Pikes Peak Mountain has been the center of attention in this region for thousands of years drawing people from all over the world. In 1806, Zebulon Pike, a young lieutenant who was never able to ascend the great mountain bearing his name, gazed upon the peak from over 100 miles away.

However, long before Pike stepped into the area, the Ute Indians passed at the foot of the mountain as they traveled from their summer campgrounds to the winter hunting grounds. The Spanish were well aware of the mountain through numerous expeditions, in particular, that of Juan De Anza, who traversed the side of the mountain in 1779. Trappers had been working the region, rich with beaver, deer, elk, bear, buffalo, bighorn sheep and mountain lions around the same time the Spanish had come through during their expeditions.

Gibson