Poplar Gulch Trail #1436

Dogs Unknown

E-Bikes Unknown

From Buena Vista, travel 7 miles along CR 306 towards Cottonwood Pass. Turn left onto CR 344 and continue about 6 miles, passing Cottonwood Lake. There's a Forest Service campground with 22 sites and several dispersed campsites along the road.

The last 0.75 miles before the trailhead are steep but passable for low clearance four wheel drive vehicles. Look for the Green Timber Gulch Trailhead sign and a road dropping towards the stream on the left, where there's enough space for five or six vehicles to park along a fence.

This is a challenging trail with a lot of hike-a-bike, steep and loose rocky sections, and plenty of smooth and flowy mountain trail. It's mostly singletrack as it climbs into a steep alpine canyon, crossing a couple streams before making some short switchbacks as the terrain opens into alpine tundra.

After topping out on an unnamed pass at 12,300 ft, either ride back down Green Timber Gulch, or drop south into Poplar Gulch and enjoy the ripping descent to the old mining town, St. Elmo. Either side has some steep and some level riding, with tight turns and sections of embedded and loose rocks. You'll know when you get to the smoother sections, but watch for patches of sand if it hasn't rained for a while.

This is a great advanced-intermediate trail that isn't heavily used most days, and offers a nice transition into more technical Rocky Mountain riding.