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New reservation system for Pikes Peak summit starts on Memorial Day weekend

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- The holiday weekend starts the busiest period of the year for the Pikes Peak Highway and summit, and it also brings a new reservation system for the top of America’s Mountain.

Visitors are now required to make an online reservation to drive to the summit and pay a $2 fee for two-hour time slots at the summit.

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The new system is in place because of an increase of visitors and people spending more time at the top to enjoy added attractions provided when the new summit house opened last summer.

City of Colorado Springs

"All of our reservations have been sold out since Friday -- Friday, Saturday, Sunday, Monday," said Skyler Rorabaugh, the Pikes Peak Highway's new manager. "It's been a really big weekend, a successful weekend. Great guest experiences up here. We've had really good feedback."

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Officials also want to manage crowds on the summit to spread out visitation during the day and ensure everyone has a parking spot.

Rorabaugh said that the weekend provided a good test for the system, and he and his staff will review how it operated and look for ways to make improvements.

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A maximum of 140 vehicles can have reservations before driving to the summit during each period; there are 186 parking spaces on the summit but officials are trying out limiting reservations to 140 because of anticipate overlap and having no way to limit how long visitors spend on the summit -- although visitors are asked to limit their stay to two hours there.

The reservation system brought mixed reviews from visitors Monday, with some understanding and agreeing with the need for it, while others saying that they were unaware of it and found no information about it in online searches.

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"I found that when I Googled this place, i didn't see (the reservation link) and it wasn't very clear there was a reservation needed," said Debbie Sleeper, of Los Angeles. "It said it was open to everybody. So we assumed it meant we didn't need one. It could have been more clear on the website."

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And there's the rub -- officials said that a Google search provides conflicting information, and the best place for information is http://drivepikespeak.com.

Other tourists took the reservation system -- and the weather -- in stride, as snow and ice closed the summit to drivers for much of the day Monday before reopening at 2:30 p.m.

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"I saw that there was a big snowstorm last week, so I thought that it might not be cleared up in time, depending on how the weather goes," said Hector Gutierrez, of Austin, Texas. "So I knew it was going to be 50-50 making my way up to the summit or not."

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However, Bobby Snyder, of Los Angeles, remained disappointed.

"First time here, first time in Colorado," he said. "I did not hear about the summit being closed to drivers. I brought friends with me and we planned this trip for a long time. I don't know when I'll be back here again."

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Of course, a reservation isn’t much use if the summit is closed because of weather.

Guests should contact 719-385-PEAK (7325) for up-to-date road conditions so that they can know how far up the highway they can travel.

Crews had just cleared the highway to the summit after the storm two weekends ago, and the summit was open Friday through Sunday before more snow overnight.

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By late afternoon, drivers were allowed to reach the 16-mile marker, just a few miles from the summit; only Cog Railway passengers made it to the top before 2:30 p.m. Monday.

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Visitors can reschedule their reservations before their time slot begins, if necessary, and refunds will be considered on an individual basis.

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Scott Harrison

Scott is a reporter for KRDO. Learn more about Scott here.

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