Fitness Hikes

My typical argument when someone is trying to convince me to go on a hike is that it is too slow. "I would rather run it" is my typical, meat-head response. This summer I spent a fair amount of time in Aspen, and in an effort to reach a middle ground with my more relaxed girlfriend, ended up hiking a fair amount. Surprisingly to me (but not to my girlfriend) I realized that I like it, a lot. While there is still the desire to run on some of the more gradual hikes, it is a great alternative to running and the slower pace makes the scenery a lot more enjoyable. That said, I am adding a new category called "fitness hikes" that will document the more challenging, aerobic type of hikes that are more appealing to me. The Incline and the Ute Trail are what I would consider "fitness hikes;" hikes that get your heart rate up quickly and are generally too steep to run for any significant amount of time.