Fort Laramie, WY - June 13-16, 2006

While the high plains of Wyoming have a unique beauty, our RV park in Fort Laramie was probably the least charming stop on our journey so far! It didn’t help that we arrived with temperatures near 100 degrees and 30-50 mph winds! The park was right by the railroad tracks and freight trains pulling 120 to 150 cars went by at all times of the day and night – and since there was a train crossing nearby, they blew their whistles every time! (Actually, even when they woke us at night, we generally went right back to sleep..) Another unfortunate circumstance – a forest fire several miles away filled the air with smoke, cutting our visibility and burning our eyes. The fire persisted for several days while we were in the area, although it really affected us just one evening.

In spite of these little problems, Fort Laramie gave us a fascinating look into the history of the American west – especially the westward migration of the wagon trains. Much of the original Fort Laramie is preserved as part of the very comprehensive national park exhibit. We toured the old officers’ quarters, commanding officer’s and surgeon’s homes, barracks, and other buildings. Many of the displays were decorated as they would have been back in the 1870’s and our audio tour included narratives from people who lived at Fort Laramie during that time. We also watched a firearms demonstration featuring two different types of rifles used during the civil war and later – Ez liked that! It’s easy to imagine what a welcome sight the fort would have been for the pioneers who had already traveled many months across the prairie to get to this spot.


Also near Fort Laramie were two other glimpses of life on the trail west. A few miles after the pioneers left Fort Laramie, they came to Register Cliff where many of the travelers carved their names and left other messages for those who came later. You can still see dozens of these names and dates carved into the stone. Unfortunately, every fool who came along after that also thought they needed to add their name to this historical landmark! They’ve tried to fence off the area where the oldest names are located, but the desecration still occurs. Too bad – it really takes away from this interesting site.

Just a few miles away you can see a vivid picture of what the pioneers went through at the Oregon Trail Ruts. Here the covered wagons were forced into a single line as they traveled up a hill and wore ruts into the rock over the years. At some places the ruts are as much as five feet deep. Here's Ez standing in the middle of one of the ruts. You can certainly imagine that this trip was no picnic! I’ll take the comforts of the motor home any day!

Next we’re off to the Black Hills of South Dakota to see the sights and take care of some business – getting ourselves set up as South Dakota residents complete with driver licenses!