This trip stemmed from my fasciation of the pioneers that traveled to California and their arduous journey to attain a better life. It was the early pioneers in the 1840’s that blazed the trail that others followed. They started out in the spring from the mid west and followed the rivers with their wagons, oxen, cows and possessions. Wagon trains typically consisted of about 100 people and were often led by men that crossed the trails before. The beginnings of the California (and Oregon) Trails were laid out by mountain men and fur traders from about 1811 to 1840 and were only passable initially on foot or on horseback. This was one of the most memorable trips I have ever had.
The journey, for the Pioneers, was gruelling (quite a difference travelling by car for 6 hours than a month on the wagon train). They had to cross mountain after mountain, deserts, salt flats, lakes of alkaline, and landscapes that they could have never imagined. Nevada and Utah were littered with dead cattle and possessions that were abandoned in order to lighten the load on the wagon. Some did not survive the journey.
One of the most tragic tales was that of the Donner-Reed Party. Their goal was to reach Sutter’s Fort on the other side of the Sierra Nevada Mountains (near the current city of Sacramento) before winter. However, they were delayed by a series of mishaps and mistakes, and spent the winter of 1846–47 snowbound in the Sierra Nevada mountains. Over half of the party died of starvation. Their biggest mistake was that they took the Hastings Cut-off which took them through the rugged Wasatch Mountains, then south of the Great Salt Lake through the desert and through the brutal salt flats to the south of the Ruby Mountains. Then the trail went north again to re-join the more established trail in Northern Nevada. It added a month to their journey.
Why did they take it? They were told by Hastings that it would be faster. Why did he tell them it would be faster? Perhaps on horseback it may have been, or perhaps he lied out of self interest. Mountain men had an incentive to get people to follow their route because they would get a commission from the Trading Posts along the route to bring people to their door. It was a disaster for the Donner-Reed party.
I tried to follow part of their trail to see what they saw. Today, the I-80 from Salt Lake City to Reno Nevada takes you through a big chunk of the Nevada portion of the pioneer trail, and some of the Donner Party Utah trail. Utah and Nevada have a lot of mountains! In fact, Nevada is known as the most mountainous state in the U.S. I can’t imagine crossing that by oxen pulled wagon trains.
Outside of Salt Lake City, heading west, you encounter the salt flats. They race cars here today at Bonneville, but can you imagine what it must have been like crossing this by wagon! No water and minimal food for the animals at this point (they still grazed on some of the sage bush). And the humans were not faring much better.
Any water that they did find was alkaline and smelled of sulphur. 
Gravely Ford is the spot where a fight broke out among the travellers resulting in a murder. The pioneers actually convened a court with a jury to settle the matter. Even though it was the “wild west” they still adhered to principles of law and order. The plaque below marks the spot of this event and the Indian massacre of a wagon train.
In the photo below, it looks like tracks from a wagon. Is it possible that it is from the pioneers?
Parts of Nevada look like another planet. Some of the mountain ranges are black so the mix of colors is quite splendid.
Closer to the Reno area, trees and green shrubs start to appear.
Then after all that they endured on the trail, the final arduous step was to climb the solid granite Sierra Nevada Mountains. What determination!
Once they reached the top of the mountain, they camped briefly and later descended down the other side to the warmer and greener Sacramento area and the end goal: Sutter’s Fort.
However, due to the delays encountered in Utah and Nevada, the Donner Party arrived to the Sierra Nevada Mountains in late October and, adding to their misfortune, there was an early severe snowfall. The party became snow bound in the mountains, near what is now called “Donner Lake” and could not go further. The winter was one of harshest on record with over 25 feet of snow at the lake area. They could not retreat because that route was now closed off by snow.
The Donner Party ran out of food. They had no animal traps and relied on hunting for game, most of which had already retreated to lower elevations. They also tried unsuccessfully to fish in the ice-bound lake. They lacked the experience to make the best of the extreme winter conditions. There were accounts in the diaries of having to result to cannibalism, but no hard evidence to support it.
The rock above was a wall and hearth in the Murphy cabin. Below is a rendering of what the cabin looked like. A fire would be lit to heat up the rock and keep the room warm.
Of the approximately 90 members of the Donner party, about 45 survived and made it to the Sacramento Valley and beyond. The Donner Party Memorial and Emigrant Trail museum is located at Donner Lake. I found the museum fascinating! It was a gruelling journey, but the determined pioneers gave it their all. Many made it to beautiful California; unfortunately some did not.
Side Journey to Virginia City
Southeast of Reno, up in one of the many Nevada Mountains, you will find Virginia City, a charming small “wild west” town. It was a boomtown in the 1860s and 1870s due to silver mining. It is also the birth place of the writer known as Mark Twain.
Virginia City retains an authentic historic character with board sidewalks, and numerous restored buildings dating to the 1860s and 1870s. There are many museums and shops worth visiting. It is also near the site of the fictitious Ponderosa Ranch on the Western television drama Bonanza. As such, the show’s characters made visits to the town regularly. However, the Virginia City depicted on Bonanza was located at RKO Studio in Hollywood.
Among the attractions on C Street are the Bucket of Blood Saloon, the Delta Saloon with the Old Globe and Suicide table, the Silver Queen, the Brass Rail Saloon, and the Red Dog Saloon, originally the 1875 Comstock House, located at 76 North C Street. The Red Dog Saloon gave many San Francisco rock musicians their start during the summer of 1965. Piper’s Opera House occupies the corner of B and Union Streets and is open as a museum when not a host to shows and musical venues.
Enjoy your trip along the pioneer trail!
