We had gone to Colorado to visit my grandparents, and since my parents had promised me a trip up Pike's Peak, one of the tallest mountains in the Rocky Mountain Range, we set out for yet another adventure. We drove our car to the base of the mountain, then waited our turn to climb into one of the trains that would hoist us up to the very peak of the mountain. As we waited, we watched the humming birds at the train station. Finally we climbed into the train to begin our ride. We sat down on the seats, prepared for the beginning of the trip. The train as many cars long, but my family all found seats together before the train began its ascent.
As we went up the side of the mountain, the landscape gradually changed, the thick trees becoming more and more scarce. Soon we passed the timber line, above which no more trees can grow due to altitude. In this treeless grassland, we saw some wild mountain goats, as well as marmots living among the rocks. As we continued to go up, the terrain became even more rocky with less vegetation.
We began to see some patches of snow. When we reached the top, it was cold, but sunny. Even though it had been summer at the bottom of the mountain, here it was cold enough to be winter.
We looked around at the giftshop, as well as taking time to look at the breathtaking view. From this high elevation, one could see many miles—some even claimed that one could see all the way to the Kansas border from this height.
We had to be careful to not overstay, as we didn't want to miss our train ride back down the mountain. We climbed back in, and the train started back down. As we traveled, the guide told us about different sites on the way, as well as different men who had explored this mountain.
It can take eight hours just to climb up the mountain, but we had gone the easy way and taken the train.