However, the fall is my favorite when the Aspens start the change. Open Year-round Yes Pros Breathtaking high mountain passes and spectacular scenery. (Of course I didn't go that way) I was a little concerned if my stock Tundra 4x4 would make it but didn't have any problems, slight under-carriage scrape 1 time (my fault). Nearby Chalk Lake is heralded as a great family fishing lake with rainbow, brook and brown trout. Rent an E-Bike and experience a fun, new way to explore Buena Vista, CO! Trail was open and we didn't see any snow along the route. https://www.fs.usda.gov/recarea/psicc/recreation/camping-cabins/recarea/?recid=12668&actid=29, Pike-San Isabel National Forests & Cimarron and Comanche National Grasslands, https://www.chaffeecounty.org/Road-and-Bridge-OHV-Roads. The trail didnt get washed out anywhere between St. Elmo and tree line, but there was a bit of erosion overnight. Sites must be occupied the first night of payment. Old Tincup Pass Road reconnects here to the main route. Enjoy the stunning views of the rugged mountains. Looks bad, but fine if you hug the edge. Afternoon rain showers greeted our trip back to Buena Vista. Great as always! As expressed by many others, the views are great! Start planning the trip of a lifetime now. After a brief stop in St Elmo, my wife and I ventured up the trail to the pass in the rain (and occasional hail) on 18 Jun. Share sensitive information only
I highly suggest that if you don't have the ability to air down, then you are going to have a rough day. LockA locked padlock
Either road has some camping along with it. The entire trail is rough and rocky throughout. Nothing about it gets too hard until after treeline. No gate-closures on this trail. A large snow field still sits on the road waiting for the sun to do it's deed. Frenchy's is their local restaurant and shouldn't be passed up on an empty stomach. Along the way, it passes through eight mountain ranges, six National Forests, and six wilderness areas. Many users . (602) 506-2930 ext 8. I love this place. Rented a Jeep (my K5 is back in So Cal for a one ton swap) and passed through Mirror Lake without issue - Jeep was a stock JKU without lift on Rubicon takeoff wheels/tires. The primary route heads west at the FSR 267 marker, while the Old Tincup route heads north at this Y intersection. The rock obstacles on the rest of the trail more than made up for that! Tincup ends at FSR 765. The trail down to St. Elmo isn't quite as interesting as the Tincup side. It is amazing! We were running the trail in reverse of this guide. If both passes are still closed, we won't get much riding in. Just follow the roads in, pick your patch of sand, and set up. From Buena Vista travel south on Highway 285 for approximately7 miles then turn right on County Road 162 and travel west, passing the Mt. Could've been nice if I wasn't inexperienced. Although considered a ghost town, St. Elmo is still inhabited and the general store welcomes visitors every summer. We drive a lifted Toyota Landcruiser on 33 tires and had no issues. Started in Tincup and ended the trail in St. Elmo. Scenic, enjoyable ride, but too much traffic for my tastes. Last time I was there, there were no restaurants or services. Travel along the "Old Tincup" route mentioned in waypoint 8 requires an OHV Permit for ALL vehicles, including street legal plated vehicles. You can see in one of my photos my buddy is standing on the dirt while I take a photo at the snow level. Very rocky trail ,almost no reprieve from them . Mount Princeton Campground is located in the Chalk Creek Canyon, which is one of the valley's most popular areas. Great improvements to the trail on the Taylor Park side as you near the top. The edge of Mirror Lake was about 12 inches deep and a not an issue on the day we went. At that point, it became mostly snow, with little dirt. Access to the trail depends on how high Mirror Lake is. When a trail is this popular I suppose youre bound to see some people with awful trail etiquette. Only licensed vehicles can operate inside campground. 13 reviews #1 of 1 campground in Mahomet Save Share 1715 Tin Cup Rd, Mahomet, IL 61853-9331 Check In / / Check Out / / Guests Contact accommodation for availability. Gunnison Ranger District, Attn: Dispersed Camping Comments 216 N. Colorado St., . Ran this as our final trip of the day after running Hancock and Cumberland first. Tincup Pass road offers visitors to explore historic Colorado mountain towns. Seemed more like bouldering at times. Impassable Distance 12.28 mi Duration (one-way) About 2 hours Permit Required Yes - Click Here Highest Elevation 12115 ft Shape of Trail Straight Through Typically Open Year Round Best Direction N/A Official Road Name 267 Nearest Town St. Elmo Nearest Services Buena Vista Management Agency Gunnison National Foresat & San Isabel National Forest Traveling from Tin Cup to St. Elmo. No conditions reported in the past 7 days. The campsites are now only available on a first-come, first-served basis. Take the right fork and head uphill following the rocky path. Tincup, also spelled with a space Tin Cup, is a semi-ghost and unincorporated community tucked away on the Continental Divide. Sites must be occupied the first night of payment. Mosquito threat level 6 out of 10 haha. At a Glance General Information Directions: From Buena Vista, Colorado, take Highway 285 south for 7 miles to County Road 162. Respect people and common courtesy. $8.00 fee for day use if not camping overnight. I am a huge supporter of Stay the Trail and Tread Lightly, and have participated and even been in charge of many trail restoration projects. One short section of narrow shelf road often remains snow covered into early July. Enjoyed the pass, next time, Ill go up starting on Tincup but starting at either direction is allowed. We were able to make it as far as we did because the snow was still very hard and our single digit tire pressures allowed us to float on top of the snow. For current conditions call Salida Ranger District (719) 539-3591. We drove up to Tincup Pass from the Tincup/Taylor Reservoir side. There are 3 sections of water with the third (going south to St. Elmo) being shallow and very short. The Cascade Loop Trail is located across the street from the campground. To the northeast you see Emma Burr Mountain. The road to St Elmo was a mess with the large number of tourists doing their site seeing and picture taking from their cars at 15mph. Locals say it likely will not be passable this year. Good trail, lots of fun challenges for new to intermediate drivers. Two restrooms areuniversally accessible. Mirror lake had 3 sections that were still covered in water but none of them were more than 2 feet deep. Cascade campground is located on the left side of the road just after the Cascade falls. Visitors can access the area by traveling on Highway 285 from either Buena Vista or Salida. Very noisy and dusty. Fair amount of side by sides; but trail mostly wide enough for passing. Just went slow and took our time. It's shorter but much more difficult. In center of town, turn right following sign to Tincup Pass. Not . Probably only 10 non SXSs.
Immediately after a parking area with a toilet, bear right and follow signs into St. Elmo. Tincup is also very cool, read the history and see the old town pictures by the town Church. went both ways 2 weeks ago two Rangers three four wheelers one was a two wheel drive 90 given by my ten-year-old granddaughter and my eight-year-old grandson all Polaris had a great time camping by Mirror Lake is great. We went from Tincup to St Elmo which is the harder route. Ran in 4 high and did not need 4 low or lockers. Parking is limited to the parking spurs provided with each campsite. Mirror lake was the highlight. The entire loop takes us about 8 hours. Tire placement becomes more difficult. Might be OK if you are in a jeep and going over Tincup Pass. (We did the standard route as we were traveling with a TJ and Cherokee Trailhawk KL with a 2" lift. trail is easy, maybe (2) S-M obstacles, but bumpy. Dates of operation below are weather dependent. My FunTreks manual has that section rated as "difficult", mostly due to the rocky section at the pass. An afternoon trip to get away from it all, but then to see it all. Great time! Continued on to Napoleon. Get access to thousands of off-road dirt trails and snowmobile trails across the nation. Heading south will take you over Cumberland Pass into Pitkin, past the, Camping on the Pitkin side of the pass has been reevaluated as of May 2017. Ran the trail from Tincup to St. Elmo in the rain. Plenty of wide spots to let them pass though. Tacoma TRD OR. We go every year! When we made our way back down to St. Elmo, it started raining. 2000 Frontier, 33's, 3" lift, no locker. An official website of the
. Water crossings were minor (~6 inch depth). The road passes through the water on the southeast edge of Mirror Lake where the water levels will change depending on the time of year. TTY: (719) 553-1404
LOTS of side by side traffic on Monday but trail etiquette was pretty decent. Total Miles 13.0 Elevation 3706.11 ft Duration 2 Hours Technical Rating 5 Difficult Best Time Summer/Fall Show in App 8 Trail Overview Tour historic mountain towns on this beautiful high-mountain pass. 2/14/2019 Submitted by FunTreks Tincup Pass has gotten rockier on the west side of the Continental Divide. It rained all night of the 18th, so that may have changed the water level of Mirror Lake. Iron City Campground is located within the Chalk Creek Canyon, which is one of the valley's most popular areas, offering access to many ATV trails. Tincup Pass may be closed by snow well into July. great little glimpse into the history of the area. With the exception of Cumberland Pass from Pitkin, the rest of the passes are high-clearance 44 roads. Easier than I remember from years past. I did not drive Old Tincup which means the hardest obstacle for me today was a group of maybe 5 Jeeps parked in the complete middle of the trail, engines off, drivers hanging out in the gigantic camp site that they should have parked in. rocky most of the way. Tincup Pass, St. Elmo Take a tour of historic mountain towns on this high-mountain pass. Beautiful views of some snow covered peaks! There is abundant OHV riding nearMt. The picturesque, remote drive passes through the San Isabel and Gunnison national forests. Saw alot of wildlife including a bull moose in the big valley near the pass (see pic, but can't see moose in pic) . Give it a 3 of 6 difficulty rating - down from a 4 or 5 before. Airing down the tires helped a bit, but I certainly recommend a high clearance rig. Recommended rides include Mount Antero, Baldwin Lake, Tincup Pass, Hancock Pass, Pomeroy Lakes, and Hancock Lakes. You can't get from Tin Cup to St. Elmo. They are the Upper, Middle and Lower Taylor sections. Did it on a dual sport Yamaha XT225 and a Honda 250 Rally. The scenery is great and the folks we met while traversing the Pass were great and mindful of the rules of the road. Just drove this on Sunday, 10/17/21 in a 21' JL manual Rubi with KO2's, started in Tin Cup and needed 4W LO a couple of times, aired down to 26psi. No showers or electrical hookup are available. Stay left at this point to follow the main trail. Neat trail with lots of history - starting in St.Elmo the road goes through many different levels of terrain. As a kid, I would see jeeps driving through Mirror Lake while I was fishing. We tried getting through in the Power Wagon, but no luck. Wrangler 4L ALL the way, but slow and steady did it. (719) 553-1400
This number is based on the percentage of all Tripadvisor reviews for this product that have a bubble rating of 4 or higher. Please visit: https://www.chaffeecounty.org/Road-and-Bridge-OHV-Roads. The top of the pass is 12,154 feet high. One tree was down across the trail. Did not do Old Tincup. Snow is extremely deep and off camber before ever approaching the switchbacks. I met up with a group of dirt bikers that I work with at Taylor Park and ran the trail as simultaneously as is practical with a Jeep vs bikes - meaning I went through Tincup and they took a side trail to Mirror Lake, and I waited for them at the summit, then waited for them again for dinner in BV while they did another singletrack route. I think its closer to a 3 rating instead of a 4. Just like most of the lakes in this area, Mirror Lake is well stocked with fish. This is an old mining town. It was fun, but choosing a good line is important. I only passed a pair of dirt bikers until I hit the top of the divide. We heard from a fellow driver that Mirror lake is also impassable from the west because of deep water. Seconding what others have said, the route is in much worse shape than last year at about the same time. guide. more, Ghost and Murder Tour provided by Steve's Original Salida Walking Tours, Browns Canyon Sizzler 6-Hour Whitewater Rafting Experience from Buena Vista, Browns Canyon National Monument Whitewater Rafting. The homes have been updated to what they used to be. rating. connected to the .gov website. website belongs to an official government organization in the
A great little Colorado ghost town that is out of the way and not packed all the time. Secure .gov websites use HTTPS A lock
$8.00 for a third vehicle. As you approach the final climb up the pass, this would be a good location for a potty break as the trees thin out.
We did this in 2wd the entire way. Directions to St. Elmo: At the town of Nathrop on Highway 285 in Chaffee County, travel west on County Road 162 toward the mountains. With a dump station, private showers, and plenty of sites to choose from, you're bound to enjoy your camping experience. (
In the middle of town, turn right and follow signs to Tincup Pass. Mountain Biking Tincup Pass Road. Mirror Lake crossing was no trouble. Suggest edits to improve what we show. We didn't take the Old Tincup route, as time was running short. Princeton is a small campground with 17 campsites. Remember, always Stay the Trail. Tincup is also a popular destination in the summer for fishing, hiking and camping. I turned around with my ATV after about a mile just because it was not very fun. Mirror lake is low enough that a Grand Cherokee can navigate it. From there, you can return the way you came. Most of the old cabins in town have been restored to their original condition and are occupied during the summer. This late in the season there was no water to drive through. The best fishing iswest ofCascade campground which is located 2 miles west of Mt. Have a picnic if the weather is nice, and definitely do not forget your camera! 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