One of my greatest frustrations in writing Picture of the Past is the lack of succinct information on the Overland Trail. Oh, there is information to be had in plenty - if you have the time and wherewithal to read dozen and dozens of thick books, or, on the other side, if you are content with a kindergartner's understanding of it. But a quick, down and dirty guide for the suffering writer? Nope.
Okay, then, how about a basic timeline of the progress the wagons made along the trail? You know, "In April they generally reached about here. This is what the land was like." Nope. Not a chance. So I have researched and googled and examined maps and tried to construct my own timeline. Which has been surprisingly difficult and my best resources have ended up being diaries.
I am not saying it is accurate, but, I THINK it is somewhat accurate. Below are my very basic results - I don't need much - I just need to know about when they were to try and add a little realism. If you see a mistake in my conclusions or know of a better resource, I would very much welcome anything you have to offer.
March - April: Left jumping off point, usually Independence or St. Joseph's, Missouri.
May: generally crossing plains, traveling along the Platte river, crossing rivers, traveling through Kansas along the border of Nebraska. It was usually before Ft. Laramie along this section that emigrants died of cholera. May begin dealing with Indians.
June: Often reached Ft. Kearney in June. May pass Court House Rock, Scotts Bluff, and Ft. Laramie (crossing into Wyoming). In addition, would be in Indian territory, see antelope and buffalo, crossing bluffs, may have difficulty traveling through mud, sloughs, uneven ground,etc.
July: aimed to reach Independence Rock by the 4th in Wyoming. Shortly afterwards would reach the devil's gate and then the South Pass in the Rockies. Might have difficulties with water and grass. Increasing number of abandoned belongings as path is difficult. Would reach Ft. Bridger at some point.
August - September: May have hit Soda Springs in early August, and then Fort Hall (both in Idaho). This is where the California trail split off. California emigrants would head down into Nevada where they would travel along the Humboldt River and hit the forty mile desert. Courtesy of Wikipedia: West of the river's end in the Humboldt Sink, the trail forked, with one branch leading towards the Carson River and the other towards the Truckee River.[2] Regardless of which route they took, the travelers would have to endure about 40 miles (64 km) of desert without usable water.[1]
Once through the desert, they would have to cross the Sierra Nevada Mountain range. I believe they would reach this around the beginning of September. They would likely have difficult tasks, such as lowering wagons over cliffs as well. They would continue through Donner's Pass, then Emigrant Gap, to Sutter's Fort, generally arriving around end of September.
And that, as far as I can figure, is the approximate timeline of "normal" trip across the country. And it's what I'm sticking to until I am told otherwise.
Wow! Good digging! I'd buy it. :)
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