St. Elmo Ghost Town
Step back into the 1880s at one of Colorado's best-preserved ghost towns. Boasting over 40 intact wooden buildings, including a saloon and general store, it offers an incredibly eerie yet peaceful glance into the state's mining past. You can even buy sunflower seeds to feed the incredibly friendly resident chipmunks!
- Admission
- Free
- Hours
- Open daily, 24 hours (General Store open seasonally May to October)
- Duration
- 1-2 hours
- Parking
- Free dirt parking lots and roadside parking
- Access
- Dirt roads and uneven wooden boardwalks may be difficult for wheelchairs; historic buildings are not ADA compliant
Read more
Founded in 1880 as Forest City, St. Elmo was once a bustling gold and silver mining hub home to over 2,000 residents. When the railway shut down in the 1920s, the population dwindled rapidly, leaving behind a remarkably preserved snapshot of the American West. Today, it stands as one of Colorado’s most accessible and intact ghost towns.
Visitors can stroll down the dusty main street lined with original wooden storefronts, a schoolhouse, and a saloon. During the summer, the historic general store operates as a gift shop, and friendly chipmunks eagerly greet tourists looking to feed them sunflower seeds. Surrounded by the towering peaks of the Sawatch Range, the town offers a hauntingly beautiful glimpse into the 19th-century mining boom.
Ratings
attractionVisitor Tips
- ◆ Stop by the St. Elmo General Store during the summer to purchase sunflower seeds and feed the resident chipmunks.
- ◆ Arrive early in the morning during summer weekends to secure parking and experience the town in quiet solitude.
- ◆ Combine your trip with a scenic drive or 4WD adventure further up Chalk Creek Canyon toward Tin Cup Pass.
- ◆ Bring a camera to capture the striking contrast of the weathered wooden buildings against the mountain backdrop.
Heads Up
- ◆ Most buildings are privately owned and extremely fragile; do not attempt to enter locked structures or climb on the ruins.
- ◆ Cellular service is virtually non-existent in the canyon, so download your navigation maps before leaving Buena Vista.
- ◆ The access road is paved for most of the route but becomes rough dirt near the town; while standard cars can make it, drive carefully.
Common questions
Do you need a four-wheel-drive vehicle to get to St. Elmo Ghost Town?
No, the main access route via County Road 162 is a graded dirt road that is accessible by standard passenger cars during the summer. You only need a 4WD vehicle if you plan to travel past the town onto the rugged Tin Cup Pass trail.
Can you go inside the historic buildings in St. Elmo?
Most of the historic wooden structures are privately owned and locked to prevent vandalism, so you can only view them from the outside. The St. Elmo General Store is the main building you can enter, which operates seasonally as a gift shop.
Where do you get the seeds to feed the chipmunks at St. Elmo?
You can purchase bags of sunflower seeds at the St. Elmo General Store during its open season from May to October. The local chipmunks are highly habituated to visitors and will often climb onto your hands to eat.
More Haunted Stops
- Vulture City Ghost Town · Wickenburg, AZ
- Spook Hill · Lake Wales, FL
- The Black Angel of Oakland Cemetery · Iowa City, IA
- Villisca Axe Murder House · Villisca, IA
- Rhyolite Ghost Town · Beatty, NV