Western Nebraska

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The next historic stop was Courthouse and Jail rocks, near Bridgeport, Ne.. These landmarks are the eastmost outcroppings of an area called the wildcat hills.


Courth ouse and Jail rocks were the first of the big landmarks the westward travelers would see. Later on, the landmarks closer to and in the Rockies would be much bigger and impressive, but after weeks of travel across the flat Nebraska landscape, they must have seemed very strange and impressive.

Bridgeport is also the town that I grew up in. It is important historically because it is the crossroads of most of the trails I mentioned before ( except the transcontinental railroad ) and the Sidney Deadwood trail approx 25 years later.

Next stop was Chimney Rock, one of the most famous landmarks on the Oregon Trail.



Next stop was Scottsbluff National Monument, another major landmark ( and OBSTACLE ) on the Oregon Trail. There is a road and a hiking trail that goes to the top of this hill. The monument rises 800 feet above the North Platte River, which passes very nearby. The view from the top is incredible on a clear day.

View from the top.

A telescope is available to see some of the landmarks more clearly.





The road to the peak is visible in this picture on the left.

I beleive that this trail is the remnants of the Oregon trail wagon tracks.

Visible in the background is Chimney Rock. Below, the hiking trail is visible.
This link has some interesting pictures of several of the landmarks I have mentioned.