Arcadia Publishing - Early Ascents On Pikes Peak

For over 20 years Arcadia Publishing has reconnected people to their community, their neighbors, and their past by offering a curbside view of hometown history and often forgotten aspects of American life. Magnificent Pikes Peak rises dramatically from the Colorado prairie to a height of 14,114 feet above sea level. Visible for one hundred miles around, the granite giant's magnetic appeal compelled rugged mountaineers more than a century ago to risk loose saddles, electrical storms and even murder on treacherous expeditions to the summit. First known as Long Mountain by the Native Americans who sojourned at its hot springs, Pikes Peak was a full-fledged tourist destination by the 1870s. Eager men and women ventured up and down by foot, horse, burro, stagecoach, rail, and bicycle. Colorado Mountain Club historian Woody Smith captures the news of the era to recount the thrill of pioneer days on America's most famous mountain.