1/7 Red Buttes on the North Platte River just west of present Casper, WY
2/7 The Overland Trail across what's now southern Wyoming
Wyoming Chapter
4/7 Point of Rocks Stage Station on the Overland Trail.
5/7 Fourth graders from Casper, Wyo., visit the Oregon Trail at South Pass
6/7 Plume Rock, on the Oregon Trail west of South Pass and the Continental Divide
7/7 Parting of the Ways, where emigrants chose between routes that could take them to Calif ...
Wyoming OCTA’s 175 or so members are dedicated to preserving and enjoying the most pristine of all the trails in the Oregon-California-Mormon-Pony Express trails system.
Overview
Across most of Wyoming, from Fort Laramie past the North Platte Crossing, Red Buttes, Independence Rock, Devil’s Gate and Martin’s Cove to South Pass, the Oregon, California, Mormon and Pony Express trails were essentially a single route. West of South Pass, the road divided into several branches and cutoffs. Wyoming’s sagebrush plains, wide horizons and endless skies leave long stretches of these trails looking much like they did 170 years ago.
The Cherokee Trail across Southern Wyoming was blazed in 1849 and 1850 by California-bound goldseekers from Arkansas and present Oklahoma. By the 1860s, the parallel Overland Trail had become the main stage route, followed by emigrants and freighters alike. Half a million people came west on these trails between 1842 and 1869. Wyoming OCTA does its best to preserve, protect and enjoy all these routes. We hope to see you on the trails!
Leadership
President: Tom Rea
Vice President: Julia Stuble
Secretary: JoAnn Ryan
Treasurer: Fern Linton
Preservation Officer: Randy Brown