Through Wyoming and Into Idaho

The most beautiful campsite I have stayed in on this trip was near Lander Wyoming. It's called Sinks Canyon State Park, and it was snowy and cold, but incredibly beautiful. One of my requirements for a campsite is that it be level.  It's really hard to sleep when you head is lower than your feet, or vice versa. I've ended up curled in a ball at the bottom of the bed at times, not fun!!

    Wyoming's segment of the Oregon Trail is varied -- some of it is mountainous, like the first part through Gurnsey, but then it kind of flattens out, although you are gaining elevation for the first half. It's just so gradual that you don't really noticed it (although if I were an ox pulling a wagon, I think I would notice it!!). 

     Gurnsey had the most impressive ruts so far. The wagons had to go over a section of limestone rock and they wore ruts in that rock that were up to 5 feet deep. I walked in those ruts, and tried to imagine what that must have been like. A day or two later, I was talking about those ruts to someone at a museum, and they remarked that not only did they have to go ove the ruts, somebody had to knock down the area between the ruts or the wagons would get high-centered.  That really made me think -- who might have done that, and for the whole length of those ruts (which isn't short -- probably more than 1/4 mile). What a massive job! 

     One of the major landmarks in this first half of Wyoming is a huge rock -- probably 150 to 200 feet high, and who knows how big around -- called Independence Rock. The pioneers tried to be here by the 4th of July, and if they were, they could be pretty sure that they would get through the rest of the trip before snows cut off the passes. Many of them climbed to the top and carved their names on the rock.  I didn't climb it but there were a few names I saw carved lower down. I can imagine celebrating Independence Day at Independence Rock! But the last half of the journey was yet to come, and this was the much harder half.  

     A little further on was South Pass -- the pass through the mountains that was gentle enough to make this journey possible. As passes go, it wasn't much.  Just a climb to the top of a gentle hill, then a huge vista ahead of you that seemed fairly gentle.  It wasn't though-- there were little valleys, and small gorges that just seemed to disappear in the distance. On the way down the pass, the road took me past creeks that tumbled down over rocks, making pools in some places. I could just imagine early trappers running trap lines along those creeks, and there were even a few beaver mounds in the middle of some of the pools. Sadly, there were no pullouts where I could stop to get a photo.   

     After South Pass, I decided to take one of the "shortcuts" -- the so-called Lander Road. This road was the only section of the trail that was improved by the Federal Government. They built the Lander Road to make the journey easier, and much of it is still navigable, although it is a dirt road, and i've learned my lesson about dirt roads and Lizzie!  She really doesn't like them much, especially after it has rained.  I took that road for two reasons -- first just to see it, and second because a quilt shop that purchases Magic Triangles in bulk from me was just another 20 miles beyond the end of the Lander Road. What an opportunity to stop in there and thank them for all those orders!  They were surprised to see me -- after all, Pinedale is kind of in the middle of nowhere, and how did a quilt designer end up just "being in town?"   

From there, it was back to the trail, and on to Ft. Bridger, named after the famous mountain man, Jim Bridger. It was a beautiful setting, with birch trees all around, a river running nearby, and lush green fields everywhere you looked. These were cultivated fields, but during that time, there was lots of grass for grazing. They had a very nice museum, and a nice place for a picnic lunch.  Then it was back on the trail and into the mountains!  And that's where I'll end for this time. And the photos of that spot are on my iPhone and I can't post them....sorry!

     

Food on the Road

Have you wondered how I take care of the food and eating issues on the road? Here's a short description of how it all happens. First of all, I like to eat fresh every day, and I can hardly stand fast food. Besides I really like to cook (and to eat, in case you haven't been able to tell!). 

ON grocery day last week, I decided to take some pictures and show you. My rule of thumb is that I only ever buy 4 days worth of meat, because that's as long as I trust it to be edible in a cooler. I also replace the ice every day so it always stays cold. I don't usually buy lettuce, but I buy lots of other veggies that I can eat either raw with dip or cooked in a stir fry or just grilled.  Breakfast is always eggs, usually with chopped onions, mushrooms and spinach (love starting the day with veggies!).  So here is the most recent haul. 

It starts with cutting up all the vegetables, like the red pepper, and the celery and onions in the small container, so that they are ready to use. Then everything goes into one of 4 Rubbermaid containers, according to what it is. There is one container for meat, one for lunch stuff, and two for vegetables. Eggs come out of the cardboard carton and into a plastic one; have you ever seen what happens when those cardboard cartons get wet?  Scrambled egg all over the bottom of the cooler!

They all fit in the cooler, with a place for everything and everything in it's place. That way I know where to find stuff that I need. 

                                                  There's even room for ice!!

This particular night it was a little chilly and I was hungry for comfort food, and for me, that's spaghetti.  I had bought Italian sausage, and I had onions,mushrooms and tomato sauce, so I made some on the camp stove -- not a lot, just enough for 2 nights.  Well, 3 nights as it turns out.  I still have two to eat, and I hope they will still be good when I'm ready! I also broke the salad rule that night -- I craved a salad so bought a little bit of lettuce and had a good one!

                                           Spaghetti sauce on the camp stove!

                              Almost time for dinner!

That's how I do it on the road!  Of course, for the past 3 nights I've been in a hotel because it snowed in Wyoming, and I may have to throw out some of the food, but it's been so very cold that maybe it will still be edible.  I hope so!!  Tomorrow I'm back on the road, heading for Independence Rock, just below the middle of Wyoming. It will be warming up, and I'm hoping for no more nights in hotels!  That's not what this trip is about...... 

Landmarks

Those early emigrants across the Oregon Trail had guidebooks -- there was a photo of the cover of one of them in the museum I saw yesterday. Not much like the guidebooks I'm following. 

                              

These old guidebooks all described, and sometimes had drawings, of landmarks that they would see along the way. It's been fun to read about, see photos of, and then actually see these landmarks for myself. They are mostly visible from a long distance, perhaps several days or a week's travel away.  They are at most an hour or two on my path.  The first major one was called Courthouse Rock and Jail Rock.  They are in an unsettled area that seems like wild prairie, although I did see a few houses some distance off. 

From these landmarks to one that is a little more famous, Chimney Rock, it was only about an hour drive. That one was also in the middle of nowhere, with a pair of delightful docents in the museum there. 

But the more surprising thing about Chimney Rock was the sign as you started up the sidewalk to the museum. 

Rattlesnakes?!! Oh, no, I thought, it's too cold for them to be out. But the docent informed me that several had been seen in the last week. So you bet I watched my step and stayed on the path!

Another hour or two down the road was Scotts Bluff, a huge uplift in the earth alongside the North Platte River.  I have been following that river since Ft. Kearney NE, and will only finally leave it tomorrow in Casper Wyoming. A road goes to the top of the bluff, providing a spectacular view on a clear day.  From here you can see all the way to Chimney Rock.  

                                              View from the top of the bluff

Thsi was a rest stop for me -- time to do laundry and shop for groceries, then find a campground for the night. It amazes me now to think that I saw all 3 of these landmarks up close and personal in one day, when I'm sure it took the emigrants at least a week and maybe more to get from the first one to the last. 

The going from here on was not going to be quite so easy as crossing the prairie -- we are about to get into the Rocky Mountains. But that's another blog entry!

Cemeteries

There are a large variety of sites to see along the Oregon Trail; battle sites, forts, river crossings, ruts, but the one category that has touched me the most so far is the little cemeteries and individual grave sites. When I read the headstones, I'm surprised by the ages of those who are buried there. They are almost all so very young. The first one that really hit me was at Red Vermillion Crossing in Kansas. It's down a dirt road (many of the sites I wanted to see in Kansas are!), there were no houses or cars anywhere nearby, and it was incredibly peaceful. The site is at the top of a small hill, and partway up that hill is a stone-lined cave cut into the hillside. The guidebook doesn't mention it, and I'm going to assume that it's a tornado shelter!  

                Daniel aged 3 months 11 days; Katherine, aged 3 years, 1 month, 3 days

Another lone gravesite was in a memorial wildlife park that had once been an Oregon Trail village.  

I try to imagine how it must have felt to leave a loved one behind on the trail, sometimes with not even a stone to mark the grave. What happened to the children left behind? How did women cope if their husband died?  I have no answers to these questions, but these are the sorts of things I'm thinking about as I go from place to place. 

Another kind of place that always moves me is National cemeteries. Part of that is because both my parents are buried at the one in Santa Fe, but I always get a feeling of awe when I see them. This is Ft. McPherson, Nebraska. Many of the graves date from the 1870's and are soldiers from the Western posts. 

                                  Ft. McPherson National Cemetery

Along the way, there were places to rest for a day or two, or perhaps a little more.  These were open fields, or treed groves near water. One such place is called Alcove Spring, and I would have loved to camp there!  It was a most peaceful place although the water wasn't running for now.  One of the neat things about that place was the trail to the spring -- it was a very nicely improved trail, with a little wooden bridge -- had been an Eagle Scout project in 1999.  It still looked great!

                                                              Alcove Spring

Memories

   When I started on this adventure, my primary memory was of my friend Barb Eikmeier showing me a place along the Missouri River on Fort Leavenworth where the wagons crossed and made a swale in the river bank. I just spent 3 days with Barb and her husband Dale, and although we searched, we couldn't find the spot that matched my memory. We did find the Oregon Trail ruts that are famous on post, but this wasnt' what I remembered. Which just goes to show that memories can play tricks on you!

After those 3 wonderful days (I hadn't seen Barb for several years) the trip began in earnest. Out came the guide books and maps, on went the GPS, and I went searching for significant places on the trail. The first day was a little frustrating. Most of the sites are in the middle of the city -- a vacant lot between a couple of houses.  It didn't look much like a trail, but then 150 years have passed and many things have changed!!  One of the most interesting things that first day wasn't even trail related. I was in a park where there was a major crossing, and the guide book mentioned a red bridge. I found it, and when I got to it, was amazed to see padlocks fastened all along the railing on both sides of the bridge. It seems this is a new thing -- couples do this to "Lock in" their commitment to each other. Some of the padlocks were hand painted, but others were engraved, and there was an advertisement at the end of the bridge for a company that does the engraving!

The rest of the day was spent getting out of town (slowly) and finding other sites. This one was the most significant to me -- the parting of the ways.  It's where the California, Oregon, and Santa Fe trails divide; the California and Oregon trails go north, the Santa Fe goes south.

Time to find a place to spend the night.  I've discovered State Parks.  They are lovely, inexpensive, and so far all have had free showers (yippee). They have trees, sites are separated from each other, and this early in the season, there aren't many people camping.  It's been fun to discover these parks.

Sermons

     The pastor at my church is a really great story teller, and his sermons are often sprinkled with stories of growing up in Missouri or Ohio.  They always have a point related to the current Bible readings, but they are fun and they really spark your imagination. He often talks about summers in a cabin in Missouri, and draws wonderful word pictures.  One of his stories was about his Mother announcing that the family was going on a trip to see the source of the river along which their cabin was located. I know his mother, and I can almost hear her saying it!
     The descriptions of this source were so vivid that I wanted to see Bennett Spring for myself.  It's on the way to St. Louis, and only 12 miles off the Interstate, so when planning this long trip, I decided to leave a few days early and see this wondrous place for myself. Today was the day, and I'm camping right now at Bennett Spring State Park. It's early spring here, the trees are just starting to leaf out, the dogwoods and redwoods are in bloom, and the woods are simply lovely. There are a few sprinkles now and then, and it smells like the springs I remember growing up in Northeastern PA.  Here are just a few pictures of my camp, and the area. Tomorrow I'm going to walk some of the trails through the woods and see if I can find some Trillium, or Jack-In-The-Pulpits, or other flowers I remember from my childhood. Today I saw white violets, so maybe some of the other ones will be here too!

My campsite

Bennett Spring

;'

The River

On The Road Again

It's been almost two years since my last long camping trip, and I've been itching to do another one since that time. Last summer I did two shorter trips – one to Rocky Mountain National Park, and the other to the Grand Canyon.  They were both great trips, and I tried blogging about them, but wireless connections were so terrible that I gave up.

Now I'm ready for another big trip, this one all in the Continental US.  I'm traveling and exploring the Oregon Trail.

In 1990, while waiting for my first book to be published, I was invited to teach a class at Ft. Leavenworth in Kansas. A very good friend, Barb Eikmeier, was living there and arranged a class. It was a great trip, and a fun class, and while I was there, Barb and I did several other things, like antiquing (that part of the country is antique heaven) and seeing the local sights. One of the places she took me was to the place on the Fort where you could see the ruts of the wagons that had crossed the Missouri River to start the long trip to the Oregon Territory. I was amazed that you could still see the ruts, and it really sparked my imagination. What must it have been like for those brave and bold men, women, and children, to leave the world they knew and embark on a journey to a place they had never seen, only heard of, and to risk all the dangers of that kind of a trip?  As a fun coincidence, Barb is again living near Ft. Leavenworth; I'll get to see her, and she has promised to take me to that place on the river again!

I read several histories of traveling the Oregon Trail, and my interest just increased;  then about a dozen years ago while driving in Idaho after a teaching gig, I came across an area where I was sure I could see wagon ruts climbing a hill and disappearing over the top. After some more research, I discovered that there are many places where evidence of the trail still exists. The National Park Service has published a series of booklets with detailed descriptions of those places. I was sold – the Oregon Trail was going to be my next trip! 

I'm taking several books with me, including the NPS booklets, a guide book for things I might find along the way that are not Oregon Trail related, and my favorite book, The Oregon Trail: A Photographic Journey.  On each right-side page is a photo that the authors (Bill and Jan Moeller) have taken, and on the left side page is a short description, and usually a quote from a traveler's diary. I hope to see some of the places they photographed, and perhaps, take my own photos.

I'll start in St. Louis, where my oldest son lives with his family. My grandson Zach is being confirmed next Sunday, and I will be there for that, and then leave from there. The goal is to travel the whole trail without going on any Interstate Highways, just local roads.  I'm not sure if that will be possible the entire way, but most of it will be. I leave on Monday for St. Louis, with a stop at Bennett Spring State Park in Missouri – a place my pastor has talked about occasionally and made me want to visit.  As a fun coincidence, my friend Barb is again living near Ft. Leavenworth; I'll get to see her, and she has promised to take me to that place on the river again!

I hope you'll follow me along on this journey – it will be fun, and we may all learn something!! I should put a sign on Lizzie (my minivan) – Oregon or Bust!