Rocky
Mountain (RM) Off Road Series (ORS) #15: Tincup
Pass
A series by:
RocketMan,
zoltig,
Grand
High Pobah, Red
Ruby, jpit
and Fork L
Man.
This cache is the second of eight caches
in the #15 series of Rocky Mountain off-road caches located along
the beautiful Tincup Pass Trail. The Tincup Pass trail starts
out about 20 miles south-west of Buena Vista at the cool little
ghost town of St. Elmo. This trail is considered a moderate
trail with a short section of shelf road near the pass and some
rocky sections from the pass to Tincup on the west side (a full
trail description is included below).
Cache
Information
If you look up above the
alluvial fan, you will see the tres amigos standing
proud.
RM Off Road Series #14
Compete Cache Listing
1.
Beaver Dam
2.
Tres Amigos
3.
View of the Divide
4.
Mirror Lake
5.
Buggy Meadow
6.
Jolly Bovine
7.
Beaver Meca
8
.
Tincup
Meadow
Trail Information
Rating/Description
Tincup Pass trail is one of the more popular trails in the Buena
Vista
area.
The trail starts out at the cool little ghost town of St. Elmo on
the east side of the pass and ends at the historic little ghost
town of Tincup on the west side of the pass. The pass is at
an elevation of 12,154 feet so this trail typically is not passable
until mid to late July. The trail is easy to follow starting
out at N38 42.240 W106 20.921 and ending at N38 45.246 W106
28.530. For an added thrill if you have the right equipment,
you can take the "Old Tincup" bypass trail on the west side that
starts out at N38 43.005 W106 26.153 and ends at N38 43.278 W106
26.271 (This trail is not for stock
vehicles).
This trail is
rated moderate and can be run in most SUV type vehicles with 4WD
low range and good ground clearance.
It is rated a 2 (easiest routes) to 3 (most
difficult routes) out of 10 on the traildamage
website.
Team Red Rubicon
members believe that the trail should be rated more like a
3-4. Disclaimer: You need to decide for yourself if
it is safe to make the trip in your vehicle and if you have any
doubts, don't do it.
To get to the trailhead, head south on US
285 from Buena Vista. Turn right on CR-162 at N38 44.396 W106
05.044 and travel 16 miles to the trailhead at
N38 42.240 W106
20.921. You can return back over the pass the way you came,
or head north out of Tincup on a smooth dirt road eventually
heading east over Cottonwood Pass (approximately 45 miles from
Tincup to Buena Vista).
Note: All coordinates in
the above description are included on the waypoint list on
the first cache page.
Winter
Months
As stated previously, because this trail is at a relatively high
elevation, it is not accessible in the winter months. Tincup
Pass is generally accessible to off road vehicles from mid to late
July though mid October although conditions can vary greatly from
year to year.
Time/Distance
The trail is 13 miles from the start at St. Elmo to the end at
Tincup. The trail can be run in 2 hours if you don't make
many stops, but make sure you leave a bunch of extra time to have
lunch on the trail, find the caches and to do some exploring.
To reach the trailhead from the Denver area takes about 2.5 to 3
hours so leave the house early.
Trail
Waypoints
See waypoint list on the
first cache page.