BUST - Part 2 : The California Emigrant Trail / The Great Platte River Road

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Continuing our epic overland trek to the west, we crossed into the state of Nebraska and began following a shallow but wide river that stretched across from the Missouri River to the uplands of central Wyoming. For emigrants, it was a natural east to west corridor across the plains and one that provided a much needed source of water. This stretch of the California Emigrant Trail became known as, the Great Platte River Road and in Episode 2 of BUST, you'll get to see us move further away from civilization and visit historic locations such as the Hollenberg Pony Express Station, Rock Creek Station, Fort Kearney and take a tour of the Great Platte River Road Archway Monument. You'll also get to see us visit deep wagon swales at The Sand Hill Ruts and Windlass Hill and see geologic wonders that emigrants used as landmarks to guide their way such as Courthouse and Jail Rocks, Chimney Rock and Scotts Bluff. To wrap things up, you'll get to see us cross into the state of Wyoming, make a stop at Fort Laramie, read the names carved into the face of Register Cliff and finally, stare in awe at the Ayres Natural Bridge. We hope you enjoy.


PLEASE SUBSCRIBE
If you like what you see, want to see more and haven't done so already, please SUBSCRIBE to our YouTube channel by clicking the link below:
https://www.youtube.com/wayalife?sub_confirmation=1

It's hard to imagine but, up until the 1830's, there were only a handful of people in America who had successfully traveled to California and across what was then only known as, the Great American Desert. Most of these people were trappers, traders and missionaries and it wouldn't be until the 1840's that a more defined route was established by early settlers and given the name, The California Trail. Thanks to the discovery of Gold in 1848, there would ultimately be tens of thousands of people who would make the arduous four month journey, one that started along the banks of the Missouri River and ultimately ended in the goldfields of California. Along the way, they would cover over 2,000 miles, cross deep rivers, tall mountains and an unforgiving desert and all at a time when there were no roads, no stores, no hospitals, no laws and no second chances.

For years, Cindy and I had been wondering if it was possible to retrace the California Trail from beginning to end, as closely as possible to the original route and as much as possible, all on dirt. Along the way, we would make stops at historical sites, see deep ruts carved into the hillsides from the thousands of wagons that passed through before us and follow geological landmarks that early pioneers used to guide their way. After two years of extensive research, careful planning and plotting a viable route, we finally set off to make that trek, in our Jeep Wrangler and this video series chronicles our journey.
 

Trail Bud

Member
Loving it and still smiling. I didn’t remember the buffalo.
Going through the fort/camps again brought back some good memories.
Great music too!!
 

olram30

Not That Kind of Engineer
I love these trips! I hope your time in Wyoming was great. It's really a beautiful state with a lot of history. Luckily there's not many people here, so a lot is still preserved. Awesome videos!

Sent from my SM-N960U using JL Wrangler Jeep Forum mobile app
 

JLRay

Member
Finally got the chance to watch it. Great movie!! It’s amazing how the wagon tracks cut into the ground like that very cool! Can’t wait for the next part. [emoji106]
 

wayoflife

Administrator
Staff member
Excited to watch more off-road coverage of American history.

Awesome :)

Really cool video with all the history and landscape changes from wagons.

Glad to hear you enjoyed it :)

Loving it and still smiling. I didn’t remember the buffalo.
Going through the fort/camps again brought back some good memories.
Great music too!!

LOL - you don't remember the buffalo? :crazyeyes:
Glad you're enjoying the videos :)

So awesome[emoji631]

Thanks :)

So much history out there. Very cool to see.

It really is nice that so much of it is still out there.

I love these trips! I hope your time in Wyoming was great. It's really a beautiful state with a lot of history. Luckily there's not many people here, so a lot is still preserved. Awesome videos!

Oh yeah, Wyoming was one of our favorite parts of this trip. More to come in the next episode :yup:

Very interesting, thank you for sharing.:thumb:

You bet! :)

Finally got the chance to watch it. Great movie!! It’s amazing how the wagon tracks cut into the ground like that very cool! Can’t wait for the next part. [emoji106]

Awesome, happy to hear you're liking it :)
 

Top