Teller Divide  
Maps/GPS:                    
USGS 7.5' Map: Jack Creek Ranch, Gould
Statistics:
Difficulty: Number: Miles: Altitude: Obstacles: Time:
Graded FR 740 12.00 8,900 to 9,745 ft. NA 2-3 hours
County: Jackson
Adopted by:      
Managed by: Routt National Forest,
Parks Ranger District		 100 N. Main (P.O. Box 158)
Walden, Colorado 80480		 (970)723-2700
Summary: Teller Divide 4WD road takes you past Teller City (ghost town) and over Calamity Pass.
Attractions: Scenic, Mining, Ghost Town
Seasonal
Closure:		 Natural - Closed by heavy snows
Best Time: June - Possible snow drifts
July - Best
August - Best
September - Best
October - Early snows possible
Trail Heads
Accessed:		 FT1227 - Motorcycle (part is seasonaly open Jun 15 to Dec 1)
Camping: There are dispersed sites on the north side of Teller Divide as well as on the south side along Jack Creek. On the north side of Teller Divide are the Pines and Aspen Forest Service Campgrounds.
Base Camp: This would be a good are to base camp and explore the roads around Owl Mountain.
Fall Colors: Poor - Mostly pine forest
Navigation: From Walden, CO. head south on Main Street toward Van Horn Ave for 0.2 miles. Turn right onto Colorado Hwy 125 SouthMain Street and continue to follow Colorado Hwy 125 South for 23.8 miles. Turn left onto County Rd 21I and go 0.6 miles. Continue straight onto County Rd 21 for 4.4 miles. Take the left hand turn to start Teller Divide, FR 740.

From Gould, CO. head southeast on Colorado Hwy 14 and turn right onto County Rd 21 and go 0.2 miles. Continue straight onto County Rd 21 for 0.5 miles. You are now on public lands on the Teller Divide, FR 740, road.
History: Madore Cushman, "Old Cush", founded Teller City in 1879 after silver deposits were found along Jack Creek. The town was named after Colorado Senator Henry M. Teller. By 1881 the population of Teller City was growing, reaching 1,300 by 1882. The new town had a mayor, recorder, town marshal, two judges, and four trustees. A mill was built to sevice the mines and in the flat area above Jack Creek at the town site there were four saloons, a meat market, hardware store, and a two story fourty room hotel called the Yates House. There were hundreds of cabins and a post office as well. The North Park Miner newspaper in Teller City was the first newspaper in Grand County with subscriptions costing $2.50 a year. The stagecoach to Teller City came from Laramie, Wyoming through North Park. By the end of 1881 Samuel B. Stewart of Fort Collins opened a toll road from Rustic over Cameron Pass to Teller City. In 1882 the North Park and Vandalia Mining and Smeting Company was issuing stock. In 1884 the price of silver dipped and the residents of Teller City headed to the new Cripple Creek gold rush. By 1885 the area was mostly deserted.

West of Teller City along Jack Creek was the small town of Tyner. It was two cabins, one being the post office and small store, the other a mess hall for miners. The post office opened in 1879, closing two years later. Nothing remains of Tyner.

Further west where the present road crosses Jack Creek was Crescent, which was only one cabin, a mess hall for miners. Nothing remains of the cabin.
Jessen, Kenneth Ghost Towns Colorado Style, Volumn 1, 1st ed. Loveland, Colorado: J.V. Publications, 1998. Print.
Wolle, Muriel Sibell Stampede to Timberline Athens, Ohio: Swallow Press, 1949. Print.
Eberhart, Perry Guide to the Colorado Ghost Towns and Mining Camps Athens, Ohio: Swallow Press, 1959. Print.
Description:
From the south end the Teller Divide road runs along the south side of Jack Creek. The road will be two lanes and graded. At the first intersection the road continuing straight ahead is the Illinois River road, FR750, while FR740 continues to the left. After making the left you will pass a two track spur road on the right which is FR740.2C. It will go up onto a low ridge and follow along with FR740 before turning west and connecting into FR750. This spur road has four large mud holes in a wet area of the forest that you have to navigate before making the connection with FR750. Keep an eye out for moose in this area. Continue on FR740, which will still be graded, for about a mile and you will pass the entrance to the Jack Creek Ranch on the left. Just past the ranch entrance you will come to another spur road on the right. This is FR740.2H which will head up a short valley, cross a mud hole, and climb up to connect with FR740.2C. Continuing on FR740 you will come into a more open area. After a quarter mile from the intersection with FR740.2H you will pass a short spur road on the right that goes to a couple of campsites. This is the area the small town of Crescent was located. FR740 will now cross Jack Creek and come to a large four way intersection. The road to the left is another entrance to the Jack Creek Ranch. The road straight ahead is Elk Creek, FR742. The road to the right is the continuation of FR740. After about a half mile you will pass a short spur road on the left that goes to a campsite. FR740 continues as a graded road passing another campsite on the right. This is where the road heads to the east, and is the area where the town of Tyner was. After a mile plus, you will come to a large clearing which is the site of the Teller City ghost town. It was cleared of beatle kill trees in 2013. There is a parking area and interpretive trail that takes you past the remaining cabins and foundations which are all that remain of Teller City.
Teller City cabin (2013)

photo by:
Adam M

Teller City cabin (2023)

photo by:
Adam M

Cabin foundation (2023)

photo by:
Adam M

Cabin foundation (2023)

photo by:
Adam M

Cabin foundation (2023)

photo by:
Adam M

Town well

photo by:
Adam M

Marker

photo by:
Adam M

Yates Hotel marker

photo by:
Adam M

The road will continue past Teller City and come to an intersection. To the right is Jack Creek, FR758, which goes to the Jack Creek and Jack Park trailheads and the area where the old mining claims were. To the left the road will become rougher as FR740 continues to Teller Divide, or Calamity Pass.
Teller Divide, aka Calamity Pass (2013)

photo by:
Larry M

Teller Divide looking east (2023)

photo by:
Adam M

After two switchbacks you will come to a wide area where trees have been cleared from the sides of the road. This is Calamity Pass / Teller Divide. From here the road heads down through the forest passing the left turn to spur roads FR740.2F and FR740.2G, each a half mile long, and then loops around Lily Lake continuing its descent.
Heading through the forest

photo by:
Adam M

As you come out of the trees you will be at a large intersection. To your immediate right will be Michigan River, FR760, that heads up the South Fork of the Michigan River. The next right is Porcupine, FR770, which heads toward Porcupine Creek. The left continues as FR740.

In less than a mile you will come to another intersection. To the right will be Silver Creek, FR780, which heads toward the Never Summer Wilderness. Just past this intersection you will come to the intersection to the left for Owl Mountain Lookout, FR791. Forest Road 740 will cross the South Fork of the Michigan River and pass the entrance to the Pines campground. Continuing on FR740 for about a mile you will come to the left turn for Owl Creek, FR792, which also heads toward Owl Mountain.
FR740 near Gould

photo by:
Adam M

Continue on FR740 for just over a mile to come to the Aspen campground. Just past the campground you will enter the residential part of Gould, CO. and then connect with Hwy 14.
Data updated: August 26, 2023      4WD Road driven: July 22, 2023      Copyright 4X4Explore.com - 2000-2023