents of this nature aren’t exactly rare, often attributed to the strain the nature of the climb puts on the body.

According to El Paso County Search and Rescue, a 911 call was received from the 8,500-foot summit of the route on Sunday afternoon, prompting an emergency response from their team, along with Manitou Springs Fire. Per a statement on the matter, bystanders provided initial medical care for the subject while both teams reached the subject together. Keep in mind that accessing the top of the route means traveling up the many steps or a segment of Barr Trail – even athletic hikers can take 45 minutes or more to ascend either direction, and that’s without the rescue gear.

Once the rescue subject was reached, a medical helicopter was requested and dispatched, with the helicopter ultimately picking up the subject from a landing zone near the top of the Incline. The rescue subject was then transported for medical care. UCHealth Lifeline was the aerial transport that assisted.

Spokesperson for El Paso County Search and Rescue Chris Valentine made it a point to acknowledge the bystanders that called for help and assisted the patient while waiting for rescue teams to arrive.

Details regarding what type of medical emergency was involved in this situation weren’t released. In the past, similar situations – some of which have resulted in death – were related to cardiac issues. The two most recent deaths that have occurred on the Manitou Incline appear to be one in April 2025 and another in 2019.

While the route is often viewed as a sort of tourist attraction, the Manitou Incline is indeed an extreme hike. Those who aim to reach the summit but find themselves struggling should keep in mind that utilizing one of the bail-out points along the way to the top can sometimes be the safest option, as can turning around to travel back down the route (though descending the route via the steps is not recommended with the bailouts being the safer option).

The typical hiker should budget between 1.5 and two hours to reach the top, also planning for a return trip down Barr Trail that’s about three miles.

To help put how extreme this hike is into perspective, the Eiffel Tower is about 1,083 feet tall, thus climbing the Manitou Incline means scaling that height roughly twice – and the steps on the Incline aren’t consistently sized or spaced like those on a staircase would be.

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