Teller Farm | Wheatstraw

My grandparents were farmers and my mom often delights us with tales from the farm.  I recall as a kid climbing over farm equipment and walking over scattered hay bales in the summer heat as the southern breeze tossed up the fleeting soil, carrying with it the scent only a farm could produce.  Teller Farm is just minutes from my house and I had been looking forward to mapping this nostalgic trail for quite some time.  I rarely ride with headphones because I love the sound of silence but the whole farming atmosphere needed a soundtrack and visions of Peetie Wheatstraw sitting on a porch behind his trusty dobro called for my best mix of St. Louis blues.

I started off the south trailhead which is tucked away off Arapahoe Avenue amidst some of the grandest trees you’ll find in the area.  One of my favorite attractions of this trail is the free roaming livestock.  It’s so hard to pass the cows without stopping; their large brown eyes focus in on you as you ride by, at times meeting you head on.

The trail itself is very well groomed double-track and mostly hard packed Dirt.  Along the way you’ll breeze by a row of lilac trees and this time of year they are in full bloom, painting the air with broad strokes of purple.  Small irrigation canals follow along before turning north towards a coral of horses and cattle.  Here you’ll get the full aroma of a farm and for some of us it’s not so displeasing.  I’m such a Dirt clod when it comes to terrain and one of my favorite ground cover is hay on loose brown Dirt and you’ll find plenty of it here, even if only for a few yards.  At this point you will have passed 3 cattle gates, which should always be secured behind you, and now you’re at the north Teller Farm trailhead off Valmont Road (you can start from here too if you wish to bypass the farm.)

The trail continues from the northwest corner down a short distance to a road crossing for the next section of your ride.  Here you’ll be bombarded with a taste of honeysuckle and more lilac trees.  The trail become a bit loose and there is a small stream crossing that has been repaired after the last flood with rocks of varying size.  Moving along you’ll cross a well constructed pedestrian bridge set over a slow flowing stream and a great place for a photo.

The first of the climbs comes shortly after the bridge.  It is short and mild for most but those new to mountain biking may find this climb a bit taxing.  You’ll traverse a really cool single-track section after reaching the top before ascending and descending along two barbed wire fences.  The fastest sections to this trail come last just before reaching the East Boulder Trail Gunbarrel trailhead.  This is a popular trail for runners and dog walkers so be on your best behavior and yield when appropriate.

It was overcast with storms threatening but even a short sprinkle could not dampen my mood this afternoon.  Making my way back I stopped on a couple of occasions to visit with the horses and cattle hoping they would allow me to grab a photo up close.  click here for the trail profile and a link to my Garmin page.

It was a great afternoon, for a little while you’ll feel like you’re out riding fences on some old country farm road and what a feeling after dealing with 5 o’clock traffic.  Give this one a shot if you’d like to escape the city life for a while without the long drive.  It’s a very easy trail and the climbs come late in case you choose to skip these sections.  Thanks for clicking in and hope to see you on the trail. 

Dirt Life