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COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. — Hikers on the Manitou Incline now have three options for coming down from the steep mile-long trail.

The two new options, which are now open to the public, are located on the bottom half of the Incline.

The Incline consists of 2,768 stairs, numbered from bottom to top.

The higher of the two new options is at railroad tie 1,300, just under halfway up the Incline. To take this connection, hikers follow a new one-mile naturally-surfaced trail to the existing Ute Pass Regional Trail. From there, it’s about a half mile to the base of the Incline.

The lower option is at railroad tie 395. To take this connection, hikers follow a new trail for about 0.15 of a mile before connecting with the Ute Pass Regional Trail. From there, it’s about 0.2 of a mile to the base of the Incline.

The third option, Barr Trail, can be accessed from the top of the Incline, as well as from the bailout point at step 1,800, about two-thirds of the way up.

Due to the pandemic, hikers must make a free reservation to hike the Incline. To reserve a spot, visit coloradosprings.gov/incline.

“We are very excited to offer these much-anticipated return options for Incliners,” the Colorado Springs parks department said in a statement. “Now, users who desire a shorter loop or may have underestimated the difficulty of hiking the entire Incline, have a way down besides Barr Trail, and much earlier on their journey too. This will also be helpful for first responders in emergency situations and is the start of providing needed relief to the historic and heavily-trafficked Barr Trail. This project has been years in the making and wouldn’t have been possible without critical collaboration from the community and partner organizations.”

The new trail sections are located mostly on City of Colorado Springs property that was acquired as part of the 2016 land swap with the Broadmoor. Construction on the trail connectors began in May.

The improvements were paid for by the nonprofit Incline Friends, which contributed the entire $32,000 needed for construction of the new trails, plus additional money for design and development.