A trail was first created by a prospector in the mid-1800s, but the trail did not allow for travel by burro from Mount Manitou to the summit of Pikes Peak. This was because early trails did to go above the timber line, so the terrain was difficult to navigate over rocks and boulders. Beginning in 1914, Fred Barr built the burro trail, with a maximum 12% grade to the top of the peak for his burro train business. Aside from his work on the major portion of the trail, he supervised a crew of ten men for the U.S. Forest Service in 1917 who built the portion of the trail from the top of the Manitou Incline down to Manitou Springs. He hired workers and worked on the trail himself. He hiked the entire trail and made it to the top of Pikes Peak on Christmas Eve, 1918, marking the completion of the survey for the trail. Barr Trail was completed in 1921. He also built trails to Bottomless Pit, Cameron Cone, The Crater, and the Oil Creek Tunnel on Pikes Peak.