Posted on 07/24/2020 4:12:17 PM PDT by bboop
We are Trail Nuts. We head next week to follow some of the Lewis & Clark/ Pony Express/ Oregon Trails. We'll spend most of our time in Wyoming, the Dakotas, Nebraska, and Kansas, returning to LA via Colorado.
Any historic sites that are imperative to see? Any 'don't bothers'? We'll also be taking day hikes.
Any warnings re masks in these parts? Needing a taste of freedom after too much time in Commie California. Thanks
Last week, the Old Faithful area was very, very crowded. We ended up skipping it. Too many people without Covid, but really didn’t want to deal with it during Covid. Other areas of the park were fine.
Choose your departure date (time of year) carefully...
Good luck... Report back to FR in 2022 and let us know how it went...
There are wagon ruts near Scotts Bluff, Nebraska. It has been a number of years since I was there, but I recall there were a lot of stories presented about the difficulties the settlers faced, and graves of people who died of broken legs, the flu, whatever.
https://www.nps.gov/scbl/planyourvisit/otpath.htm
I traveled through the area in the last couple of weeks. In Wyoming some of the rest stops on the interstate were closed but the ones on state highways were open. Montana had theirs open, even on the interstate. The mask situation very subjective. I didn’t wear one anywhere, and wasn’t challenged about it either. Not even in Colorado/ Denver.
It might just be me, however that’s my evidence. Perhaps anecdotal. YMMV.
Btty!
If you go to Downtown Kansas City and stay overnight check out the Lewis and Clark Overlook. (Go in Daytime.)
Lunch or dinner at BBQ place “Q39”. Right now you wear masks, but you can take them off at the table.
Other videos you might want to watch!
Canoe trips on the upper Missouri. (Go DOWN the river, not up!
https://trailadventures.com/missouri-river-canoe-trips/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZnIp4aB992w
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5aesffh9aKE
Not maybe the section you want to experience, northern NV.
Watch and you do not need to go there!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbrJuML_z4U
Video. Easy way to check it out first!
Have a good trip!
)
Bookmark
“William Clark's inscription of his name and the date on the northeastern face of this huge rock formation is the only surviving physical evidence known to remain along the route of the explorers that was left by them and can be indisputably associated with the expedition. Possibly two others in the party also etched their names, but this cannot be proven.”
https://www.nps.gov/parkhistory/online_books/lewisandclark/site24.htm
I started with Ambrose and then read the diaries, which are fascinating. I want to do your trip but following their path from east to west. I wouldn’t want to miss Floyd’s Bluff, to honor the (incredibly) single fatality of the expedition. For me it will be about history, not sightseeing.
If, while hiking, you happen to come across a large grizzly bear, check to see if it is wearing a mask. If not, immediately report it to a game warden.
First, there are numerous small towns in Kansas and Nebraska that have small museums, typically manned by elderly women, that have amazing collections of 19th century artifacts. Second, in western Nebraska, you should try to see Scott’s Bluff and Chimney Rock, which were points on the Oregon Trail that were iconic landmarks the pioneers looked for as they traveled west. Third, in north central Nebraska, you should check out the Sand Hills area, which is a beautiful drive. Also in that area is the Niobrara River national monument, where there are still herds of Buffalo that you can observe. You should also consider spending a few hours at Little Bighorn in eastern Montana. Before you visit, you should watch the History Channel special on the battle.
On our trip to Nebraska several years ago, we attended a rodeo. It was a very memorable experience for someone who is not from the mountain west. If you have an opportunity to track down a rodeo on your trip, it is worth spending A couple hours at. A note of caution, however. Our family was dressed in Nike and Under Armor attire, while everybody else was dressed in denim and cowboy attire. The people were super nice, but dress appropriately.
Deadwood on a warm evening sipping a draft beer with music being played down the street is so relaxing...
its Trump country, what can I say.....
You’ve got to visit the Skinwalker Ranch in Utah. Do some primitive camping in the canyons there. You’ll have a fun night!
Unfortunately for me, I read this after my family did its USA tour in 1991. I only crossed their path once. I wish I could have seen more of what L&C saw.
I would also recommend Lewis & Clark / Voyage of Discovery which is a photographic version of the Ambrose book with photos by Sam Abell.
ML/NJ
Read Undaunted Courage. Great book.
We’ve done bunches of trips like this. I think the National Historic Trails Interpretive Center in Casper WY is the best of the various museums.
I wanna go. :-(
In Ft Pierre, SD, where the Bad River dumps into the Misouri River, there is a marker where L&C were forced to spend 3 days giving gifts to the Sioux indians before they were allowed to continue North. Two years later, on their way back, they were told to stop and give up more trinkets but with the fast moving current they flipped them off and kept going.
The site of the Verndrye marker is also in Ft Pierre. The Verndrye brothers buried a lead plate in the 1700’s claiming the land for France which became the Louisiana Purchase. The plate was found by some kids digging on a Ft Pierre hiltop in the 1920’s.
I grew up in Pierre.
I also recommend “Undaunted Courage” by Stephen E. Ambrose, one of the most interesting books that I have read.
https://www.amazon.com/s?k=Undaunted+Courage&link_code=qs&sourceid=Mozilla-search&tag=mozilla-20
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