Cost For a Ride Down Pikes Peak Could Now Be $500

Kudos to the Colorado Springs City Council, who last week passed a fee for lazy or ill-informed hikers who make it all the way to the top of Pikes Peak, and then call 911 for a ride down. Most folks usually either hike the 13 miles back down, buy a ticket for a ride down the cog railway, or hitch a ride back down from a friendly tourist.

However:
Highway officials say they have seen an increase in the number of hikers who arrive at the top of the 14,115-foot peak and, because they are tired or it is dark, call 911 and ask for a ride down. Highway officials will now charge $500 a person for such rides, which they say reflects the cost of bringing in employees who have gone home already to make the long drive up the mountain in the dark.

The $500 fine is the charge for being rescued from the summit of Pikes Peak in the off-hours when the 19-mile-long Pikes Peak Highway is closed and an employee has to drive up the sometimes treacherous road. Hikers who call for a ride before workers have gone home will pay $100 each, and hikers who ask for transportation from one location to another, such as from the summit to Glen Cove, during regular hours will be charged $20 each.

Via Stewart's Climbing Blog