NEBRASKA AND WYOMING
May, 1850
Here is a video montage from some of my trips through Nebraska and Wyoming along the trail of places John App and Jake passed by during May of 1850. The scenes are in no particular order. The aerial footage will show the landscape in a way that is not easily seen from the ground. It reveals the expansive landscape of the American West, which is very impressive and ruggedly beautiful.
There are places in the video where we have passed by with John… the Platte River, Courthouse and Jail Rock, and Chimney Rock in Nebraska. And, there are places in Wyoming we will soon visit with him… the magnificent trail ruts at Guernsey, Independence Rock where John chiseled his name in the stone, Devil’s Gate (a V-shaped gorge) that is 300 feet (91 m) wide at the top and 30 feet (9 m) wide at the bottom through which the Sweetwater River flows, and South Pass on the Continental Divide near the Wind River Mountains.
Today, Interstate 80 is a highway that closely parallels not only the California-Oregon Trail, but also the Transcontinental Railroad. Many traveling this road by car grumble that there is not much to see, but I would say it is all in knowing where to look. We will catch up with John and Jake on the 24th, but for today we can enjoy the sights in this vicarious ride along the California-Oregon Trail through Nebraska and Wyoming.
