A group of hikers is progressing steadily along an uphill trail. The graph shows their elevation (or height above sea level), in feet, at each distance from the start of the trail, in miles. What is the slope of the graph? Show your reasoning.

What does the slope tell us about this situation?

Write an equation that represents the relationship between the hikers' distance from the start of the trail, x, and their elevation, y.

Does the equation y-250x=500 represent the same relationship between the distance from the start of trail and the elevation? Explain your reasoning.